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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  Unbelievable - 2006 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
  By headhunter - February 17 - 10:43 pm

  Being a previous owner of 4 Range Rovers and the BMW one can appreciate the differences between them.First off build quality has without a doubt improved through the years, the terrian response system for off roading is nothing short of stellar, and yes i really take it off road. The redesign of the a- pillar has quieted the wind noise nicely from the 2003 rover. The rrs has more room than the X5, rides better etc. A friend has the cayenne s very similar performance with the rover having a much better package (upscale in every department). In short a great car!!!

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  Wow - 2002 Land Rover Range Rover
  By akurana - February 17 - 10:00 am

  I picked up the 2002 Range Rover 4.6HSE Rhino Edition a week ago. Was a little worried about the interior bcos its quite funky but this is a beat of an SUV. The real deal. Got a great deal. MSRP was 74, Paid 56 brand new. No brainer.

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  best value - 2004 Land Rover Freelander
  By mainedriver - February 15 - 10:00 am

  Portland Maine to NYC with no back ache, after 10 years of driving several rentals and my own cars(including volvos)first time ever! extremely comfortable on long drives. it drives like a luxury car.excellent all wheel drive. best kept secret, great value.

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  grate for real Rocky Mountains live - 2002 Land Rover Freelander
  By hanna - February 15 - 10:00 am

  Much better then any 4WD! In comparison to 4WD it is as 4 WD is to ordinary car. AWD + added safety features make it the car for real mountains live. Over 20 mpg is an added bonus. Easy to drive and safe even in the worse icy conditions on steep curved mountain roads. Every winter day during our commuting we see a lot of cars & SUVs, which stop as they can not make on our highway, even worse: some are on their tops - we never have problem. We drive > 24000 miles/year.Comfort- softer then a sedan. Fun: Your friends from Europe, even these, who never heard about 90% of US cars and SUVs would always recognize it with: OOh Land Rover!

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  Range Rover Autobiography Surprises - 2010 Land Rover Range Rover
  By baron58 - February 13 - 9:05 pm

  Last year I bought a R/R Autobiography. Stornaway Grey with Ivory hide/black stitched and Piano Black wood........and what a car! Land Rover have produced the 4WD Bentley. The overall finish is amazing, perfect paint, near perfect body shut-lines. Not Lexus-like but amazingly close.......and this is a Range Rover!! The 4.2l supercharged V8 is superb, the ZF auto brilliant. Ride excellent although a bit of body roll due to weight and high c of g. Does not handle as well as the Sport. Ride comfort and silence at all speeds and road surfaces is world class. High spec level for this model in Australia leaves nothing to be desired. At Au$230,000 Land Rovers pricing is over the top.

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  Solid truck - 2003 Land Rover Discovery
  By texasrover - February 13 - 10:00 am

  Had the truck about three weeks and fouind the 2003 SE to be a large improvement over a friends 2002 especially in pick up and cornering. So far no problems at all. The Disco is fun to drive in the city and hopefully good off road this winter.

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  Transmission Fault - 2005 Land Rover LR3
  By Eric - February 13 - 8:06 am

  With less than 500 miles on my LR3 a hose to the transmission cooler came loose and left the car stranded on the side of the road.

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  Grate SUV - 2005 Land Rover LR3
  By Emad - February 11 - 2:13 pm

  This SUV is the best I ever had, its fun to drive, comfartable and looks nice.

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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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  land rover - 2006 Land Rover LR3
  By doug sinjem - February 6 - 1:10 am

  i really like this car. its fun to drive and is very comfortable. i also really like the look of it.