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:

• 

  Great ride - 2008 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
  By skelly8 - July 9 - 9:45 pm

  Bought used with 33k miles. Subaru driver needed a Schedule 179 vehicle for tax purposes. Averages 19 mpg on my commute, 21.5 on a run to Palm Springs down Hwy 5. Love the ride, sound system, navigation, turning radius. Does everything without drama. Freeway on ramp merge speed? No problem, put in sport mode and it winds to 7000 rpm like NOW and you are flying. Want to climb an impossibly steep trail? No problem, put it in low range and up you go. Brakes feel like you threw out an anchor. Big control knobs and buttons fit my stubby fingers and just feel right. I love this rig.

• 

  Very Happy with this SUV! - 2003 Land Rover Discovery
  By paparvr - July 3 - 10:00 am

  Ive owned my Discovery for 6 months now. I thought I would reserve my review until now. This is an excellent SUV. It has a very smooth ride, excellent build quality and unrivaled off-road ability. What amazes me the most is its ability to conquer almost anything you hand it off-road but ride like a luxury SUV on the city streets. Highly recommended!

• 

  the best - 2006 Land Rover LR3
  By nick - July 2 - 9:36 am

  it is the best car i have ever owned and i have owned 20 some cars. my last was a volvo xc90 which is very nice but this beats it if you ask me

• 

  Unbeatable at almost any price - 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
  By expatbrit - July 1 - 5:19 pm

  The Range Rover Sport is not cheap; with the V8 engine and top-end Meridian audio, mine was all but $100k on the road. But you get what you pay for - stunning performance, great handling, the best driving position of any car Ive owned, and a luxurious ride that can go anywhere ... and Im getting 18 mpg in stop-start motoring.

• 

  Best of all worlds! - 2006 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
  By BGreig - July 1 - 3:43 am

  I traded a Mercedes S500 and gained a vehicle that handles just as well. Great fun to drive, with the off road capability I needed for recreation. The engine is a dream, and the sport shift works amazingly well to match gear to speed or allow manual shifting. The sport seats provide lots of support, and the leg room is sufficient (I am 64").

• 

  Freelander G4 - Special Edition - 2003 Land Rover Freelander
  By BritinUSA - June 27 - 2:00 am

  I read the edmunds.com review prior to buying and I found the Editor Reviews to be rather misleading. There is a great case to be made for the Freelander over the BMW, namely price. Sure it does not have all the extra bells and whistles offered by the luxury SUV but then this is not a luxury SUV, it is an Off-road vehicle that has been designed to handle well on the roads. The sport-shift is especially useful in snow/ice conditions as it allows the vehicle to be driven around town with minimal use of the breaks (helps prevent loss of traction). All round this is a great car.

• 

  Like no other..... - 2004 Land Rover Range Rover
  By RRFanatic - June 27 - 2:00 am

  Had a 2001 MB S600 when I bought 2004 Range Rover. Drove RR to Colorado from Atlanta. Went on toughest 4X4 terrain in the world in Gunnison County Colorado...over 14,000 ft high ancient glacier creek beds from Aspen to Crested Butte....best off-raod performance in the world. And, driving back to Atlanta decided that this SUV was more comfortable than my S600 on- road....so I sold S600 when I got back from my trip. Enough said!

• 

  2.2 DIESEL LR2 but not in the USA - 2008 Land Rover LR2
  By Mr. B - June 26 - 6:33 am

  My wife was transfered for temporary assignment in England last year and was provided a car expense fund. She chose a "DIESEL" LR2 (Freelander 2) that is available everywhere in the world except the USA. It is a 2.2 liter common rail, turbo charged unit with an automatic transmission. On a number of trips we took into mainland Europe, we averaged low to mid 30 MPG on the highway and low 20 MPG in city driving. The build quality was excellent and durability was bullet- proof. And the MPG was a shocker! Note: Fuel prices in Europe are considerably higher. She got a great small/mid-sized SUV with all the creature comforts - loaded - for significantly less money compared to BMW or Mercedes.

• 

  Design Flaw - 2008 Land Rover LR3
  By Vincent - June 25 - 11:00 am

  Love it! Contrary to some reviews, I like the lumbering feeling in the LR3. Very roomy, very safe. My wife drives my 2 kids around and about, and I am at ease knowing they are in such a solid and safe vehicle. Here is the flaw. After a severe fall rain storm, my wife opened the door of our LR3 and water poured out of the front passenger seat. The dealer told me that leaves clog the soffet for the moon roof drainage system. The H20 has no where to go, so it falls inside the car. She said it is a design flaw for all 3 models. She knew exactly what it was when I called it in. If you garage your LR3, then dont sweat it. If you have a garage that is too low for the LR3. Heads up!

• 

  Very fun to drive - 2004 Land Rover Freelander
  By Andrew Gates - June 22 - 6:23 pm

  It has been almost 2 years driving this car and I really like it. A few months ago Ive notice that the fuel consumption was higher than normal. I took it to the Lad Rover Dealer and they said it was the fuel pump. For my surprise, I did not have to pay for anything, since it was a recall. If you drive a 2004 Freelander, take it to the dealer to get the fuel pump replaced. I also noticed that after the fix, the gear changes are more smooth.