What's this?
The Land Rover Discovery, which abandoned its erstwhile chunky and set-square appearance when it segued from the old Disco 4 in 2016 into this soapbar-esque Disco 5 in 2017. Complete with the totally-affected-for-no-good-reason offset rear number plate, this transition from obvious utilitarianism into something that felt like a full-sized
Range Rover in a Land Rover's muddy brown suit did not go down well with everyone. But now that the Defender has arrived in all its cubist glory, it's clear to see why Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) was 'making room', stylistically speaking, when it enacted such a seismic shift in the Disco's aesthetic four years ago.
The thing is, since this generation of Discovery launched back in the glory days of '17, the landscape of the premium SUV world has changed. A lot. And that leaves the Disco looking a touch vulnerable, as it is one of
ten similar SUV models that JLR has on its books. Strip out the top Rangie and then the compact models lower down, and there's a glut of mid-sized choice from JLR if you're in the market for one of these high-riding vehicles. Does the updated 2021MY Discovery do enough to stand out?
Well, Land Rover first of all argues that it is the only full-sized, seven-seat SUV it offers. While you can spec up that many chairs in either the
Discovery Sport or the
Range Rover Sport, or even that Defender we keep mentioning (as a 110, obvs), the third row of seating in all of these is classified better as a '+2' arrangement. And just in case outright people-carrying capacity isn't your bag, then Land Rover has tidied up the Discovery for its midlife facelift, while also importing a couple of lovely straight-six engines into the line-up, all of them complete with mild-hybrid electric vehicle (MHEV) technology to save fuel and do torque-infill work and so on. Thus, what you're looking for on the new Discovery 5 models are revised LED light clusters fore and aft, including new daytime running lamp signatures in the nose, a refreshed radiator grille, redesigned bumpers on the sportier R-Dynamic models, additional body colours to choose from (Lantau Bronze, Charante Grey and Hakuba Silver) and extra designs of alloy wheel for the range of 19- to 22-inch options. Also, the surround for that much-discussed rear number plate is now darkened on all models, which is a move which does wonders for the appearance of the Disco's tailgate. Not that we really minded that number plate in the first place, actually, but it clearly triggered plenty of people's mild OCD.
Inside, the chief upgrade is the exceptional Pivi Pro infotainment on the 11.4-inch touchscreen, which we've already praised to high heaven in the
2021MY Jaguar F-Pace. It's no less a boon in the Discovery than it is in the Jag, improving the human-machine interface no end and also tidying up the design of the Land Rover's centre stack in the process. Further improvements in here include a new steering wheel, a soft-wrapped centre console, a revised gearshift lever, increased comfort for second-row seat occupants and configurable ambient lighting. With lots of space, a clever cabin and even a big boot (if you don't need to seat seven), then we've little to complain about with the Discovery's cabin. Other than to say it is good inside, rather than great; it doesn't quite stand out like some of JLR's other interiors, for instance.
How does it drive?
The mechanical updates include the new inline-six engines, complete with MHEV back-up. There are three to go at and we've driven two of them, the D250 being the only model we've not tried. You can choose between the D300 MHEV, which has 300hp and 650Nm from its turbocharged six-cylinder unit, or the P360 MHEV, which employs a twin-scroll turbocharger plus an electric supercharger (sometimes also called an electrically powered compressor) to deliver 360hp and 500Nm in total. Either one drives all four wheels through Land Rover's Intelligent All Wheel Drive system and an eight-speed automatic gearbox, and their numbers are broadly similar - you're looking at 0-62mph in the mid- to high-sixes, a top speed of 130mph, weight just the wrong side of 2.4 tonnes (there's a 20kg advantage to the P360, which works out as a negligible 0.83 per cent gap at this sort of level of mass) and a basic price in the region of £56,500-£57,000.
