Thread: Disco Sport is big

I could never understand why Defender's had less power and torque than Discovery's for both the Tdi & Td5.

I always thought they de-rated the defender engines for reliability when in uppercumbuctawest,,

as for the wheelbase,,
The D2 was the last RR chassis.
and about 3 inches shorter than it really needed to be

Originally Posted by Pedro_The_Swift

I always thought they de-rated the defender engines for reliability when in uppercumbuctawest,,

Don't know as I never managed to get the time to take mine there. Still on my bucket list though.

Originally Posted by Pedro_The_Swift

and about 3 inches shorter than it really needed to be

The story of my life

I decided to satisfy my curiosity by inspecting/driving a DS at the local LR stealer.

In summary its a very impressive vehicle, which has clear styling similarities with the new RRS and Evoque. In some respects the exterior more resembles a RRS than the Evoque does. I very much liked the exterior and interior. Although I also sat in a new RRS and its very very nice, as it should be at twice the price. The LR designers have put the DS head and shoulders above the standard SUV fair. It doesn't look that big but looks can be deceiving. Armed with a tape measure I noted the following:

• the width of the cabin area is approx 1400mm (not including outside arm rests);
• with the 2nd row in about the middle position (not all the way back but not all the way forward) I measured the cargo area as 1050mm deep, 1100mm wide (narrowest point between wheel arches) and 800mm high.

The cabin noise although better than the FL2 still had noticeable NVH from the motor, and it also suffered turbo lag. I wonder if the lag can be remapped out. I looked at the front suspension and noted the springs were quite short. The wheel arch could probably take a 245/70/17 tyre (but probably nothing bigger) which would give the car a slight lift and a more durable off road tyre. I looked in the engine bay and it is a very similar layout to like PSA motors, good access to the alternator (mounted high) and compressor below. The belts are also quite accessible, and it has a good old fashioned oil dipstick.

Maybe Im being unrealistic, but I thought an SE should include xenon lights and mirrors that dip when reversing. I was impressed with the front seat comfort which was electric and had electric adjustable lumber support. The back seats were a bit flat. To get the bits I wanted it would have to be a HSE. I also liked the idea of the glass roof which is fixed rather than a sunroof. An oddity was how the roof lining would drop down in the cargo area, which probably reduced the height of the cargo area by at least 50mm.

Quite unfairly, I kept comparing it to my 08 L322, which is probably the best car Ive ever driven. Power wise the DS was very good compared to the tdv8, if only it didn't have turbo lag. It was clearly noisier at idle and across the rev range. Cruising at 60km it wasn't too bad. I didn't get to drive it at HW speed. The width of the DS cabin was also good compared to the L322. The L322 cabin is 50mm wider which is probably mostly taken up by the centre console creating more space between the driver and front passenger. However, considering the DS is classed as a small SUV its very good. The biggest surprise was the size of the DS cargo area compared to the L322. The L322 is definitely bigger (with more vertical sides and flat roof) but not by a heap. The floor depth and width (between the wheel arches) was nearly identical, and the L322 cargo area height is about 100mm more in the L322 at the opening. The D4 cargo area is probably substantially bigger than the DS.

Design wise there is probably four significant things I would change:

• taller front springs for off road give (I didnt look at the rears);
• increase the height of the cargo area;
• make the roof level all the way back rather than sloping down and the rear more vertical (maybe that style will be reserved for the new Defender);
• access the spare from underneath like D4 instead of under the cargo area floor;
• I would make the split tail gate standard on all Land Rovers; and
• up spec the SE to include a few more luxury features like xenon lights and improve the rear seats a bit.