Discovery, We Hardly Knew Ye
The uproar over the Ford Explorer’s move to a unibody, car-based platform was deafening, largely led by a chorus of internet know-it-alls who found it convenient to be outraged when it meant the opportunity for clicks (and were otherwise contemptuous of anything with a raised ride height and two box shape). No such outrage has been present for the new Land Rover Discovery’s err, crossing over.
I never cared much for the Disco, the LR3 or LR4, as they came to be known. Former EIC Baruth adored his ’97 5-speed Discovery, but where I grew up, they were little more than glorified carpool taxi, never seeing terrain more rugged than a gravel driveway.
The move to a unibody platform makes sense, no matter how hard the Land Rover faithful (or non-buying purists) might protest. Land Rover, like many great marques, has come a lifestyle brand, albeit with far less merchandising than some other premium nameplates. The newest Disco is a great accoutrement, and probably a very nice vehicle, if JLR’s latest crop of cars is anything to go by.
Its biggest flaws will be that
- A crop of non-buying know-it-alls finds it unsatisfactory due to its lack of off-road chops
- For many self-conscious buyers, it won’t be the most expensive Land Rover products, thus making it a shameful “poverty spec” alternative to the Range Rover lineup
Ironically, the very point of the Discovery range (as it will now be called) is to fulfill both of those mandates. No matter – since the Explorer moved to a more car-like unibody design, sales have increased each year JLR will sell plenty of Discos too.
More by Derek Kreindler
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What a brutal audience. This replaces the LR2. They just created a very attractive, reasonably efficient SUV, which may be the smallest 7 seat capable SUV on the market. It may look a little like a smaller Explorer (not that Dead Weight or anyone else here has seen one), but the Explorer sells like hotcakes for a reason. I have little doubt that while it won't be truly off road capable, it will be better in snow and mud than its competition in this space. Nobody goes off-roading in a car this expensive. My wife loved it immediately. I'll wait to see them live and see the specs, including actual prices. But this will sell 10X over the LR2.
TTAC should have been clearer. This model replaces the Freelander and is a massive leap forward from that model (at a price). The current Discovery will evolve and therefore should not dispoint loyal fans. Those people who want a Cherokee rival just need to wait for the new range of Defenders to launch. JLR are launching lots more SUV, there will be a mid size Range Rover, between the Evoque and Sport. And probably a smaller Disco. Lots and lots of new metal is on the way.