Fifth-generation Land Rover Discovery Brings a Diesel to America

Land Rover pulled the wraps off the next-generation Discovery today at the Paris Auto Show, revealing a host of changes to the brand’s storied nameplate.

Not wanting anyone to mistake it for another SUV, the automaker kept some exterior styling cues from the outgoing LR4, but moved the overall shape in the direction of the Discovery Sport. However, the biggest changes hide beneath the Disco’s skin.

For its fifth life, the seven-seat Discovery adopts aluminum architecture, losing more than 1,000 pounds compared to its predecessor. Besides the addition of new connectivity and safety technology, the model adds a diesel powerplant to supplement its gas-powered V6.

The volume powertrain is a carryover turbocharged 3.0-liter V6 making 340 horsepower and 332 lb-ft of torque. New to the model is a 3.0-liter turbodiesel V6 shared with the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport. The new oil burner makes 254 hp and 443 lb-ft. Both mate to a ZF eight-speed automatic transmission.

While base models carry a very strategic MSRP of $49,990, moving up to the diesel comes at a cost. The Discovery HSE Td6 stickers for $58,950, or $65,950 in HSE Luxury Td6 guise. Top-level First Edition models retail for $73,950, and come only with the gas engine.

Land Rover hasn’t released fuel economy figures, but expect the half-ton weight loss and optional diesel to return far more attractive numbers than the LR4. Adding a diesel allows the Disco to flex its muscles — maximum towing capacity rises to 8,201 pounds, up from 7,716 pounds in the LR4.

Off-road, where few of these will actually be found, the new Disco benefits from a Terrain Response 2 system, offering a range of settings via a rotary control knob. If a driver decides to venture really deep into the rhubarb, All-Terrain Progress Control allows them to input a specific crawl speed. To improve passage over boulders and uneven ground (presumably after owners checked their warranty), the fifth-generation Discovery boasts an extra 1.7 inches of ground clearance, for a total of 11.1 inches. Maximum wading depth rises 7.9 inches to a FEMA-worthy 35.4 inches. This Disco wants to get wet.

Because of the implied lifestyle activities that come with a Land Rover, the automaker has borrowed the Activity Key wristband from the Jaguar F-Pace. This allows owners to lock their regular key fob in their vehicle, disabling it, while they go off and paddle (or surf, or whatever it is that Discovery owners are prone to do).

Inside, the new Discovery’s fold-flat seats allows for 82.7 cubic feet of cargo space, or 45 cubic feet behind the second-row seats. This is actually down slightly from the LR4’s 90.3 cubic feet of cargo space. Apparently, styling comes with a price.

The 2017 Land Rover Discovery goes on sale in the U.S. in mid-2017.

[Images: Jaguar Land Rover]