Prices start at
£45,000 for a 2-litre,
four-cylinder version,
but you really need
the V6 Tdi starting at
£50,000. Eight years
ago, you could get a V6
Discovery 4 with discount
for £30,000, then four years
ago you needed £39,000 and
now perhaps £48,000 – the same
price as a Toyota Land Cruiser.
The Discovery 5 is a very good vehicle.
It retains all the practicality of the previous
model, combined with enhanced off-roading
abilities. However, it is now a rather large
vehicle and has lost its Discovery uniqueness.
Its shape may grow on you but there is
certain resistance in the marketplace to its
appearance and price. Land Rover should
have produced a re-interpretation of the
Discovery 4 design, which is so distinctive,
just as they have done with each new
generation of the Range Rover. From the front
it looks like a Range Rover Sport, from the rear
perhaps a Hyundai (without the offset number
plate) and from the side a Discovery Sport
(which was the intention). It just does not look
like a Discovery. I hope they do better with the
new Defender – launching later this year.
So, there you have it – the Discovery 5 is
really a cut-price Range Rover with a larger
boot and seven seats. It is a very good vehicle
and if you like how it looks and costs, then it
makes sense.
FORESTRYJOURNAL.CO.UK MAY 20 18 57previous models over the past 26 years I was
keen to sample the all-new aluminium model,
the Discovery 5, known again just as the
Discovery. So, what is the new Disco like?
It is larger on the outside, but the same
size inside, though a little wider up front –
the lighter aluminium body needs larger
box-sections as it is not as strong as steel.
Whereas the Discovery 3 shared nothing with
the Discovery 2, the Discovery 5 does share
the same engine, gearbox and key fob as the
Discovery 4, but everything else is new. It uses
the basic aluminium structure that underpins
the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport, with
upgraded air suspension with 278 mm ground
clearance and 900 mm wading depth. In
many ways it could have been called a Range
Rover Space, looking more Range Rover than
Discovery and using a Range Rover-inspired
dashboard. The speed dials are out of a
Jaguar XE (and Discovery Sport), and the
door casings are the same as those of a Range
Rover. However, its new body and suspension
have greatly improved the driving experience.
It is 200 kg lighter than the Discovery 4,
10% more economical (now 31 mpg) and I
have to say it drives really well. Its steering
is more precise and its ride very cosseting,
soaking up bumps well – a big improvement
over the Discovery 4. Also, that motorway
wind noise has vanished with all the attention
to the aerodynamics and wind tunnel testing.
Even though it has the same 254 bhp V6 diesel
engine, it is faster. A 25-litre tank contains an
AdBlue exhaust emission-reduction device
and the car uses one
litre per 3,000 miles.
The seating position,
still commanding, is
slightly less perched,
with all seats folding
electrically, including
the rear perch. The
analogue clock is no
more.
The main change to the
body has been the move to a
more rounded shape, removing the unique
square cut of the Discovery 4. The rear door
is now a one-piece top-hinged door – gone
is the useful split tailgate. However, Land
Rover have designed a small (290 mm deep- compared to 500 mm before) lip that folds
down to provide a rear seat. It does work but
is too narrow to avoid you sitting on the floor
of the boot or not at all if the boot is full. All
rear seats are electric folding, but do not lie
fully flat. Of course, Discovery 5’s rear tailgate
is the source of automotive controversy with
its weird design off-centre number plate. A
German company now market a rear panel
(£700) that fits to the tailgate and centres the
number plate. The other main design change
is that the rear light clusters are horizontal,
whilst all previous Discovery’s were vertical.
Most other SUVs have horizontal lights,
so the Discovery is now less unique and
less distinctive. I think all the Land Rover
designers were distracted designing the new
Velar!
Switches for electric seat folding.Large 21” wheels look
good on the Disco 5.Offset rear number plate- laughing stock!