Classic Range Rovers

[OBRUT]

Are these on anyone else's radar?  Does anyone have any tales of love or woe to share?

More specifically, it is common to see air bag suspension replaced with coil springs - the regular reason given being for simplicity/robustness.  Does this undo some of the RR character?  Is it a value hit?

[tazzieman]

They are collectable ; I have thought about one. But nothing younger than 30 years.
Not sure how much of an "investment' the later ones are in Australia. I suspect early Landcruisers & Patrols are on people's radars down here.

To answer your question , I would replace airbags with steel & be damned, unless I lived in paddington , in which case I'd go the full gangster hiphop bagging route.

[MR901]

I've owned a couple of early RR's....as a nostalgic drive I loved them & when they are going well they'll drive almost anywhere.....BUT.....I did find them expensive to fix / run. If you're thinking weekend truck & occasionally trailing your car to the track I say go it....if your thinking daily workhorse stick with a landcruiser !! The suspension conversion is very common....

Cheers

Matt

[turboT]

A friend just bought a 90's RR.  He could be considered a bit of a cool and very much in demand architect/designer so you could be onto something ryan. Rumor has it they are even less fuel efficient than a 930 (hard to believe I know).

[Mike-S]

Yep, owned a few and driven a few hundred thousand miles in them over the years. About to start the resto of a 2 door classic a mate owns and we're always on the lookout for likely candidates to buy/restore/use. Looking for a 94 soft dash at the mo' last of the original classic shape.

Replacing the air springs with coils is a common thing, personally I'd always persevere with the air springs as the ride is excellent. Like every Land Rover product they can be temperamental, but the plethora of decent specialists and massive spares backup for them means they're easy to keep on the road. Engine wise it's possible to fit the 6.2 LS if you really want a comedy rapid bus, Les Richmond here in Melbs do that conversion all the time.

[symsy]

[rangiegaz]

I've owned a few from '73 to '96 and love them. Don't have one now because I found they lacked a bit of power to tow a big van .Do have a 930 though and don't think either are too bad on fuel (driven sensibly, which is sometimes hard with a 930 ). When I'm finished with touring in a van I will have another Rangie in a heartbeat, "love em",

[symsy]

What fuel prices , what oil crisis..what global warming   Keep your classic and drop an LS3 put your motor in a crate    Mine used to Guzzle..  maybe not quite as much as the TT when given a boot full at 28l/100

 

 

[Diamond911]

Interesting.  (+ 1983-88 Ford Thunderbird Turbo Coupe, 1990-92 Audi Coupe Quattro, and BMW 318 Ti for those wondering)

 

18MAY 2016

THESE FIVE CARS ARE LONG-SHOT COLLECTIBLES

By: Hagerty

You don’t have to be Nostradamus to peg a LaFerrari as a future blue-chip collectible. For many people, the fun is in the margins, pulling something out of left field (for cheap) that nobody cares about today and showing the rest of the world how damned smart you were when everyone else comes around. OK, it doesn’t happen that often, and every car on this list is a true long shot but we can make a case for each one being more than just a disposable used car:

1. 1994-04 Land Rover Discovery - “Discos” of nearly any year or flavor are just one step up from a curb couch in terms of desirability in the marketplace. And with good reason. They’re frigging exasperating to own and try to keep on the road.  Nearly every one of them seems to be afflicted with some sort of horrible, Ebola-like hemorrhagic fever that presents with simultaneous leaks from steering racks, head gaskets, oil pans, valve covers, differentials and A/C compressors.  But outside of a Land Rover Defender, they might just be one of the most irresistible off-road capable vehicles out there. They even look great festooned with the normally ridiculous assortment of roof racks, auxiliary lights, snorkel exhausts and brush bars. You actually can wrench on them yourself and the aftermarket parts and accessory universe is huge.  As Land Rover continues to abandon the Serengeti for Knightsbridge, the day might just come when the rare, fully sorted examples of the Discovery bring real money.

2. 1987-95 Range Rover - This may well be the first listicle in the illustrious history of listicles about collectible vehicles with two entries from Land Rover, JD Power’s perennial cellar occupant.  But let’s face it, the original Range Rover is a legitimate style icon. Although not the first luxury SUV (that honor likely falls to the Jeep Grand Wagoneer), it was the first for people who liked their wood of the actual polished, burled walnut variety as opposed to the self-adhesive vinyl kind. In the UK, the early and very spartan two-door Rangies have already started to take off as collectibles. Even nice unrusted four-doors are heading up. Here, they’re still practically free for most of the same reasons that Discoveries are. But for how long?

[JLD]

I had an early 2 door a long time ago. It had a 350 Chev mated to the factory 4 speed. It was a beast, loved every minute of it! I'd love an early 2 door again, or a 95 Classic (soft dash) in Biarritz Blue one day... The spring conversion on the later airbag suspension models is very common as the airbag suspension can be costly to repair.

[Harvs11]

I've owned a couple of early RR's....as a nostalgic drive I loved them & when they are going well they'll drive almost anywhere.....BUT.....I did find them expensive to fix / run. If you're thinking weekend truck & occasionally trailing your car to the track I say go it....if your thinking daily workhorse stick with a landcruiser !! The suspension conversion is very common....

Cheers

Matt

Sounds familiar  

I get the same disapproving look from SWMBO when ever I spend anything on the porker as I did with the early Rangie I had for a few years.  

[JV911]

 

[OBRUT]

Very cool.  Thanks JV.  Love HM's reviews. 

[Mike-S]

That really makes me want to get another as a 3rd car behind the RRS and 911.

Up until last year my Dad had run a Range Rover (various ones, not the same one) for nearly 30 years, it's the one car I remember both as a kid and adult as being omnipresent in the fleet. For us they weren't a particular luxury, he lived in the Peak District where several inches of snow every winter were the norm and towing trailers full of building materials were a necessity. His last 'classic' was an M plate 93 Brooklands with a modified 3.9 that just flew, I remember nicking it for a year in 2003 because I was on a cross country pipeline project and the Impreza Turbo I had a daily wasn't exactly suited to 12" of mud everyday. I punted that car across country for 12 months, covering near on 40,000 miles in the process. Bear in mind the Ranga had 180,000 miles on it already, it never once let me down and once you understand the handling characteristics Harry talks about in that video, you can hustle them along at a massive rate of knots. Turn in early, let it settle on the relevant rear corner and just boot it, the grip is immense. Yes, the door handles might be touching the floor as well, but that just part of the charm. The visibility is amazing in those, you really can place them with millimetric precision.

My BiL took the Ranga from me and used it as tow car for his landscaping business when his Navara blew up again. At just over 300,000 miles the ECU failed so we scrapped it back in 2008. Today, that car would be worth a fortune, I wish we'd restored it rather than buying the V8 L322 that replaced it but hey ho, if we thought like that all the time we'd never have sold Mum's Mk1 Lotus Cortina for £130 back in 1975 

Time to click on the gumtree and carsales apps...

[Harvs11]

once you understand the handling characteristics Harry talks about in that video, you can hustle them along at a massive rate of knots. Turn in early, let it settle on the relevant rear corner and just boot it, the grip is immense. Yes, the door handles might be touching the floor as well, but that just part of the charm. The visibility is amazing in those, you really can place them with millimetric precision.

I used to love the way these trucks could carve up a mountain track. Once you got over the fear of near roll-overs (no sway bars and long travel springs) you could really get stuck in. None of my mates in Patrols and Cruisers could keep up.

SWMBO used to brace for impact whenever I squeezed the Rangie between trams and parked cars without really slowing down 

 

[KGB]

I took one to the snow once, just once.