Land Rover Discovery 4
Expert Rating:
What is it?
It's arguably Land Rover's most complete product, essentially aiming to combine the best features of every one of its cars into one all-encompassing vehicle. So, if the Discovery 4 does what it's supposed to do, it will combine the Range Rover's plush spaciousness and cruising ability with the Defender's rugged off-road ability. It also has seven seats and a massive boot, prompting Land Rover itself to call the new Disco 'the word's most versatile car.'
You may be thinking that this new car doesn't look a great deal different to the outgoing Discovery 3, and you'd be right - the Discovery 4 is technically a facelift - but it's been very comprehensively overhauled, to the extent that it's better in every way than its predecessor.
Is it any good?
Well, we can honestly say that Land Rover's versatility claims are spot on - this really is one of the most complete cars money can buy.
In terms of what's changed compared to Discovery number 3, the exterior has been 'softened' by way of getting rid of the harsh, flat-planed, square-edged look of the 3's front end in particular, and more of the surfaces are body-coloured rather than black plastic. Essentially, Land Rover has made the Disco look even more like the Range Rover, bumping up its 'premium' quota so that buyers feel more like they're in a value Range Rover than a posh Defender - and that's a big difference.
The interior is almost identical to that in the new Range Rover Sport. The soft touch surfaces are poles apart from the old cabin, and the dash is clearly laid out and very good to look at having been fully redesigned. It's well equipped too, with dual-zone air conditioning, leather seats and the new touch screen multi media interface, as found in Jaguar's latest cars. It's one of the nicest car cabins in the business now, full stop.
Revisions to the drivetrain mean the Disco can really dance (sorry). The Terrain Response and Hill Descent Control systems have been improved so that even the wettest, muddiest, steepest rough stuff is conquered with ease - we drove through a river or two and endured miles and miles of proper, craggy off-roading on our test route, all of which was dispatched without any glitches. The amazing thing is, the Disco then took us back to the hotel in quiet comfort. It's not too bad around the corners either.
Should I call the bank manager?
The Discovery isn't cheap, but again, it is a proper premium car now, except one that will tackle the mountains outside your house better than, say, a BMW 5 Series. The highlight of the overhaul from Disco 3 to Disco 4 is probably the new 3.0-litre V6 diesel lump from Jaguar's engine-building shed (the same one as found in the new Jaguar XF Diesel S), which gives the car rivers of pulling power while being relatively economical (30.4mpg combined, 442lb.ft of torque, 0-60mph in nine seconds.) You can still get the old 2.7-litre V6 in base model form, but it's shown up in every way by the newcomer. Pay £32k for that, rising to around £48k for the fully equipped 3.0-litre TDV6 HSE we drove.
Summary
It's tempting to give the Disco the full five stars, so impressive is its range of talents, but it's not perfect. It seems to take a couple of seconds for the throttle to tell the engine to start doing something once you've pressed it, so it can feel awkward at low speeds, and despite being surprisingly good around the corners for such a huge, heavy car, it's not the last word in back road entertainment. Mind, we appreciate that's like saying denim dungarees are no good for going swimming in, but the Disco is clearly built with comfort as its main remit.
Close to £50k is an awful lot for a car, even one as good as the Disco, and if you can stretch to it you won't be disappointed, but if you don't need the extra two seats and won't stray off the tarmac, we'd point you to the similarly priced Range Rover Sport instead. That will give you a slight edge on driver enjoyment, a virtually identical interior but a big chunk more prestige.
