The face looks familiar, but Land Rover’s popular Discovery has been given a radical makeover –under the skin! The new Discovery 4 comes with fresh engines, a revised chassis and an impressive array of advanced technology.
We drove the flagship diesel – the 3.0-litre TDV6 HSE. It offers 54bhp more power than the entry-level 2.7-litre, and also delivers 600Nm of torque. That’s matched only by the mighty new twin-turbo powerplant in the BMW 740d. As a result, the Discovery’s 0-62mph sprint time has been slashed by 2.1 seconds to 9.6 seconds, while the car has a lighter, more agile feel that belies its size and practicality.
The design has been brought right up to date, with a Range Rover-style hexagonal twin-bar front grille, new LED lights front and rear and body-coloured wing mirrors. It’s lost some of the Tonka toy appeal that made the Discovery 3 so imposing, but still leaves a lasting impression.
The Discovery model has been around since 1989 and the current Discovery is the fourth reincarnation to date. The Discovery 3 has won nearly 100 awards around the world, making it one of the most awarded 4×4 ever built. In a way, the Discovery 4 must feel like Lewis Hamilton’s younger brother, not only does it have extremely high standards to live up to, but it has to better them too.
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