I realize that the Range Rover used pretty much the same basic engine from day one (the alloy Buick-Olds V8) but were these fuel-injected or carbed way back then? I found one in pretty decent shape here on Craigs, but the engine is "kaput". Would it be "a deal/steal" at $1,500.
Nope. Bad deal. They were fuel injected.
I've seen running ones go for under $1000 lately.
Thanks, I guess I've been reading too many British performance car mags. They mod this engine, and RRs in general, all sorts of ways. It's a bit of a shame, tho, as this example is a nice color combo and looks pretty good physically.
For a time they had iron blocks with alum heads, overheated easy and blew head gaskets because of it quickly.
Dad was a used car dealer, almost 100% of the time he saw one come in for trade, it had mixed oil/coolant. be wary of cheap RR's!
BobOfTheFuture wrote: For a time they had iron blocks with alum heads, overheated easy and blew head gaskets because of it quickly.
FALSE! All alloy all the time (iron liners tho).
TR3only wrote: I realize that the Range Rover used pretty much the same basic engine from day one (the alloy Buick-Olds V8) but were these fuel-injected or carbed way back then? I found one in pretty decent shape here on Craigs, but the engine is "kaput". Would it be "a deal/steal" at $1,500.
Unless it is in perfect condition everywhere else, $1500 is too steep. Non-running it should be in the $500 range.
Junkyard_Dog wrote:BobOfTheFuture wrote: For a time they had iron blocks with alum heads, overheated easy and blew head gaskets because of it quickly.FALSE! All alloy all the time (iron liners tho).
Possible. Pop's been wrong before.
But he prolly wasnt wrong that he saw alot of milkshake then, so i'd look into it.
I'm a Rover tech. It was probably head gaskets but if they get to milkshake stage its negligence.
I have yet to meet anyone who works on vehicles for a living that thinks they are 'well built'. Some shops around here refuse to work on them.
They tend to rust easily, and have electrical glitches (though on a cheap one, you could rewire them fairly easily), but they tend to be really really good at what they are designed to do, which is head off into the boonies.
But yes, you can get a decent running early Rangie SWB for about a grand. The only thing is, is the one you are looking at rust free? If it is, then yes, the chassis/body is worth $1500, 'cause it'd cost way more than that to make one rust free.
I'm on my third Range Rover. I love them.
And while I do all my own work, there is a local shop that specializes in them.
Chris_V wrote: They tend to rust easily, and have electrical glitches (though on a cheap one, you could rewire them fairly easily), but they tend to be really really good at what they are designed to do, which is head off into the boonies. But yes, you can get a decent running early Rangie SWB for about a grand. The only thing is, is the one you are looking at rust free? If it is, then yes, the chassis/body is worth $1500, 'cause it'd cost way more than that to make one rust free. I'm on my third Range Rover. I love them. And while I do all my own work, there is a local shop that specializes in them.
You mean the rear rusts.... the rest is made of aluminum, yes?
Despite their issues, i loved my 1993 County LWB. Amazing truck.
Based on the title of this thread, I was hoping it was a Rolls Royce. 
I'd love to see one of those show up to the Challenge!
Junkyard_Dog wrote: I'm a Rover tech. It was probably head gaskets but if they get to milkshake stage its negligence.
Negligence?
neglecting to replace the head gasket? Im not sure where your going here. How does negligence mix oil with the coolant, short of pouring in the wrong spout?
Aluminum SKIN, rust prone British steel everywhere else. The skin often hides crumbling innards and rotten frames.
BobOfTheFuture wrote:Junkyard_Dog wrote: I'm a Rover tech. It was probably head gaskets but if they get to milkshake stage its negligence.Negligence? neglecting to replace the head gasket? Im not sure where your going here. How does negligence mix oil with the coolant, short of pouring in the wrong spout?
I'm saying they leak oil out of the head gaskets WAY before they leak coolant internally. Then they leak coolant out the rear corners of the head gaskets. Then they go all the way. Fix the oil leak early and right and you won't have that problem again for years. One of my favorite sayings is even more true on Rovers: " You can pay me a little now, or a lot later".
Hm, i guess id just prefer a non leaking gasket.
well, wait. at what kind of miles?
If they have a longer life, but leak at about when other blow, ok. But if they leak before most give up, thats no good.
BobOfTheFuture wrote: Hm, i guess id just prefer a non leaking gasket.
Non leaking + british car = unpossible
Oh please. I'm guessing most of the "experts" responding have never owned a Range Rover.
