99-00 Discovery II Series

I am thinking of purchasing a used Discovery from a dealer, trading in my 92 Subaru SVX. From reading the reviews of some people, they either love it or they hate it. I am concerned about the price to fix any major problems that may go wrong, and how long the car will actually last (how many miles). I test drove the Discovery, then a Pathfinder, and last the 4runner...I liked the Discovery the best. It had the most room, features, and the nicest ride out of all 3. Any suggestions on what to look out for when buying from a dealer?

As a general rule, follow the same guidelines you would follow for buying any car.

As for specifics, a major one is listening to the engine. Some of the Land Rover V8's are notorious for valve and lifter "clatter." It will be a ticking/tapping noise coming from the engine compartment. With many of the engines, the only way to fix it is to do a full valve train job. Besides that, they're just like any other used car.

As for maintenance costs. They are expensive if you go through the dealer, and fairly normal if you go through a specialty/foreign only shop.