Land Rover Discovery Review
Published: 2nd August 2004
Land Rover Discovery TD5 ES
How It Drove - Performance
The Land Rover Discovery TD5 is powered by a high speed direct-injection 5 cylinder 2.5 litre turbo diesel engine which produces 137 bhp enabling the automatic Discovery to accelerate from 0-62mph in 17.1 seconds and continue to a top speed of 98 mph.
Whilst the automatic diesel Discovery performs well it could never be described as rapid and progress is steady. On paper the 17.1 second 0-62mph sprint might seem slow but you have to bear in mind that this is a permanent 4-wheel drive vehicle that it is shifting over 2 tons without being laden with a family of five, their luggage and labrador.
The Discovery is easy to drive and equipped with the optional (£1,495.00) automatic gearbox it was a joy. I would certainly recommend the automatic transmission especially if you do a lot of town driving. Driving a vehicle of this size you need to keep your hands on the wheel and constant gear changes can be tiring.The electronic 4-speed automatic gearbox features a high/low transfer and selectable 'sports' mode in high range and 'manual' mode in low range. When 'sports' mode is selected the gearbox becomes more responsive - downshifts occur earlier and upshifts - later for maximum use of engine power. Sports mode was particularly useful when overtaking and in situations when more power is required.
Once up to speed the Discovery proved itself to be an excellent Motorway cruiser and being automatic equalled a relaxing driving experience.
Fuel economy is good for a vehicle of this size returning a combined figure of 27.4 mpg. On the downside the engine was relatively noisy at idle, although this is a characteristic of most diesel powered vehicles - but once on the move was less intrusive.
