New '04 Disco Owner/Member + Some Questions

[ulrickhan]

So I've been lurking around the forums for the past year, and I finally took the plunge. I recently bought a 2004 Discovery II SE with 33,000 miles. I chose this model because I've read that they have a CDL and that the last model years have had many of the problems fixed. I've wanted a Land Rover since I was a little kid so I pretty much have my dream car now and plan on keeping it for as long as I can.

But since I'm still a Land Rover newbie, I just have a few questions regarding my Disco...

If I take very good care of the car, how long is it expected to last? Though I will use it occasionally to commute to work and on days with heavy snow, I will be using the car mainly for recreational travel (outdoors, road trips, camping, hiking, kayaking, etc).

Also, there is some spot rust (nothing too serious I don't think) on the chassis/undercarriage. I plan on using a wire brush to scrape most of it off so I can use rust converter, paint, and Waxoyl. Is there anything I need to take apart or separate to check for and fix rust? Although the disco will be garaged when not being used, I live in Indiana, and during the winters the roads are pretty salty...

Where can I get a Rave CD, and what exactly are they?

Lastly, how many pounds can I load on the roof? I plan to put on a roof tent in the future. Do I need to raise the car or change the suspension? I remember reading something around 500 lbs for the stock, but I'm not sure if I'm correct.

That's about it for now... Even though I've just gotten the car, I think I already have the Land Rover bug!!

Cheers!

[auwesman]

Many many rovers around that have 200,00 + miles - it's just all about regular maintainance! If you take care of the rover and spend the $ when you need to, the rover will take good care of you!