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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  Looks good, reliable, well-built - 2003 Land Rover Discovery
  By propertybroker - October 19 - 8:56 pm

  I am very pleased with my 03 Discovery after 95k miles. It adopted the 2002 Range Rovers silky 4.6L engine, and is as powerful as it sounds. Shifting is smooth and quality- sounding. Sharp- looking inside and out. My friends, neighbors, and client like the luxurious look of it and think it costs much more that it did. Vehicle rides tall on the road. I get a good view of the road and feel safe in the vehicle. Surprisingly quick acceleration, plows through heavy rain and snow. I have had the vehicle for 4 years and have only had to do regular maintenance on it.

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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.

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  Briefly - 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
  By rovernewbie - October 17 - 7:51 pm

  Quite and amazing vehicle. Literally 5/5 in all categories with the exception of the infotainment system. This is about 5 years behind leading competitors like Audi. Fortunately I predominantly use my iPhone for music/GPS so its not a huge problem for me. The 510 hp is absolutely insane. I highly recommend this to anyone who can afford this.

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  Range Rover 2004 - 2004 Land Rover Range Rover
  By trgsam - October 14 - 2:00 am

  Excellent vehicle. Far better than the LX 470 I had!

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  Great Vehicle when it works - 2005 Land Rover LR3
  By AT - October 12 - 2:10 pm

  We love the car when it works, great to drive, excellent interior room and function. However, weve had 4 major problems in the last 9 months along with a few minor ones.

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  loving it - 2006 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
  By Brian - October 12 - 11:30 am

  Just took a quick road trip in my new supercharged sport and I LOVE IT! I wasnt sure about buying an SUV but since my needs were changing & a RS4 no longer made sense I went looking for a sport SUV. The Cayenne-S drive was a disappointment and the X5 doesnt really have enough room so the only option was the RR sport super. Having gone on a road trip there is no question this was the right choice. I wanted performance & this is total performance. Acceleration, handling, braking everything is exceeding my hopes. The interior is beautiful but the drive is what really counts. If the maintenance isnt a prob this will easily be the best SUV for those that really wanted a sports car.

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  My one owner LR3 before me. - 2005 Land Rover LR3
  By rhazen541 - October 11 - 11:26 pm

  Honestly when I considered purchasing this I was looking at a 06 MB C230, and my LR3 I usually have SUV but ins. good on MB. I only drove the LR3 for about maybe a mile on test drive, and liked it but was strange feeling. Later after purchasing it that day the more I drove the more I loved the LR3! Then when did my first road trip to visit family, there is a lot of passing power on highway and for hills, the top was not heavy so it didnt lean bad at all, w/ 50/50% (close to) weight ratio there is not any under or over steer! I love the ride comfort and steady feel on road even higher speeds. Seen one hit at 55mph head on and doors still open, it drove fine only radiator leaked so took in!

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  Excellent - 2006 Land Rover Range Rover
  By CANDICE - October 10 - 1:13 am

  This is by far one of the most luxurious suvs i have driven and i have driven from cadillac, chevy, lexus, and porsche which i own also. Very comfortable and has so much space unlike other suvs.

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  Great first impression - 2010 Land Rover Range Rover
  By CJ - October 6 - 11:30 am

  Ill revisit the review once I own this RR a bit longer, but I took the 2010 SC a couple days ago and its incredible. Ive used this site a great deal - and thought Id share the initial impressions for the 2010SC RR. Tons of power, actually rears back when you really step on it, a bit more body sway than youd like, incredible interior, new nav/audio is best in class, (we have a porsche and bmw current year to compare with). All together - classy ride, very smooth, dont mistake it for a sport SUV - but the best at what it is supposed to be. Power, luxury, comfort, and classic styling. Loving it.

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  Its a Lemon - 2000 Land Rover Range Rover
  By Sad in Mass - October 4 - 10:00 am

  I just sold this car back to the dealership I bought it from. I drove it for 8 months/ 5000 miles- 4 trips to the dealership and one breakdown. The car had 20,000 miles when I bought it.