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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  Overall a great vehicle! - 2005 Land Rover LR3
  By bill4516 - October 29 - 2:40 pm

  Bought a used 2005 LR3 V8 with 75,000 miles. Now just about to turn 100,000. Overall I love this vehicle and (knock wood) have not had any mechanical issues. Besides its amazing appearance, it was cheaper than a used Tahoe 4X4. It rides very smoothly and has just the right amount of power. The a/c ( I live in Phoenix) works great. Im hoping that it stays reliable. It hasnt however been problem free. The glove box door broke, the little door that covers the cigarette light wont stay up ( I dont smoke), the handle for the back storage area floor board came off and my side molding has come off twice. Once while four wheeling and once in a car wash (poor design). Still love the car!

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  GR8 SUV - 2004 Land Rover Freelander
  By Jad - October 17 - 10:00 am

  i have driven many cars but this is one of the most fun to drive it might look small but just get inside one of them its great. you have all you need from leather seats to sunroofs to everything .. you even have 2 glove compartments one on each side..overall its a great car

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  Bad All Over - 2003 Land Rover Discovery
  By Bad over - October 14 - 10:00 am

  Nice 4wd, nice change for 2003. Car has humming noise, similar to gear noises around 50-70 MPH. People either seem to like it or think its ugly. Drinks gas like an gasoholic. why is it so hard to stick the key in the ignition? Bad dealers attitudes. I had better treatment at BMW, and infinity dealers.

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  Land Rover Freelander - 2002 Land Rover Freelander
  By junehhan - October 3 - 2:00 am

  This is clearly a great vehicle from Land Rover. While it may not have the offroading ability of the Discovery, or the Range Rover, its incredibly and surprisingly capable offroad. An entire day spent at the Paragon Offroad Park proved that this vehicle is in every step a Land Rover. Its just too bad that my Freelander spends most of its time getting repaired at the Centre because Land Rover couldnt make a reliable vehicle.

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  A British tank with same fuel mileage - 2010 Land Rover LR4
  By O - September 30 - 5:36 am

  Had it for about 6 months, driven about 5000 miles. Drove it over two curvy mountain roads during a blizzard with no problem. Had to take it in twice. First time was for a vibrating noise during acceleration coming from the dash. Dealer said it was a loose wiper motor. Second time was for a tire pressure monitoring system failure (which cleared itself b4 getting to dlr) and for a "software update" which land rover insisted was not a recall in their letter. There seems to be some build quality issues. Hopefully they dont turn into long- term reliability issues. Vehicle is very stately looking. You dont see one everywhere like my old Ford Explorer. Wife loves it. Happy wife, happy life.

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  Land Rover for me - 2008 Land Rover LR3
  By upstate ny lr3 - September 10 - 12:43 pm

  Have 2008 Lr3 HSE, only problems are a seatbelt in the back seat and the refrig, replaced and working fine. Live where the snow flies 5-6 months of the year, Lr3 is a beast in the snow. Love to embarrass my two buds with hummers, not even in the same class. This SUV is not to drive to the mall or g-store. Love to drive this car, went on trip to florida with two kids.....great. The gas mileage was expected averaged 21mpg on highway. The car makes me walk funny, built like a tank.

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  Best SUV around - 2004 Land Rover Range Rover
  By geoffsam - September 4 - 10:00 am

  Love this car.....far superior to Jeep, Explorer, Lexus, Navigator...all of which I have owned. Only the GPS system and radio are terrible...must be improved. Big gas guzzler

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  Cant Wait for Snow - 2003 Land Rover Discovery
  By Alaskan - September 2 - 10:00 am

  Drives/feels like a luxury vehicle on the road. Very stable and comfortable on the rough Alaskan dirt roads. Honda Pilots and the like are just minivans, my Land Rover is a truck with true off road capability. I am looking forward to trying it in the snow.

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  Not Happy - 2003 Land Rover Freelander
  By Julie - August 26 - 7:06 pm

  I have had my Freelander 16 months. So far the battery had to be replaced, a vaccum hose has been replaced, the heater core went and when fixing that the vaccum motor had to be replaced. I am now on my 3rd radio due to problems with the radio or GPS. And my new problem is the lighter has quit working. Of course this has all been covered by warranty but should all this be wrong with a new car and an inconvience to me as I had to keep taking the vehicle to the dealership until my husband bought the LR3 so now they bring me a loaner and pick mine up. I really like the design of the vehicle but service was not good until we became a 2 Landrover Household.

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  Beautiful to drive, frustrating to own. - 2010 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
  By FirstLR - August 24 - 2:50 pm

  IÂ’ve had the 2010 RRS HSE with LUX package for two weeks now. I love how the car handles; spent the first few nights taking the coast road home [Stop reading here if you only want favorable words]. The electronic/software issues on the other hand, are now making me think this is the Microsoft Vista of automobiles; nothing quite operates the same two times in row. Manufacture date is 09/09. This is my first LR vehicle, having spent the last 10 years as a Lexus owner with nary a cold, so maybe my expectations are too high. Id like to loan LR the top notch Test & QA team from my company for a few months. Taking the car into the dealer for 7 issues (all but one are electronic/software related).