Land Rover LR3 2005 review
Series II Discovery was long overdue for replacement. Although still a capable and popular vehicle, its chassis, suspension springs for the design and the beam axis had changed little since the original launch of Discovery in 1989. In turn, the vehicle used essentially the foundation of the original Range Rover, launched in 1970. The Discovery II was beginning to lose sales to more sophisticated 'working' 4x4 vehicles from Japan (such as the Toyota Land Cruiser and Mitsubishi Shogun) and 4x4 "sport" of Europe (like the BMW X5 and Mercedes-Benz M-Class) . A replacement vehicle had been planned for many years, but the project was delayed several times due to the failure of the Rover Group in 2000 and the need to replace the Range Rover in 2001.
The Discovery 3 (LR3 in North America) was a totally new design, the exchange is not a single piece with the previous model. His style is still traditional Land Rover, with function dictating the look, rather than fashion, and with a lot of horizontal and vertical lines. Keeps the main features of the discovery, as a step-raked windshield and roof.
Construction-wise, Land Rover has developed a completely new method which they called "Setting the integrated body '. Previous Discovery models had used a traditional, strong ladder-frame. While hard in the off-road, and expense management are heavy road vehicle . unibody vehicles are more rigid, providing better maneuverability at high speeds, but it can be damaged by the stresses involved in heavy off-road. IBF In the body, engine compartment and the cabin is constructed as a monocoque, which is coupled to a base frame scale taking the gearbox and suspension. it says to combine the strengths of both systems, but it makes the Discovery 3 is a rare heavy for its size stunting on street and off-road agility.
Another big change was the installation of fully independent suspension. As the Range Rover Series III, was an air suspension system, which allowed the height of the vehicle body to be altered by simply inflating or deflating the airbags. The vehicle can be raised to provide ground clearance when off-road, but low at high speeds to improve handling. FIS has been considered less than the highest beam axis, when the road because of its tendency to make the mass of the vehicle out.Land Rover developed suspension 'reticular' air to solve this problem, when necessary, the suspension mimics the action of an axis of the beam (such as a wheel drops, increases more). In the markets of the United Kingdom and Europe, a spring system for independent suspension is available in the base model. This model was unique in the range with only 5 seats and is available only with the diesel engine 2.7 liters. This model did not have the Terrain Response system (see below).
All this is designed to make the vehicle again to a change in the 4x4 market. Last off-road ability was becoming less important compared to refined road manners.Land Rover Discovery 3 found that retains the brand's reputation as the best performance off-road vehicle, and is also a road car in good condition. While the Discovery 3 was not so good at managing bets in the competition, which was much improved over previous models and its off-road remained intact.
The engines used for the Discovery 3 were taken from sister company Land Rover, Jaguar. A 2.7-liter, 195 hp (145 kW) V6 diesel engine (the TDV6) was destined to be the biggest seller in Europe. For the U.S. market, and optional high-performance elsewhere, a V8 engine of 4.4 liters of petrol from 280 hp (209 kW) was chosen. A 4.0-liter petrol V6 borrowed from the Ford stable was available in the U.S. and Australia. Before the launch, there were rumors that Land Rover may introduce the diesel unit for the American market, but the use of diesel fuel with high sulfur content, for which the TDV6 is not expected in this market which is unlikely this session.
The gearboxes on the Discovery 3 were completely new. For the diesel engine, 6-speed manual transmission is standard. As an option, and the standard V8 engine with six-speed automatic transmission was available. Both come with a 2-speed transfer case, permanent four-wheel. A computer controlled progressively locking central differential ensured traction is maintained in difficult conditions. A similar differential was available on the rear axle to aid traction.
The Discovery 3 is Land Rover with a full arsenal of electronic traction control. Hill Descent Control (HDC) prevented "runaway vehicle down steep slopes and 4-wheel electronic traction control (4ETC) prevented the wheels from spinning under conditions of low grip. A road system, the Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) hasprevented from slipping during steering and braking at high speed.
Probably, the main feature of the new vehicle was the innovative 'Terrain Response' (this system won a U.S. scientist in 2005). Previously, off-road driving is a skill that many drivers found daunting. Extensive knowledge of the vehicle must be able to select the right gear, transfer ratio, various differential systems and master various techniques required to tackle the steep hills, deep water and difficult terrain more. Terrain Response attempted to bring many difficulties as possible. The driver selected a type of soil on a dial in the cab of the vehicle (the options are 'Arena', 'Ice / Grass / Snow "," Mud / Ruts' and 'Rock Crawl'.) On-board computer and select the change of correct settings, adjust the height of the suspension, adjusting the settings of the differential lock and alter the response of the throttle valve of the engine suitable to the ground. For example, in "Rock Crawl ', the suspension is raised to its highest point, the differentials are locked, Low Ratio is engaged and the throttle response is altered to provide control at low speeds. The driver maintains a hands-on of the control systems off-road, being able to select the transfer ratio and the suspension height manually, although the use of Terrain Response is necessary to allow full utilization of the capacity of the vehicles.
And new mechanical and electronic systems, the Discovery 3 introduced much more advanced design and modern inside and outside the vehicle. The original 1989 issue of Discovery had been caused by the lack of funds and the subsequent use of components of the first generation Range Rover. These continued to influence the Series II. The Discovery 3 was able to have a fresh, minimalist style. The interior is much improved, with a great design flexibility of 7 seats. Unlike older models, adults can comfortably use all 7 seats. Passengers in line joined through the rear side doors instead of the tailgate as in previous versions. The pilot has benefited from a GPS satellite and modern off-road. When in the off-road mode, the screen shown a diagram of the vehicle, which shows the amount of movement of the suspension, the angle of the front wheels were direction, the state of locking differentials and icons representing the mode Terrain Response has been, and what tool was selected for the automatic versions.
The vehicle was well received by the press upon its release, with the Terrain Response system, vastly improved road dynamics and clever interior design being selected for wide praise. The new image has been rejected by some (descriptions such as "van-like 'is used), and the great white rear panel, now devoid of the spare tire, was a controversial issue. Others have noted that the diesel engine was still behind the competition in power (especially when you consider the weight of the vehicle), but overall the vehicle scored highly. a high point in the launch of the new season came when Jeremy Clarkson Discovery of Top of the BBC car program Top Gear caught in a of a mountain in Scotland, where no vehicle had come before.
In Australia, the vehicle achieved awarded '4 WD of the Year 'by most of the 4WD press, impressing the often conservative journalists of the leading magazines hard' as I wandered without effort a tradition much appreciated Toyota Landcruiser and Nissan Patrol had to fight. It 's been hailed as the first time that electonics actually exceeded the confidence in mechanical systems, but most sounded a note of caution about long-term reliability and ease of maintenance.Despite these points of view, and very similar to LandCruiser, the market is not fixed.
Among the off-road Land Rover enthusiast community, the new discovery has been increasingly accepted. Given the improvement of roads leading vehicle quality, many fear that the off-road capability of the vehicle are comprimised, and others have expressed doubts about relying on electronic systems in extreme conditions. However, for 2006, 2 years after the launch vehicle, the capacity and reliability of the vehicle were tested by both the press and private owners. Land Rover and many aftermarket companies have developed off-road equipment such as winch, bumpers, body kits for protection, and pipe racks for the new discovery, to optimize your off-road.
In 2006 Land Rover Discovery 3 used in the G4 Challenge, alongside the Range Rover Sport. The vehicles are mechanically standard and equipped with standard equipment Land Rover brochures.
The LR3 was nominated for the North American Truck of the Year and won Motor Trend magazine's Sport / Utility of the Year for 2005.
The first new
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