Overview & Reviews

Land Rover is a luxury SUV manufacturer that has its roots in England. Many of its vehicles are replete with the sort of leather-lined comforts that call to mind hunting lodges and high tea. Land Rovers are also known for being stellar trail-busters, endowed with the moxie to get down and dirty when the road gets rough. Currently owned by Tata Motors, Land Rover is one of just a few automotive brands in the United States to solely market SUV products.

After World War II, two British brothers, Spencer and Maurice Wilks, were impressed by the rugged and versatile nature of the U.S. Army's Jeep. They worked with the British automaker Rover to create the first Land Rover in 1948. Called the Series I, this truck was equipped with permanent four-wheel-drive, a canvas roof and optional doors. These early Land Rovers were crude but extremely well-suited for operations in the field.

The 1950s saw Land Rovers moving toward increased power and refinement. Launched in 1958, the Series II offered added horsepower and a somewhat less rudimentary exterior, with sills designed to disguise the exhaust and chassis. The first diesel-powered Rover was also produced during these years. The Series IIA came next, in a production run that lasted from 1961-'71. As the '60s drew to a close, Rover was acquired by Leyland Motors Ltd. (which would later become British Leyland).

Land Rover's storied Range Rover made its debut in 1970. Equipped with a V8 engine and a body made mostly of aluminum, the stylish vehicle was more consumer-oriented than its predecessors. In the mid-'70s, British Leyland was nationalized; by the mid-'80s, the company — renamed the Rover Group — had been acquired by British Aerospace.

The automaker officially entered the U.S. automotive market in 1987 when the Range Rover made its debut on American shores. It was followed in 1989 by the Discovery, which was initially offered only in two-door form. The Discovery was the first all-new Land Rover in 19 years.

In the 1990s, the sudden popularity of the burgeoning SUV segment placed the brand in an enviable position. In response, Land Rover's vehicles, while still retaining their go-anywhere attitude, became more luxurious, particularly after BMW bought the company in 1995.

The Land Rover family of vehicles has continued to grow. The late '90s saw the introduction of the Freelander; the compact sport-ute held the distinction of being the first production vehicle to offer Hill Descent Control. The latter optimized maneuverability on steep descents by automatically braking to keep the vehicle's speed in check.

BMW's control was short lived, however, and in 2000 Land Rover was sold to Ford. Ford worked hard to improve the reliability of Land Rover's vehicles, but by 2008 Ford's financial instability resulted in Land Rover being sold again, this time to the Indian automaker Tata Motors.

Today, Land Rover is still well known for its luxury SUVs, including the ritzy yet rugged Range Rover as well as smaller and more affordable models like the LR4 and Evoque.

User Reviews:

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  Range Rover - 2004 Land Rover Range Rover
  By Roskos1 - January 5 - 10:00 am

  This is our second Range Rover of the new model, our first was a 2003. Great car, wife loves it with the kids. Be sure to have your dealer install the headrest DVDs, (after narket). A/C is the best I have ever tested. The volume from the fan is incredible, (we live in Arizona). Stabiltiy and power is great. This was a BMW designed and built factory for this model before ford purchased Range Rover. It has all of the look and feel of BMW on the inside, with the ride os my S500 class Mercedes.

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  Smooth and simple - 2003 Land Rover Freelander
  By facet - December 27 - 2:00 am

  The ride of the Freelander is fantastic. It handles snow and ice without a hitch. I have taken it through 20 inches of unplowed snow, it did not have any problems. The AWD system works well.

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  I love this Land Rover - 2003 Land Rover Discovery
  By chuck2003 - December 27 - 2:00 am

  Traded a Freelander for the Disco. Should have bought the Disco in the first place. Dont get me wrong, the Freelander is a great vehicle, but the Discovery has better build quality, more space, luxury features, and feels much more solid. And it almost begs to go off-road. We opted for the 7- passenger version (SE7).

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  Outstanding Vehicle - 2007 Land Rover LR3
  By Bradley - December 25 - 3:50 pm

  Each day of driving I am more pleased with the LR3. I have accrued 4000 miles so far and have enjoyed every one of them. The vehicle is a bit heavy, but has a very smooth & comfortable ride. The 4.4 liter V8 performs well in all normal day to day driving conditions. Some dedicated studying is required to make full use of the stereo & climate interfaces. Though overall, this vehicle gives its driver an incredible sense of poise & stability....rain or shine, but especially rain!

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  Coolest SUV - 2008 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
  By DCorey - December 17 - 1:03 pm

  Very high coolness factor. Sweet Sounding Supercharged Engine that pushes this ride like an M3. The stereo/dvd system is the best Ive experienced in a vehicle. The memory seat buttons are tough to navigate due to space, but other than that the interior is flawless. Needs to have power lift gate for my wife since she is the primary driver :( . Back seats a little rigid and tight for long runs. Auto wipers and seats/steering column a bit quirky. Dealer picks up and delivers. Cant Beat That. At the dealer twice for scheduled maintenance.

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  ONE NICE DRIVER - 2003 Land Rover Discovery
  By B MITCHELL - December 15 - 10:00 am

  THIS ONE IS UNLIKE THE OLDER MODELS,THEY HAVE PUT TOIGETHER A REAL WINNER THIS YEAR.. JUST LOVE IT, AND MY WIFE THINKS ITS FANTASTIC.

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  Range Rover 2003 - 2004 Land Rover Range Rover
  By Chap - December 15 - 10:00 am

  By all means the Rolls Royce of the SUVs. Classic English attention to detail inside and outside of the cabin with the ultimate Bosch (BMW) engine under the hood. Could be a bit more fuel efficient but at these prices, it really shouldnt be the defining issue. It is, quite simply, in a class by itself, and likely to remain so. Well worth the wait!

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  Make sure you love your dealer - 2005 Land Rover LR3
  By Tom - December 11 - 10:40 am

  The electronic parking brake system locked up and burnt up the rear brakes. Dealer fixed it all and I had a loaner but it took two trips to get it right. Then developed a interior water leak, again took two trips to fix. Land Rover US customer service has high school girls with an attitude answering the phones, no help. The car is actually tremendous which makes this very sad. Great ride, quite, great stereo, good gas mileage, super style, excellent off road. Everyone that rides in has nothing but compliments for it. Just make sure you love your dealer because it is built in England and they like to drink before they come to work.

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  all-around awesome! - 2004 Land Rover Freelander
  By ENVfernandez2453 - December 3 - 2:00 am

  this car is an amazing buy! completely worth your while if purchasing as a first car for a teen in high school or heading to college. it has all the great aspects about an SUV and the luxury appeal land rover adds on. the SE3 model is a sure fire win, with its removable back the car seems more like a jeep than an SUV. overall, very good

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  Its a head turner - 2010 Land Rover LR4
  By FirstLR4 - November 26 - 11:56 am

  I am proud to say I have an LR4. The car is chock full of options and amenities that make it feel like it should be much more expensive. I test drove the Mercedes ML350 at about the same sticker price and it lacked several of the options and features of the LR4. Very happy with my decision and would highly recommend to anyone. Reliability was the only question in my mind, but the thing feels solid when you drive it. While I probably will never take my LR4 off-roading, its nice to know that no matter the situation, Ill likely be able to get out. Get to your nearest dealership and test drive one.