42 DISCOVERY / RANGE ROVER HYBRID 43


to fill up twice," he told me.
But what a vehicle! What a driving
machine! To my mind, it's the ideal
compromise between the Range
Rover and Discovery.
The excellent power from the
lusty V8 comes in extremely
smoothly, but there's no danger of
failing to notice all that grunt.
It is delightfully easy to drive at
low speed in town traffic, seeming
almost docile, but once shown the
open road there's as much power as
you need. But it's usable power, and
well-mannered, unlike some bored-
out engines.
The automatic gearbox suits the
engine particularly well, giving
completely effortless control in the
stop-start horrors of city driving; but
it sure gets the best out of the
unit's power when the right foot
is used in anger.
Handling and ride are excellent.
A mid-point setting (No 6) on the
Monroe Air Adjustable system gives
good ride quality, with flat cornering
and very little body roll.
Squirting the device rapidly out of
a roundabout, I thought maybe
Land Rover should take a look at
this machine before they finalise
details of the revised Discovery, and
offer a vehicle that owners really
want - not just one that they have to
put up with.
And next time you're driving
around the Leeds area and a Range
Rover appears in the rear view
mirror, transforming into a
Discovery as it passes, you may not
need your eyes testing after all.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION
Engine
  • 4.5-litre unit based on Rover 3.9-litre, with the Lucas
    'hotwire' system, but with longer stroke and
    bigger bore
  • Cylinder head is gas-flowed and ported


  • Cooling
  • Twin Kenlowe electric fans, thermostatically-controlled


  • Brakes
  • Front discs vented, Range Rover ABS system
  • Suspension
  • Twin rear shockers, one pair being Monroe, air
    adjustable from an on-board compressor - this allows
    the stiffness of the rear suspension to be adjusted from
    the drivers seat
  • Front and rear anti-roll bars
  • Bilstein steering damper


  • Gearbox
  • Auto box mated to Borg Warner viscous-coupled
    transfer box



  • Far right,
    the
    ReDiscovery
    handles off-
    roading with
    style. Above
    right, Range
    Rover front,
    bonnet and
    wings were
    added to
    five-door
    body.
    Right,
    Discovery
    occasional
    seats
    remain





    LRO May 1998 LRO May 1998
    This page is a HTML transcript of pages 38 to 43 of May 1998 Land Rover Owner International Magazine. Article written by Dave Barker, Photographs by Wayne Mitchelson. The layout looks correct in Netscape 3. Pages 38/39 Pages 40/41