Hi all,
I'm Joe, from Dorset and have finally decided to scratch my itch for a P38.
The kind guys over at range rovers.net suggested I posted here as well.

Basically I've owned most older land rovers but never a p38 which has always been my dream, so now I am seriously considering it.
As part of my planning I am trying to get a look/tour of some more knowledgable people's range rovers so I can see what good varieties really look like and be shown a few of the niggles and things to consider when buying.
If anyone is local to Dorset and wouldn't mind showing me their rover I would be really appreciative.
Also although I'm in the learning before purchasing stage of you know of any sound potential purchases please let me know!

Cheers
Joe

Hi! Good to see someone else on :-)

I suppose the usual Landrover-buying advice - don't buy the first one you see, don't buy the cheapest one you see, don't buy one you haven't seen and be wary of one that's been mucked about with - always applies. There isn't really a lot you can't fix on them, although they do have a lot of electronics which might require some specialised diagnostic equipment. The workshop manuals in RAVE are pretty comprehensive, and between all the folk on this forum you'll probably find someone who has already done what you need to do.

Welcome Joe. :)

Good advice there from Gordon. If only I'd followed /any/ of it ;)

Hello :)

I used to live in Bournemouth till recently - now I'm just to the west of Southampton, so potentially not too far from you!

Nick

Hello Joe
Welcome to this side of the Atlantic.
There are a couple of people on here, Sloth for one, that come from your part of the world.
I do know of one sound potential purchase though!
Like I said on the other site, I've got 2 P38s at the moment, a '95 HSE (my daily driver for the last few years) and a 2002 Vogue SE that I'm restoring on a rolling basis.
It doesn't make great economic sense to keep 2 P38s on the road (or taking up garage space) at the same time so I'm being pressured by The Boss to sell one or the other. Haven't fully decided which yet but more than likely the HSE.
Like I said on the other site, you're more than welcome to drop by and have a look at my two (not as a sales pitch, just so you can see what 2 ends of the P38 production spectrum look like), if you're down this way.
Happy hunting.
EDIT- Sloth beat me to the button!!

Cheers all and Hi!
Im based just outside Dorchester so Southhampton is about an hour away, living in Dorset an hour away is close when it comes to things like this!
I managed to look at two locally over the last couple of weeks with no intention of purchasing, a diesel and a V8, The diesel was ok, plenty of little niggles but nothing that pricked my spider sense too much and wasnt badly priced at £1250, but it was a diesel and it was slower than my current L200 pickup (which is also 2.5 and asthmatic).
The V8 I knew I wouldnt buy as it was up at £3750 from a private seller but marketed as mint in every way low miles FSH etc.... what an eye opener that was. Plenty very wrong with it, including being very tappety sounding, a grumble from the drivetrain I couldnt place, evidence of stopleak or similar in the coolant, rust, no remote busted sunroof etc etc.
Guess it goes to show that price isnt necessarily a guide to condition!

Sound slike I might have to schedule a trip to see you Orangebean.. get the grand tour!

Good advice there from Gordon. If only I'd followed /any/ of it ;)

Not only did I not follow my own advice but I bought mine in the dark...

Nick's one would be a good example to look at. Tidy, well maintained. You'd get an idea of what a good P38 (I can hear Sloth choking on his cuppa there!) can be.
You're welcome down pretty much anytime Joe. I work for myself (classic Brit sports car resto) so I'm pretty much always here.
Mark

Sounds like you know your way around a motor well enough Joe to avoid most of the pitfalls. Oh one of the other things to try for (although at 20+ years old you might be struggling) is to get both keys, as they are very expensive to replace. Not the end of the world if you can't (mine only had one), but a good way to knock 200 quid off ;)

Glad to see you over here at last, Joe.
At the moment, I have a buyer for my 38 (when he gets round to getting in touch) as far as I know but ................ if he doesn't come across, then you won't go far wrong buying mine. Gilbertd has seen mine and worked on it and there are just three jobs need doing on it, all of which can be done in half a day.
Due to personal circumstances, and the fact I want the Beastie to go to a 'proper' home, not some muppet buying it after I've PX'd, I'm asking a stupid price for it.

Mine is a 4.6 V8 :o)

Shep- perhaps you should mention that your stupid price is stupidly low, not stupidly high :)

Orangebean wrote:

Shep- perhaps you should mention that your stupid price is stupidly low, not stupidly high :)

Oh yea lol

Welcome Joe - and I'd like to say that mine isn't for sale! There are some P38 owners who aren't trying to get out :D
Although, I'm pretty sure Shep will be back once he's bored of changing gearboxes in an L322...