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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  Second LR3-Loved the First Also - 2008 Land Rover LR3
  By Finman - February 9 - 5:00 pm

  Traded 2005 LR3 as it was running out of warranty. 2008: prem lthr much nicer although I didnt mind getting the other lthr messy. Piano-black wood...so nice but hard to really see it...so black. Ride is smoother, rock solid, no clunks, flatter in curves, less body roll (likely all due to newer). Much less wind noise, virtually eliminated!!! 550W H-K sounds much better but likely due to less wind and road noise. 1st gear lurch is gone, likely transmission programming improvement. Plenty of power...doesnt need any more...its no race car. Love this truck. Suggest leasing...resale value stinks...surprise

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  Fun little car - 2003 Land Rover Freelander
  By sr11 - January 31 - 2:00 am

  We wanted a little suv as a 2nd car to drive and commute with. With the sunroof and premium stereo, its a lot of fun to drive, no matter the weather. Definitely the best re handling/performance in its group. Gas still stinks but at least its regular. Usual British quirks but overall, we love it. Good news is if we need the extra trunk, we look for our 2001 discovery II.

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  New Land Rover lover - 2004 Land Rover Discovery
  By sphengolly - January 14 - 2:00 am

  I like the ride both on and off road.It is a truck so it is not a smooth as my brothers Mercedes, but is nice. In rain it sticks on the road and gives you confidence you can control it. people complain about the difficulty of the differentfunctions,locks ,windows,air,ec t. but can learn and use easy enough with practice, as with the key into the ignition takes practice. There is some wind noise on the highway , but only noticable to me at 70mph or higher. It handels fine at those speeds never past 85mph. Rear air is a must and I recomend the SE (like I have)or higher se7 model.

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  STYLE, FUNCTION AND FUNK.... - 2005 Land Rover LR3
  By yogidoc - January 1 - 12:10 am

  Traded in 03 Aviator which was functional but boring yet very comfortable like driving on air with big wide full seats Owned 2 previous discos which i always loved despite freq repairs; was totally psyched about LR3, funky, beastly, cutting edge technology picked up SE blk/blk yesterday which looks great..dealership was great!

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  Performs great., expensive to fix! - 2002 Land Rover Freelander
  By erica - December 24 - 2:43 am

  I love my freelander, however, the cost to fix anything or replace anything is outlandish. Not worth it at all. I am trading it in after putting over 2000 of repair into it in the last year! If youre going o buy, buy new!

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  too many problems with this one - 2004 Land Rover Freelander
  By verrrry unhappy - November 15 - 10:00 am

  i bought the freelander in august 2003, it has been in the shop twice for leaking antifreeze, once for the sun roof, twice for the engine knocking, and is now in the shop for the air conditioning not working, still smelling antifreeze after turning car off, and having hard starts. i would not recommend this car to anyone. will trade it off if i can get out of service long enough.

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  Nice - 2002 Land Rover Freelander
  By dkspock - November 10 - 10:00 am

  Despite the Freelander getting less than favorable reviews in various publications, I still can not agree with most of them, I feel comfortable in this car, and I am 6.2". Even though current design trends seem to dictate a more spaceship like look on many cars out there, I think the Freelanders interior is quite functional, timeless and easy to get used to. The leather seats are very comfortable. the V6 engine has plenty of power, the AC seem fine, the standard sound system is adequate. This vehicle feels very solid, it handles great and looks great. I appreciate all the handy little details that is put into the design.

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  my .02 - 2002 Land Rover Range Rover
  By caseyluv - November 6 - 2:00 am

  British quirky. superior handling to what was expected. clean lines, off- road prowess, hi-tech and quiet ride. This is what BMW would want an X7 to be. oh wait, that would be the 2003 model. A very worth vehicle.

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  Very Nice for the price - 2009 Land Rover LR2
  By Willy - October 30 - 9:20 pm

  IT is a very nice car if you are looking for smaller SUV. there are lots of competition from Medz, Lex, BMW, Volvo, Acura ect. But the price is very fair for what you get. It is more like a truck than the other car- based. But still rides nice. Eventhough it is the lowest end Land Rover, it has the look and feel of the more e xpensive one, like the Sport.

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  Love my Evoque - 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque
  By ggolds5 - October 18 - 10:44 pm

  I bought a 2014 Evoque Pure Plus. I traded in 2 cars. My 2012 Mini Countryman and my 2012 Corvette GS. My job situation has changed- IE I make less per the economy/awful president. Ok, This isnt a political discussion. The Vette outside of being fast was completely unimpressive. The Evoque is beautiful, drives really well, handles and accelerates very nicely. The ride is quiet unlike the Mini. The Mini was loud, transmitted every sound to the occupants. I liked it lot less after owning it a while. The Evoque is luxurious. A work of art. Hopefully it will be more reliable then my 98 and 02 LR Discoveries. The day I picked it up the door remote wouldnt work. A computer update fixed it.