I have owned a number of them and will never be with out one. The RR "classic" is stout as hell, very capable off road and other than a minor switchgear glitch or two, reliable for the 160k I owned it. It provided off road support for mountain bike races, went up washboard roads that had other 4x4s shaking so bad they felt as if they were coming apart-all in AC comfort and skip free CD tunes. Like any vehicle, maintenance is important. Many drive their Rangies through truly appalling conditions, yet fail to service the damn thing-then complain when something fails. Also, RRs are not designed for heavy towing. Using them for this purpose will result in frustration and overloaded engines. The chassis and drivetrain are great, just somewhat underpowered.
The early 2nd gen RRs had some issues with the 4.0 and most don't recommend them. The 4.6 is much improved and works rather well. I'm currently running a Holland & Holland Range Rover 4.6 with some Special vehicle upgrades. This one is a sexy beast. High end luxury interior, classy styling and once again, stellar off road capability. Currently approaching 100k with it with no issues other than routine service and a sticky auto door lock. For cheap RR fun, I'd recommend a Classic. I'd also advise paying a bit more for one that has been maintained with some semblance of regularity. Plenty of great deals out there-pick up a nice 90s County Edition, driven by a suburban Hausfrau and you are good to go for years. If the RR in question is in great shape other than the motor, its still worth considering, as engines are cheap and they are not that difficult to work on.
None of my Rovers has ever had rust, leaking or head gasket issues.
I've also run one of the newer BMW/Ford/whatever versions and it is quite a mode of transport-although I won't comment much on that as the price point isn't relevant to this discussion.
Not much info that I hadn't heard/read before....except for the admonition NOT to tow with a RR. Because there are so few (actually, almost none) alternatives, most RRs in Europe are bought for towing....albeit, ONLY with diesel power, as the towing mileage of a gas powered version is ungawdly.
I haven't gone to look at the vehicle in question, just have pix from CL to go by (taken from front left corner), but being here in the mid-south, it should still be rust-free. Because I had heard the engines were cheap(ish) I considered going a bit further on this. I will need to look at several parts sources for several major components, first.
ignorant wrote:BobOfTheFuture wrote: Hm, i guess id just prefer a non leaking gasket.Non leaking + british car = unpossible
Tell me about it, I know how they leak. When, far in the future, some historian finds the remnants of my house under 1000 years of sediment, they will know immediately where my MGB was parked.
93celicaGT2 wrote:Chris_V wrote: They tend to rust easily, and have electrical glitches (though on a cheap one, you could rewire them fairly easily), but they tend to be really really good at what they are designed to do, which is head off into the boonies. But yes, you can get a decent running early Rangie SWB for about a grand. The only thing is, is the one you are looking at rust free? If it is, then yes, the chassis/body is worth $1500, 'cause it'd cost way more than that to make one rust free. I'm on my third Range Rover. I love them. And while I do all my own work, there is a local shop that specializes in them.You mean the rear rusts.... the rest is made of aluminum, yes? Despite their issues, i loved my 1993 County LWB. Amazing truck.
Everything under the outer skin is steel and can rust. And some of the outer skin is steel, too. I've seen quite a bit of rust in frames, floorboards, cowls, etc.
TR3only wrote: Not much info that I hadn't heard/read before....except for the admonition NOT to tow with a RR. Because there are so few (actually, almost none) alternatives, most RRs in Europe are bought for towing....albeit, ONLY with diesel power, as the towing mileage of a gas powered version is ungawdly.
The RR Classic had a 5500 lb tow rating in 3.9 liter form, and 7000 lbs in 4.2 liter LWB form. While I didn't tow with my '88 3.5 liter classic, the '95 4.2 liter County LWB towed our travel trailer all over the place. I towed a couple of cars back from as far away as new Hampshire to Baltimore. I've towed heavy loads up to CT and back. I went and picked up the '79 Chevy 1500 parts truck on a trailer and the LWB didn't even act like it knew it was back there. Oh, and it got 16 mpg towing OR unloaded. 
The '01 4.6 HSE I've got now is set to do travel trailer towing duties for the next few years.
http://www.rangerovers.net/outfitting/towing/index.html
Are there any good RR engine swaps like are frequenty done with jags & SBCs?
HappyAndy wrote: Are there any good RR engine swaps like are frequenty done with jags & SBCs?
Only common ones are up and back to the diesel. There is an Aussie site that sells adapters to bolt Chevy motors to the Rover trans or Chevy motor/trans setups to the Rover transfer case. The kit is fairly pricey and the swap doesn't seem very common.
Swap bits
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