The impervious new Land Rover Discovery is here with its own set of quirks. Is it the Ultimate practical utility vehicle?
The new Land Rover Discovery stands tall and has an impervious demeanour about it. It seems unfazed and gives an impression that it is ready to take on any challenge the driver throws in its direction. The new Discovery may look very familiar to most of you, considering that it’s been inspired by the New York Vision Concept and the new Discovery Sport.
Design language on the new Discovery is signature Land Rover, with the Evoque inspired headlamps, the fancy chrome grill and steeply raked front windshield. The rear number plate is also offset in the classic Disco tradition.
The horizontal LED tail-lamps merge with a single piece tailgate rather than the traditional split tailgate. The new Discovery is taller and looks more dynamic in its stance. It even features a rear spoiler that offers a basic aero package to this SUV. The new Discovery looks appealing but faces stiff competition from the ultra-modern Scandinavian Volvos in a beauty contest.
Practicality is where the new Discovery really makes a mark for itself. The new car is 141mm longer than the outgoing car, allowing for improved interior space. The Discovery can sit 7 to 8 fully grown adults across three rows of seats. Another exciting feature is that the seats can be folded electronically via the touch screen or switches placed across the car.
Fold the third row of seats and the Discovery offers over 1100 litres of stowage space. Want more space? Folding the second row as well will unleash a total of 2000 litres of useable space. In addition to all this, the car offers 170 litres of storage space spread across the glove box, cubby holes, bottle holders and device holders. Land Rover has also added a magnitude of USB ports and 12V ports across the car to keep everybody happy. There’s also an onboard 4G-WiFi. Talk about being connected.
On the road, the new Discovery will have a properly striking presence. A high ground clearance of 283mm and wading depth of 900mm are some of the many perks it offers. Land Rover’s Terrain Response Tech 2 takes care of all the essentials to make sure even an amateur off-roader would scale mountains with ease.
Powering the new Discovery would be the entourage of JLR’s Ingenium engines. The staple motor would be a 240 HP 2.0-litre four pot diesel motor that charges the new Discovery to 100kph in 8.3 seconds. A supercharged 3.0-litre petrol V6 with 335 HP completes the sprint to a 100 in 7.1 seconds and a V6 diesel motor churning 281 HP completes the same in 8.1 seconds. Power is transmitted on all the models via a ZF eight-speed auto box.
Thanks to an improved construction that involves 85% aluminium, the new Discovery drops a staggering 480 kg compared to its predecessor. This isn’t a spectacular achievement considering the older Discoveries were cumbersome mammoths. Still, the drop in weight should aid in the performance as well as efficiency.
The new Discovery may very well be the perfect companion on a World Road tour. Its modern features, rich pedigree and beautiful heritage combine to create an exciting product that offers practicality and off-road capability in abundance. The cheapest model in the UK would cost forty-four thousand pounds. The new Discovery will most likely make its way to India as well but expect a monumental premium on the price tag. What are your thoughts on the latest Discovery?
Image Credits: TopGear
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