Motoring in Spain - Land Rover Discovery TDV6
AN ENORMOUS LEAP FORWARD IN PRACTICALITY
Land Rover Discovery TDV6 AN ENORMOUS LEAP FORWARD IN PRACTICALITY
ROUGH, RUGGED AND RESILIENT, WITH A FEW SEXY BITS BORROWED FROM ITS PLUSH SISTER, THE NEW LAN D ROVER DISCOVERY HAS – ACCORDING TO MOTORING CORRESPONDENT CHARLIE FLINDT – SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE.
It seems hard to believe now, but back in the late 1980s Land Rover was only building two vehicles. There was the incredibly rough and rugged Defender series (or 90 and 100s as they were still known then), and the not quite so rough but still quite rugged Range Rover. The problem for Land Rover was that the Range Rover had changed. When launched, it was meant to be fairly basic – a step up on the Defender, but not the luxury beast it had turned into as the 1980s drew to a close.
This left a gap in the range. What was needed was a family 4x4 that was more comfortable than the Defender, but without the plushness of the Range Rover. At the 1989 Geneva Motor Show, the Discovery was unveiled. Initially only a two-door, with a choice of diesel and petrol engines, it was immediate hit. By the time the four-door version appeared the next year, the Discovery was more than a hit: it was an icon.
When the Discovery Series II was launched in 1999, Land Rover had obviously stuck by the "if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it" line. Yes, there were changes under the skin but, to the casual observer, it was almost the same machine.
A couple of years ago, the new Discovery 3 was launched, and the name is about the only thing carried over from the old model. Everything else is new.
On the outside, there are hints of the old Discovery – the stepped roof and the grill – but, overall the new shape is quite radical. There are clever little styling touches like the slab-sided doors with no horizontal crease on them, and the enormous wheel arches that cleverly make the Discovery look slightly smaller. At the back, the old side-hinged door has gone, and is replaced by a Range Rover-style split tailgate.
This has many advantages: the old one-piece door was very cumbersome – not to mention the fact that, when the spare wheel was off it, the door latch would miss its catch. Another useful feature of the split tailgate is that it becomes a natural bench – perfect for holding two fat farmers at a point-to-point. The Discovery’s also has a clever dogleg shape, making the lifting of shopping slightly easier.
Another feature borrowed from the Range Rover is the air suspension. All but the most basic Discoverys have cross-linked air springs, controlled by some fiendishly clever computers which can, among other things, spot any off-road driving and adapt all the settings automatically. The suspension can be set at all sorts of different heights – useful for wading or getting aged relatives out with dignity.
And if you think the suspension is sophisticated, wait till you try the transmission. Both manual and automatic boxes have six speeds, and the auto box has even more computers to check and adapt to your driving style, or vary the gear-change points to give more sporting behaviour.
The really clever bit is that all the wizardry has been merged into one button – the Terrain Response system. You dial in whatever it is you’re driving over, and everything gets set to suit it: the engine management system, the gearbox control, the suspension ride height, the DSC, the HDC, the BBC…hold on – I’m not sure about that last one. You set the dial to "sand", "rock crawl", "mud and ruts", and then forget. The Discovery looks after all the rest.
Passengers get looked after rather well, too. After the icky blue and taupe interiors of the early Discoverys, and those appalling headrests that left you praying that you wouldn’t get shunted from behind, Disco 3 is magnificent. The vast interior is modern but classic, beautifully executed and put together, and, in seven-seater format, has back seats that are genuinely useful rather than a couple of awkward afterthoughts. They can take an average adult easily, and then fold away into the floor rather than dangling in a rather embarrassed way from the sides and roof.
For me, the most impressive part of the new Disco, bearing in mind that there’s a lot to impress, is under the bonnet. There’s a woofing great 4.4 litre V8, and – my favourite – the TDV6. Another Jaguar-derived unit, it’s a common-rail diesel, with pressure running about 25 per cent up on an average system, and the engine block is made from compacted graphite iron – stronger, stiffer, lighter and more durable than cast iron.
The bottom of the crankcase also features an aluminium ladder-frame for even more strength and rigidity, and baffle plates to prevent oil foaming and surge during serious off-roading. Oh, and it also gives amazing performance, on and off road, and with surprisingly good fuel consumption.
I wonder about myself sometimes. All that amazing technology and world-beating engineering, and I get all exited about a lump of metal under the bonnet. But that’s the beauty of the Discovery 3. There’s something for everyone to get excited about. If you’re an off-roader, or a petrol-head or proud mum to an enormous family – or perhaps all three combined – you’ll love the Discovery 3.
Land Rover Discovery TDV6
Engine: 2720cc, V6
Power: 140 kW
Max speed: 180 km/h
Performance, 0 to 100 kph: 12.8 seconds
Combined fuel economy: 9.4 litre/100 km
SUMMARY: Proves, once again, that no-one builds ‘em like Land Rover.
