AIMS: Land Rover boosts Discovery efficiency

LAND ROVER’S Discovery seven-seat SUV range will become more fuel-efficient and better equipped when the 2013 model hits Australian showrooms in January.

The updated Disco is confirmed to join the all-new aluminium-bodied Range Rover and facelifted Freelander on Land Rover’s Sydney show stand later this month.

A tweaked diesel engine and a new eight-speed automatic transmission headline the Discovery’s updates – arriving a year later here than in other markets – alongside upgraded infotainment systems, new colour schemes and additional option packs.

The current Discovery line-up starts from $68,400 and tops out at $129,400, but Land Rover is keeping a lid on pricing announcements for the revised models until closer to launch.

The 2.7-litre V6 turbo-diesel entry-level engine – shared with the Australian-built Ford Territory – will be dropped and replaced by a more powerful, more efficient low-blow version of the existing mid-spec 3.0-litre unit.

Aided by an eight-speed auto from German transmission specialist ZF, diesel variants of the MY13 Discovery use less fuel and accelerate more quickly than the outgoing model.

Combined fuel consumption drops to 8.5 litres per 100 kilometres for the base 155kW/520Nm TDV6 unit, an improvement of almost 17 per cent over the 140kW/440Nm engine it replaces, while its 100km/h time is a whole two seconds quicker at 10.7s.

The full-phat 183kW/600Nm SDV6 diesel consumes 8.8L/100km – a drop of 0.5L/100km or 5.4 per cent – and manages the triple-digit sprint three tenths quicker, at 9.3 seconds.

Flagship Discos fitted with the 276kW/510Nm naturally aspirated 5.0-litre V8 petrol engine continue with a six-speed transmission and maintain their combined fuel consumption and 0-100km/h acceleration figures of 14.1L/100km and 7.9 seconds respectively.

Land Rover Australia brand manager Tim Krieger told GoAuto the company is “still assessing” the prospect of applying the Discovery’s drivetrain improvements to the related Range Rover Sport for this market.

Inside, the Discovery’s infotainment system has been upgraded across the range to receive DAB+ digital radio and digital television stations and the satellite-navigation has been upgrades with off-road guidance and ‘4x4i’ drivetrain monitoring.

The touch screen control introduced last year continues, as do USB, iPod and Bluetooth connectivity plus the option of rear-seat entertainment units with WhiteFire wireless headphones, a single-slot DVD player and USB input for watching downloaded movies.

If the standard eight-speakers are not enough, a 380W, 11-speaker Harman Kardon premium sound system or full-blown 825W, 17-speaker ‘LOGIC 7’ setup continue as the audiophile options.

New exterior paint finishes include Havana (grey), Barolo Black, Barossa (dark purple), Mariana Black and Causeway Grey, while the luxurious HSE variant gets a new seven-spoke 19-inch alloy wheel design in Bright Silver.

A new Black Design Pack comes with 19-inch or 20-inch black-painted alloy wheels plus extra black exterior trim for items like the grille and side vents.

Land Rover has decided to offer an Extended Leather pack, inspired by the hide-lined HSE Luxury limited edition, which as the name suggests, adds leather to surfaces such as the dash top and door trim caps.

Additional interior colour schemes include Arabica (brown) seats with Nutmeg (tan) stitching or Ivory seats and stitching on the Windsor premium leather upholstery.

A Grand Ivory lacquer veneer finish has been added to contrast with the Ebony fascia and door caps steering wheel controls in loss black complement the Grand Black lacquer veneer finish, while new Cosmic Grey interior trim will become optional.

Land Rover sold 5418 units to the end of August, a 38.1 per cent increase largely accounted for by the new Range Rover Evoque, of which 1834 were sold.

Evoque notwithstanding, most Land Rover models have registered double-digit sales decreases and the Discovery is down six per cent, while the venerable Defender wagon is up 45.5 per cent with 457 sales.