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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  Love it so far... - 2005 Land Rover LR3
  By Amy Peterson - March 11 - 3:36 am

  This is such a new vehical, the jury is still out, but so far its terrific. It drives like a luxury car, but its so nice to sit higher in traffic. Its so high-tech that there are features I know I wont use. The third row seats are roomy and easy to fold. When folded, there is a ton of cargo space. When people are sitting in the 3rd row, there is little cargo space. My kids think the best feature is the 3 sunroofs. Great sound system too and very quiet ride too.

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  Reliability issues persist and horrible gas mileage - 2012 Land Rover Range Rover
  By rngrvrregret - March 10 - 2:17 pm

  Purchased a 2012 RR HSE the last week of December - was in the shop within a month for a major repair that took a week - still having problems with the car - also, gas mileage is horrible (~13 mpg)

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  Incredible - 2003 Land Rover Range Rover
  By Britcar - March 7 - 10:00 am

  Unreal. Fantastic design. It is a BMW. Hop ethe Brits wont hurt it but I guess ford will keep things up. Needsd redsign of the instrument panel/nav. panel.

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  Best SUV or vehicle around!!! - 2003 Land Rover Range Rover
  By RRL - March 7 - 10:00 am

  After a long and extensive search for a new vehicle, I finally decided on the New 2003 Range Rover. It is everything that I or anyone, for that matter, want in a vehicle. Land Rover, out did themselves on this one. It drives better than a MB S500 and just as quiet and comfortable as a Lexus LS 430. The best part is that I can take it ANYWHERE if I wanted to...

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  Computer Issues - 2006 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
  By IROC - March 6 - 12:16 pm

  Bought the car 2 weeks ago, has been in the shop the last week because the stereo and navigation system keep going on and off. The service people cant figure out the problem and seem like they are clueless all around. Have always owned BMWs and regret switching. I would wait a year before I bought this vehicle, let them work the kinks out. Car is new so they are trying to fix problems on the fly.

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  Ranger Rover - 2005 Land Rover Range Rover
  By Range - March 2 - 10:00 pm

  i Love the new Range Rover, but it should have come with more horsepower -- at least 300 instead of 282

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  Great choice over BMW, Acura, Mercedes - 2008 Land Rover LR2
  By Daniel - March 1 - 11:36 pm

  I get bored with cars quite often, but my LR2 is staying for another couple of years with me. I love the LR2. Performance: Coming from a V8 Mercedes(CLS) just prior to purchasing LR2, I was worried I wouldnt be happy with the performance and the ride. Acceleration could be better, but it has plenty of torque for merging on to fast traffic. Ride: LR2 offers a good mix of comfortable ride and capability. I go to Sierra Nevada often during winter, and AWD system performs very well. Off-road capability is also outstanding for a car this size. Handling: Fun! A bit of oversteering around the sharp corners, but its still great. Quality: Rivals other luxury brands (BMW, Mercedes, etc.)

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  great on the outside - 2006 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
  By great on the outside - February 27 - 11:56 pm

  I have owned this car for 6 months and want out of it. I had the 04 Range Rover with the BMW engine and loved the car. I thought the new Sport style was really hot, so I changed models. what a mistake. Its a lot smaller, and seats are not comfortable. The bluetooth is great to have. The side bags for storage are too hard to get to. The center console is narrow and the cooler is great if it was able to fit a normal size water bottle. Key ignition is too hard to get to and the other keys on my chain touch my leg! Car lags and jolts into another gear from a slow stop, drives me nuts!

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  The best suv out there - 2004 Land Rover Discovery
  By ms777sd - February 26 - 4:16 am

  I love my Land Rover, nothing compares, not Chevy, Ford, BMW, this is a real luxury 4X4. its solid, very comfortable, well built, powerful and can take turns like a sports car, absolutly no body roll around hard turns, try that with a Blazer or an Explorer. TRUE 4 wheel drive unlike the other wanabees.. Good luck getting this truck stuck! The only thing I dont like is the key position. It takes a while to get use to putting the key in so close to the dash. Other than that its a winner.

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  Saved My life - 2008 Land Rover LR3
  By Peterkin - February 25 - 6:56 pm

  I was driving my brand new Land Rover Discovery last week when the car next to was hit by another car and hit me. I was pushed off the road and hit a group of large trees at about 40 MPH. I did not even have time to hit the brakes. The car did everything right- all airbags deployed engine shut off etc. I walked away -the car totalled. You know all the other features are great but safety is number one. I am picking up my new Discovery soon!