The new Land Rover Discovery will be unveiled at this year’s Paris Motor Show. JLR’s most versatile SUV comes with a range of updates and new features but stays true to its roots. This is what you need to know.
The fifth generation Discovery is to benefit from Jaguar Land Rover’s latest lightweight construction technology and its design is more or less based on what was shown to us during the New York Auto Show in 2014 in the form of a vision concept. We see a stepped roofline, providing passengers with more headroom on the inside, especially on the third row. Speaking of the seats, they are configured as you were sitting in a stadium, ensuring that the second- and third row have the best view possible.
Land Rover state that the new Discovery can comfortably seat up to seven full-sized adults. This is quite impressive given the overall length of the SUV, which is just shy of 5 meters. To make traveling with the new Discovery even more comfortable JLR ensures that customers can choose from a range of premium interior materials first seen in the Discovery Sport, including Windsor leather upholstery and natural oak veneers.
The fifth generation Discovery will also have a limited ‘First Edition’ model, of which only 600 units will be built for the UK market. The special edition SUV is equipped with exclusive features including unique etched map detailing on the aluminum trim for the doors and facia, unique badges, bold color choices and a comprehensive list of standard equipment.
For those of you that might miss out on the first edition model and wish to give the new Discovery a more dynamic touch, the optional Dynamic Design Pack offers a range of possibilities giving the SUV a more stealth-like appearance inside and out. The premium design package includes a contrast roof, dynamic front and rear bumper, luxurious leather upholstery on the inside together with a sports-inspired steering wheel and pedals.
Boosting practicality of the vehicle is its intelligent seat fold technology, allowing customers to reconfigure the second- and third-row seats with the push of a button. Controlling the seating configuration is done through a set of buttons at the rear of the car or via the car’s menu. Besides folding away easily, the seats come with more bells and whistles including seat heating for all three seat rows, seat heating and airco for row one and two, and finally massage seats at the front.
A completely new feature on the new Discovery is the ‘auto access height’ technology. This technology reduces the ride-height of the SUV by up to 40mm to make it easier for passengers to get in and out of the vehicle.
The company’s latest InControl Touch Pro infotainment system also makes its way to the new Land Rover Discovery. It comes with the 10-inch touchscreen setup that we know from Jaguar’s F-Pace. Further tech comes in the form of a wristband. Arguably one of the coolest features of the new Discovery is the ‘Activity Key’ wristband. This effectively replaces the key which can be left inside of the car, giving customers the opportunity to engage in sports without having to worry about the car keys. Useful to know is that the key wristband is waterproof so there is no need to take it off if you wish to go for a swim.
One of the key selling points of the new Discovery is of course luggage space. Behind the second row with the third row seats folded down there is 1,137 liters of space, while with the second row also folded down this space more than doubles to a massive 2,406 liters of load capacity. Practicalities aren’t just found on the inside. Staying true to its roots the new Discovery promises to maintain its position in the market as the ultimate off-road tool. Ground clearance is set at 283mm while the maximum wading depth has increased from 700mm to 900mm.
Big steps have been taken on the efficiency side of things. Thanks to its lightweight aluminum monocoque architecture and several other weight saving procedures, about 480kg of weight could be saved compared to a steel ladder construction. Speaking of weight, the Discovery maintains its class-leading position when it comes to towing capacity, it will pull 3,500 kg with ease and now there is a new feature that makes maneuvering with trailers even easier. Called ‘Advanced Tow Assist’, it helps drivers maneuver large trailers in reverse having to worry less about the nerving counter-steering procedures.
Finally the new Land Rover Discovery is powered by a range of JLR’s petrol and diesel engines including the award-winning twin-turbo Sd4 Ingenium four-cylinder diesel with 240 hp and 500 Nm of torque. Customers looking for more power may fancy the six-cylinder diesel which produces 258 hp and 600 Nm of torque.
From the introduction there is one petrol unit available, the supercharged 3.0-liter V6 producing 340 hp and 450 Nm of torque. All engines are of course paired with the latest and greatest from ZF, the very capable 8-speed automatic transmission. Stay up to date with the latest news coming from the 2016 Paris Motor Show and subscribe to our news channel!
