This Disco can dance – if only it was asked
Beauty too dear to whisk off-road
THE new Land Rover Discovery will do things off road you wouldn’t dare try.
Mainly because, given the amount it costs, likely scrapes and scratches don’t bear thinking about.
That’s always been the eternal irony when it comes to off-roaders – the disconnect between what they are capable of and what you will actually use them for.
And the latest Disco’s array of technical talent takes that irony a stage further. We’re at Eastnor Castle in Herefordshire, a stately pile set in hundreds of acres of woodland that Land Rover has used since the early Sixties for tests and vehicle development.
The SAS has used the place for training – and Land Rover has one of its off-road experience centres here where people can rock up and have a go.
They’d love the new stylish Discovery which looks totally different to its boxy predecessor.
There’s a choice of three engines: a two-litre four-cylinder diesel that produces 240bhp, a three-litre V6 diesel with 258bhp and a 340bhp V6 three-litre petrol.
The first one, badged as an Sd4, has plenty of power, feels smooth and is quiet. The entry-level Discovery S with this under the bonnet costs £43,495 but the V6 isn’t available until you get to SE grade. You don’t pay much of a premium for the V6, so the choice is more emotional than financial.
Once you start moving up the range to the higher spec models,
the Discovery gets pretty dear. We’re testing the HSE Luxury version which costs a scary £62,695 without any options.
The previous Discovery used a separate ladder chassis, but the new car has an aluminium monocoque and body just like the Range Rover Sport.
The weight savings are substantial, up to 480kg on certain models. But the Disco still weighs over two tonnes. Seven seats are standard and on our car the rear
It’ll live on tarmac – which is fine as it’s at home there
two rows are folded electrically. Land Rover says the new Discovery is the most capable machine offroad it’s ever made. I can believe it.
Even on tyres that look decidedly road biased, it dances through muddy trenches, up hills and through nearly a metre of water.
Our car is fitted with the £1,000 Capability Plus package which includes All Terrain Progress Control. Put simply, it’s cruise control for off-road conditions and a locking rear differential. This, with all the other electronics, make it a doddle to drive in the most extreme conditions.
There’s an argument that all this technology spoils the experience because it reduces the challenge.
In some ways you can’t beat the fun of driving an old Defender with a manual gearbox, heavy steering and only your skills and experience for help.
But hardly anyone is going to take a £60k SUV off-roading, especially if it’s leased and you’ll pay for scrapes and scratches when the car goes back. The new Discovery will live on tarmac, which is fine as it’s very much at home there.
It departs from tradition not just with sleek styling but also in detail. The two-piece tailgate is now a single door. A flap folds down that can be used as a picnic table and will support 300kg. There’s plenty of storage space and big windows give a great view out.
Land Rover has taken 20,000 orders for the new Disco, and it’s not hard to see why. It feels and looks far more special than any of its German rivals and could outperform them all off-road.
If ever it was asked to.