However, there is one area where the D300 moves clearly ahead and that's fuel consumption. On paper, the reach between the two looks reasonably small. The P360 is claimed to do up to 26.7mpg with 238g/km of CO
2 emissions, compared to the D300's equivalent stats of 33.9mpg and 218g/km. In reality, though, the chasm is huge. We drove both a P360 R-Dynamic S and a D300 SE on exactly the same route, in the same climate conditions, in the same driving style and on the same day, just hours apart. This route involved some intricate B-roads near the Malvern Hills, a stretch of the M50, a few faster, flowing A-roads and then one of the Land Rover PR team's typically strenuous off-road courses in the grounds of Eastnor Castle, which necessitated switching the Discovery into its 'low-range' mode (it has a proper transfer 'box underneath but you switch between 4H and 4L with no more arduous a process than pressing a small, square button on the transmission tunnel with the gearbox in neutral) and then letting it drive around in its lowest gears at very high revs.
In truth, performance- and comfort-wise, there was precious little between the two, except the D300 felt the more insistent on the motorway thanks to its 150Nm torque advantage. But whereas it turned in an overall economy of 26.1mpg after the test drive was completed, the P360 had recorded a feeble 15.3mpg. Add in that, during the cruise along the M50, the petrol Discovery was only hovering in the mid-20s on the instant consumption gauge while the D300 was pushing 35-40mpg even into a headwind, and you can see why Land Rover UK thinks the diesel Disco is going to vastly outsell the petrol I6 here in Blighty.
Otherwise, the report card for the Discovery is largely as it was before. In many ways, and taken in isolation, it is a tremendous luxury SUV. The ride on its twin-axle air suspension is cosseting and beautifully damped, so that the Land Rover absorbs rough tarmac without ever feeling like the body is wallowing on its chassis, and the new engines are both absolute peaches. We're even more enamoured with the D300 than even the silky P360, because unlike so many other turbodiesels this one loves to rev. It runs out to 4,000rpm and beyond without any complaint or notable loss of drive, emitting a superb, barrel-chested growl as it does so, and it also exhibits relatively minimal lag characteristics for a large-lunged derv-drinker like this one. There's no doubt it's a marvellous new engine for the Disco.
Naturally, you don't buy this Land Rover for its handling prowess, because there feels like there's quite a bit of lean in faster cornering and the nose of the Disco doesn't really want to get itself keenly turned in. That's doing a disservice to steering that's necessarily light - in order to mask the SUV's bulk for low-speed manoeuvring and general driving - yet consistent in its responses and even boasting a snifter of feel. Nevertheless, it's not a dynamic SUV, this one.
But it remains utterly imperious off-road. Only other things from within JLR's own stable are likely going to get you further into the inhospitable wilderness than a Discovery D300 MHEV and nothing short of a 4x4 specialist like the
Mercedes G-Class or
Jeep Wrangler would dare try and embarrass it. Up steep ascents and down ludicrous descents, all on thick, claggy mud made treacherous by the rain, the Discovery aced the course laid on at Eastnor. Better yet, its camera system on the exceptional Pivi Pro screen showed you just how much clearance there was available throughout at the sides of the vehicle (handy, because the course was
narrow and the Disco is
wide), as well as the angle of attack of the front wheels. With its improved Terrain Response 2 system in Mud & Ruts and the low-range 'box engaged, difficult off-roading has surely never been as easy as the Land Rover made it look. It was like driving an armchair around a computer-simulated environment, so stress-free was the experience.
Verdict
A carefully considered round of updates for the Discovery 5 ensures that Land Rover has kept its luxury SUV in the thick of the marketplace. The inline-six MHEV engines are excellent, the infotainment system is ten times better than it was before, and the looks of the Discovery are maturing with each and every passing day.
So we feel like curmudgeons to be saying that, despite all this praise, it is the JLR model which most highlights that a bit of 'range rationalisation' is needed across the group. You see, the Discovery 5 is a very lovely thing indeed in many respects... but the new Defender is that tiny tad lovelier still. And it's more charismatic and beguiling in the process. Unless you are a driver who regularly, and we do mean regularly, carts around six fully grown adults with you in your SUV, we think a Defender 110 would do everything the Disco D300 can do, only it'd put an even bigger smile on your face while doing so.
Safety
