The All New Land Rover Discovery 3

Land Rover Discovery 3

Spacious & Comfortable

Roomier yet externally not much bigger than the outgoing Discovery, the new Discovery 3 features a spacious cabin packed with clever stowage locations, as well as either five or seven comfortable seats. Even the third-row seats in the seven-seat version are roomy enough for 95th percentile adults. All rear seats fold into the floor when not in use, to create a vast, flat load space. According to design director Geoff Upex, the vehicle was designed ‘from the inside out’.

"Our priorities were cabin space, comfort, the Command driving position and elevated ‘stadium seating’ in the rear," says Upex. "The exterior design is a reflection of those interior priorities. It is very geometric, very minimalist, very modern. Everything is there for a reason. It is pure product design, rather than fancy automotive styling. The best vehicles inevitably are. It is also distinctively Land Rover. You won’t confuse this vehicle with anything else."

Impressive Engines, Tailored For Land Rover Needs

For dynamic on-road performance, the top-of-the-range engine option is a 4.4-litre 295bhp (220kW) petrol V8, derived from Jaguar’s acclaimed AJ-V8 4.2-litre. Developments for Land Rover include increased low-end torque (maximum of 425Nm or 315lb.ft), greater weather-proofing – especially against dust and water ingress – and revised breathing for wading in rivers. This is likely to be the most popular engine in the Discovery 3’s biggest market, the USA.

For Europe, the best-selling engine is expected to be the refined and flexible 2.7-litre TDV6 turbodiesel (not available in North America), a high pressure ‘common rail’ unit that uses variable geometry turbocharging. Another version of this new V6 recently made a much-praised debut in the Jaguar S-Type. The Land Rover engine has been extensively developed to suit the Discovery 3 and produces 190bhp (140kW) and a massive 440Nm (325lb.ft) of torque. Technical advances include its CGI (compacted graphite iron) block, which is lighter, stiffer and more durable than conventional cast iron.