running costs

[bessantmark]

hi everyone this is my 3rd post and i am looking for some advice on a 06 landrover disco 3 2.7 hse and am looking at buying and disco 3 or a nissan pathfinder can anyone tell me the price of a service and is it best to go to main dealer or a smaller garage and what is the insurance like and how much to fill the car and how many kms to a full tank . i know the nissan is $5000 cheaper but is the landrover a lot better that the nissan ? .

regards mark

[bessantmark]

sorry forgot to say i will be in new zealand

[2pintsplease]

Hi there. Disco 3? Best SUV out for NZ conditions IMHO. Only ridden in one once but that was enough to leave an impression. The 2.7 diesel is a Ford-Peugeot co-operative, and is a very good engine. It is featuring in many current and upcoming models, so future parts should be easy enough to get hold of. Fuel economy is EXTREMELY good considering the weight of the vehicle. If you are daft enough to be buying new then take comfort in the relatively low depreciation of the Disco 3. However if you have a brain buy at 18 months old. The pathfinder is cheaper for good reason I would say - you get what you pay for. Servicing is likely to be not too bad, bear in mind that the Disco 3 has quite a long service interval. We have a 2004 Jaguar XJ8, and to service at Archibald and Shorter it costs just over $500 including new WOF, very impressive really considering John Andrew Ford charges $580 for a mere Falcon. The only particularly expensive maintenance item I can think of is the transmission, I think it is a ZF 6 speed job, replacement transmission oil (maybe a 50,000km service if you want the transmission to last) will set you back about $500. However it is simply the very best transmission on the road, we have had it in a BF Falcon and the Jag, just so good. Nobody ever wants to drive the BA Falcon with the old 4 speed slushbox now. Hope this helps you make the right decision