Discovery D300 HSE R-Dynamic

If you walked into a Land Rover dealership back in 1988, which feels like yesterday to me, you’d be confronted with just three models, the 90, 110 and Range Rover. Buyers, however, wanted something more versatile, something in between the rugged Land Rover and the posh Range Rover, something like the Mitsubishi Shogun, but from Solihull.

And so, cutting a long story short, in 1989 the Discovery was born. These days, five generations on, the venerable Discovery has matured, as has the Defender and Range Rover, and like the rest of the range finds itself a lot more upmarket.

Last year the Discovery received an update, it gained a subtler front grille and seamless LED headlights and tail lights with fresh front and rear bumpers. The R-Dynamic model, as tested here, has a more assertive road presence with unique bumpers, wheels and tail lights to create a more sporting character.

When I first drove the Discovery 5 back in 2017 down at Millbrook’s testing facility I wrote that with its new platform and revised engine line-up, the D5 will now usher you along in a new level of efficiency, refinement and comfort, in fact it was so smooth you will think you’re in a Range Rover. That’s still the case, and even though it’s a big ole barge, the 296bhp from the 3.0 litre six cylinder mild-hybrid engine gives it plenty of get up and go.

The aforementioned updates in 2021 weren’t just focussed on the Discovery’s looks, but also gave the Discovery improved road manners

Of all the trips we had, by far my favourite was along the A5092 and A595 heading towards Bootle, as it’s full of twists, turns, ups and downs, and in the right vehicle can be quite fun. The Discovery didn’t let me down.

The steering was direct and the ride was quite firm - not in a jarring sort of way, but you can tell the difference in road surfaces. Land Rover have made the Discovery more carlike to drive and distanced it from the Defender.

From tootling around town to having a bit of fun on your favourite road, the Discovery disguises its size well, it’s one of those cars that makes me smile whenever I drive it.

I have to add that at night, the D5 had by far the best headlights that I’ve experienced in a long time, the road ahead was literally flooded with light.

When it comes to safety the spec sheets reads like a novel, from trailer stability assist and lane assist to driver condition monitoring and traffic sign recognition and adaptive speed limiter.

What can I say, what Land Rover don’t know about 4-wheel drive systems simply isn’t worth knowing, and the only limitations are your own nerves and grip from the tyres, and even then you begin to wonder whether Land Rover have designed a tyre with retractable spikes, as it seems to find grip from nowhere.

Terrain Response 2 does an amazing job, and of course you can see in real time when and to what extent those differentials are locking via the 11.4” Pivi Pro touchscreen.

Bootle Fell offers some amazing views, but also very deep ruts caused in the main by rain, yet the D5 on road tyres dismissed them like a grass verge at your local Waitrose, or Nisa if you live near me.

With the front wheels flailing in the air, forward motion was never an issue, especially with the Discovery’s Active Rear Locking Differential, an £1,080 option, but worth it. With class-leading breakover, approach and departure angles you always feel in control, and dare I say it, a little smug, as whatever I pointed the Discovery at it conquered with total ease.

On most lanes I raised the suspension and selected ‘Mud & Ruts’ and let it do its own thing. One moan about air suspension is that on full extension it can feel a bit on the harsh side, which makes sense really, but I do miss the subtleness of long coil springs.

On some tight lanes I found the front cameras to be an excellent aid, especially the ones fitted to the door mirrors. Not only could I see in what direction both front wheels where pointing, but I could also see how far away they were from gnarly rocks and roots that could easily tear a hole in my sidewalls. Oh, and the braked-trailer towing capacity is still 3500kg across the range.

From last year there’s a new range of efficient 3.0 litre straight-six Ingenium engines, both petrol and diesel, featuring 48V Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicle (MHEV) technology.

The petrol range starts with the P300, a 2.0 litre turbo four-cylinder that develops 296bhp with 400Nm of torque. Above it sits a 3.0-litre straight six fitted with an electric supercharger.

The diesel line-up consists of 247bhp and 296bhp versions of a 3.0-litre six-cylinder mild-hybrid.

Plush, calming and sleek with lashings practically thrown in for good measure.

Up front the curved touchscreen is integrated well into the dash, and the improved Pivi Pro infotainment system is incredibly quick and easy to use. The heater and heated seats are controlled by dual-use dials that are large and grippy enough to use whilst wearing gloves. The transmission tunnel is totally decluttered and wrapped in the soft-buttough rubberised plastic.

The seats are very comfy, equally so in the back. In this model 2nd and 3rd row passengers have heated seats and plenty of power points, from USB, USB-C and 12v. Just checking the options list and heated electric third row seats are an £1,900 option.

Usually I’m not keen on everything being electric, but at the press of a button the 3rd row seats emerge from their resting place in a matter of seconds, really cool and convenient, actually, especially if you have your hands full. Of course, with the aforementioned 3rd row seats in the upright position there’s just enough space to fit a couple of shopping bags behind them, but you can’t have everything.

A lot of folk questioned whether the Discovery would die a sudden death after the launch of the new Defender, but after driving both there’s no doubt the Discovery still has a firm place at the table.

The Discovery manages to do what a lot more road biased its rivals cannot, and that’s offer very good road manners without losing any of its off-road credentials.

I’ve said it before, the Discovery remains the automotive version of the Swiss Army knife, it can carry seven people in comfort, it has the towing capacity of 3,500kg, and it’s pretty much unstoppable off-road, it also manages to do all of this in style and luxury.