The 2012 model year Land Rover Discovery 4 - called SDV6 with its 3.0-litre, V6 turbodiesel engine - has more power, less CO2 emissions, better fuel economy and the specification is improved too.
The V6 unit has parallel sequential turbocharging and third generation common rail 2,000 bar high pressure fuel injection. A larger primary turbocharger is in use most of the time and the smaller secondary turbo starts blowing when acceleration or higher power is needed. This system reduces turbo lag for immediate torque response with up to 600Nm (443 lb ft) available from 2,000rpm.
The fuel injection changes ensure only the exact amount of fuel needed at any precise time is supplied to the engine so there is no wastage of fuel through over-delivery. There is also a power increase as a result of the changes, up from 245hp to 256hp and the CO2 emissions drop from 244 to 230g/km.
Perhaps the main technical change for the 2012 model year Discovery is the adoption of their new eight-speed automatic transmission which comes as standard. This auto unit was first used in the latest Range Rover V8 turbodiesel and now fitted in the Discovery it provides closer gear ratios with a higher overdrive ratio which improves fuel economy and helps with the reduction in CO2 emissions.
The eight speed close ratio unit also allows for near seamless gearchanges. The computer software monitors the driver’s input and optimises the response of the gearchanges to the driver’s style. In conjunction with the new transmission, the Discovery 4 is now equipped with the 'Drive Select' rotary gear shift with park, drive, neutral, reverse and sport modes and steering wheel-mounted paddle shifts used on Range Rover and Jaguar models are fitted.
All Terrain Response is no longer operated by a rotary dial but uses a close to hand series of switches to quickly select the correct mode for road, ice/snow, off road, sand and serious off road plus low ratio and hill descent control. Two additional functions have been added, hill start assist and gradient acceleration control. An electronic parking brake is also standard fit and the HSE version has adjustable ride height air suspension.
Fuel economy improves from 30.4mpg to 32.1mpg – every little helps! My test model, the top of the range 3.0-Litre SDV6 HSE variant, nearly matched the new figure at 31.2mpg, impressive for a heavyweight 2.7-tonnes seven seat 4x4 with permanent all wheel drive. Unfortunately the lowering of the CO2 emissions hasn’t reduced the VED road tax cost which is still £790 for the First Year rate and then £445 for the second year onwards and company car drivers will still pay the maximum 35 per cent Benefit-in-Kind tax.
With Discovery 4 prices ranging from £37,995 to £51,195 these tax costs are no real deterrent to ownership. If customers can afford to buy – or more likely lease, they can afford to run the vehicle but every little helps for saving fuel and cutting polluting emissions.
And there is no shortage of buyers. Land/Range Rover’s UK sales of 37,637 passenger models were up by 1.0 per cent last year, not a great increase but positive given the overall new car market was down by 4.4 per cent.
Figures supplied by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders show that in 2011 sales of Dual Purpose vehicles as they classify them, normally termed 4x4s or SUVs, increased by 6.0 per cent despite the economic climate, the rising cost of fuel and the high taxation costs.
The 2012 Discovery has minimal visual changes, tweaks to the front grille, new alloys outside, inside there are changes to the touch-screen graphics and there are upgrades to the premium quality sat-nav and stereo systems. All the major changes are really to the engine and transmission in line with the Disco’s on-going evolution since it first appeared in 1989.
It remains a heavy duty permanent four wheel drive tough off roader with its classic upright stance and with the step-up in the rear section of the roof to give the second and third rows of passengers more headroom. The waistline remains perfectly level with large side windows, there is no modern-day aerodynamic rising waistline, swept back A-pillars or coupe roof line adopted by most modern ‘softer’ SUVs.
Fondly referred to through its early years as ‘the shed’, the boxy seven seat Disco remains a roomy, hardcore off roader but it has moved significantly upmarket. So much so, that for the interior, I was hard pressed to spot the differences in specification or quality between today’s Discovery and today’s Range Rover. Especially true for the top HSE Disco which has high quality leather upholstery, a crafted contoured leather topped fascia and all the luxury kit you would find in a premium brand saloon.
Perhaps going up-market could have been the undoing of the Disco. This vehicle started life positioned between the utilitarian Land Rover and luxury Range Rover models. The original Disco was designed to be a serious off roader but with a bit more interior comfort and driving refinement than the Land Rover, but still affordable. It was a country-user’s workhorse that could be washed-out and with the option of seven seats, first introduced to the market by the Mitsubishi Shogun five door in 1985.
Today’s Disco with its deep pile carpeting and posh upholstery that is no longer the case. Yes it is still the optimum off roader and it easily pulls 3,500kg but is it now too posh and too expensive to fulfil its full sales potential? On top of its high price there is now a huge list of extra cost options, most of them luxury items rather than workhorse equipment.
Increases in worldwide sales might show it is not actually missing its wealthy target audience but how many more would they have sold in its home UK market if the vehicle had remained true to its original type? Certainly in the UK numerous country-folk, farmers, estate managers, contractors, surveyors and the like have opted to buy cheaper double cab pick-ups instead. These vehicles get dirty but they don’t get spoilt.
That said the Discovery is brilliant both on and off road with a classy interior and seating for up to seven people. As a heavyweight go anywhere 4x4 there is no better and the latest improvements keep it ahead of the field. But it is now expensive to buy for use just as a workhorse so for a little more money the Range Rover is more or less as good off road but with better on road ride refinement.
Logically, for the UK market anyway, a bigger step between the Disco and Range Rover would be ideal by making the Discovery less plush and more affordable.
Land Rover Discovery 4 MILESTONES
2012 Land Rover Discovery 4 SDV6 HSE
Price: £51,195 plus options
Engine/transmission: 3.0-litre, V6, direct injection, twin turbochargers with intercooler, 256hp, 600Nm ( 443lb ft) of torque from 2,000rpm, 8-speed auto gearbox, full-time 4-wheel drive with locking centre differential, high/low ratio, terrain response
Performance: 112mph. 0-60mph 8.8 seconds, 32.1mpg (31.2mpg on test), CO2 230g/km, VED road tax £790 First Year rate then £445 second year onwards, BIK company car tax 35%
Insurance group: 41
Dimensions/capacities: L 4,829mm, W 2,176mm, H 1,887, wading depth 700mm with air suspension standard on HSE version, boot/load space 543 to 2,558-litres, maximum braked towing weight 3,500kg
For: Best on/off road heavyweight 4x4, latest technical changes improve driving refinement, reduce running costs but not taxes, comfortable executive spec interior, imposing to drive
Against: No longer an affordable 4x4 workhorse, high road and company car taxes