Improved Land Rover Discovery out to disprove its critics

In a way, you cannot help but feel sorry for the Land Rover Discovery in more ways than one.

From wow to oh dear

Introduced in 1989 as a more luxurious and less utilitarian version of the Defender, it has had what can only be described as a checkered and in some case, unfortunate history.

Despite the buzz created by the original, even more so when it replaced the Defender for usage in the Camel Trophy, matters took a dive with the introduction of the Discovery II.

Largely remembered for amassing a less than steller reliability record, the arrival of the hugely improved Disco 3 in 2004 promised a reversal. Instead, the issues continued.

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Although praised for being even more of a Range Rover than a Land Rover with its level of and luxury and tech such as the innovative Terrain Response system, it suffered from air suspension failures due in part to the odd double chassis design.

Matters were slowly rectified with the facelift model that become known as the Discovery 4. The notion was always that of an extremely capable, practical and luxury seven-seat 4×4 blighted by a series of serious issues it didn’t deserve.

Take 5

With the unveiling of Disco 5 four years ago, many pundits were left asking: “hadn’t they learned anything?”

What did Jaguar-Land Rover design boss Gerry McGovern think when styling the rear? This question soon became a hallmark of the new Disco as the trademark off-centre rear was moved from left to right to pay tribute to the original. It immediately became the main talking point with the notion “doomed again” ringing forth.

Although a contentious issue, there is in fact a lot to like about the Discovery, especially now that it’s been the recent recipient of a mid-life nip-and-tuck.

Stay at the front

Externally, the Discovery receives a new front bumper and restyled LED headlights. It also benefits from new side vents, and to alleviate the styling blunder at the rear, new taillights plus a redesigned number plate cavity.

As part of an extensive model rationale, all bar the entry-level S feature the R-Dynamic styling pack as standard, which, although subtle, did work in the favour of our Byron Blue coloured SE tester.

Come-in to progress

It is however inside where the Discovery has it made. Now equipped with the same steering wheel as the Defender, Land Rover has also installed its new 11.4-inch Pivi Pro infotainment system. It features alongside a redesigned centre console and a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster.

In addition, our fully loaded SE also sported the optional light oyster/ebony Windsor leather seats with the fronts being electric, heated, ventilated and inclusive of a massage function. It also featured tri-zone climate control and heating function for the wheel.

Also fitted were a wireless smartphone charger, ambient lighting, cooled centre console, heated second and third rows with added electric folding and reclining function, tyre pressure monitor and the very ear-pleasing Meridian sound system.

Together with a few other features, it added R187 900 to the SE R-Dynamic’s price, which brought the final sticker to an eye-watering R1 764 280.

Up-to-date and clever

As plush as it gets with the fit-and-finish being especially impressive, the options and extensive standard specification don’t detract from the strides made on the infotainment front. A big step-up from before, the Pivi Pro not only looks better, but is a doddle to use and navigate through with the mentioned cluster being similarly easy to decipher.

The main party piece though is the climate control panel. Like before, it folds forward at the touch of a toggle button to reveal a concealed and very handy storage area behind.

Spaced to the max

While faulting the Discovery for space is difficult given the boxy design, never mind the often space encroaching dual-pane sunroof, the main irritant centres on the electric seats.

Regardless of whether using the control panel located on the walls of the boot or the buttons on the seats themselves, the process takes a while and becomes tiresome compared to a manual procedure.

With all seven seats up, the third really caters only for small children, boot space falls to 258-litres but after a few minutes, increases to 1 231-litres. Drop the second row as well, the Discovery morphs into a luxury van capable of transporting 2 391-litres.

As ever, there is the nifty split tailgate that opens with the push button, while the tow bar also folds and retracts electronically from underneath the bumper.

New heart delivers

The biggest standout of the Discovery lies underneath bonnet. Carried over from the Discovery 4, the previous Ford-based TD6 engine has been dropped in favour of JLR’s Ingenium oil-burner that displaces a similar 3.0-litres, but with the cylinders arranged in a row rather than in a V-angle.

Backed by a 48-volt mild-hybrid system, the unit, as per its D300 designation, produces 300 pferdestarke (PS) which equates to 221 kW of torque and a solid 650 Nm of torque.

Hooked to the sublime ZF-sourced eight-speed automatic gearbox, the unit not only propels the almost 2.3-ton Discovery around with absolute ease, but makes itself very much known when you give it some stick.

Characterised by an aural approved low-down burble, the engine is both creamy smooth and refined with little in the way of noise intrusion. Adding to this, the gearbox, which now features a toggle switch rather than a rotary dial, never missed a shift up or down. The generous amount of grunt and well-spaced ratios saw it performing with little hesitation.

Off-road? Yes indeed

Of course, the Discovery also had to show its stuff off-road. While our course could hardly be described as challenging, it still rates as a good testing ground for any off-roader thanks to being littered with rocky inclines and descent, powder sand, ruts and in some instances, water.

Despite the road biased tyres being the main concern, the combination of the air suspension and Terrain Response 2 with six modes; Auto, Mud, Sand, Grass/Gravel and Snow and Rock Crawl, resulted in the Discovery literally discoing its way through the course without any difficulties.

Left in the default Auto throughout the week, which means a ground clearance of 210 mm compared to the 283 mm in full off-road mode, the suspension made for a carpet-esque like that ruts and bumps were never felt no matter the road surface.

In terms of consumption, the Disco clocked an indicated best of 9.0 L/100 km after almost 500 km over the course of seven days.

Conclusion

As much as the styling polarises, admittedly only from the rear, the improvements made to the Land Rover Discovery has certainly been worthwhile in helping to keep the “mini” Range Rover fresh.

While indeed a package worth considering, the main threat, apart from its rivals, also stems from the Defender 110, which at R1 396 252 for the D300 SE X-Dynamic, is not only cheaper but also more rugged and far easier on the eye.

However, with the Disco having the edge on the seating front by two and being slightly skewed more towards on-road performance, it still has a slight edge, but not by much.