INSURANCE FOR THE INDIVIDUAL

Range Rover Velar (2017-on) £27,500-£75,000

because of its particularly handsome exterior. It’s based upon the same architecture as the Jaguar F-Pace but has greater off-road ability and is available with a wide choice of engines, most of which combine good economy with usable everyday performance.

Discovery (1989-1998) £800-£18,000

other models expected to follow the Velar in due course.

But is there a whiff of style over substance? Well, it’s a very good SUV. But you don’t half pay a premium for those suave looks...

with the same 100” wheelbase and a slick body containing a spacious, flexible cabin. It was well equipped and refined, and it came with the wonderful Tdi engine.

The Velar a competent cruiser and has received numerous accolades

The interior is Land Rover’s most advanced cabin to date, with

Pros: Stylish design, chic cabin, excellent tech features Cons: Feels like an indulgence, especially at such a high price

Discovery 2 (1998-2004) £1000-£11,000

most reliable units ever. It drives well, too – mated to a manual box it has more guts even than the V8 option, which is surprisingly bland but predictably thirsty.

Whereas the Disco 1 was prone to body rust, the D2 is fine here. Instead, its chassis rots like a carrot, especially towards the back end. Also at the back, seven-seat

The original Discovery was based on the Range Rover of the time,

Over time, the Disco’s epic ability meant almost all of them were hammered at playdays. Lower body rust is a big killer, too. So it’s rare to find a good one now, and when you do they tend to be priced with a lot of optimism. Very early ones in tip-top condition are full-on classics, too. For a sound one to own, we’d look for a tidy 300Tdi.

Pros: Price, practicality, parts availability. Epic off-road ability

Cons: The body rusts like it’s been doused in sea water

Discovery 3 (2004-2009) £1850-£16,000

models had air-suspension, with all the horrors that brings.

Mainly, D2 owners will tell you about rogue electronics. And leaky sunroofs. They still love their trucks, though, which says a lot.

Pros: Td5 power and reliability, great all-rounder, lots of choice

Cons: Chassis rust, electronics, leaky sunroofs, air suspension

The Disco 3 is an astonishing allround vehicle. It’s good on the road and capable off-road, genuinely luxurious and a giant of a tow truck, and as well as being able to seat seven adults it can be turned into a van with a totally flat rear load area.

But it was also astonishingly complex, and these days it has a reputation as a money pit. Air suspension and electronic handbrakes are big sources of woe, cam belts are a body-off job to change and rust is becoming more of an issue. Get a good one, though, and it’s all the car you’ll ever need.

Pros: Good at everything. Lots of accessories available now

Cons: As fragile as you expect, and then some is basically an evolution of the 3. It looks similar and is still a practicality monster, as well as being hugely impressive on and off-road and a hero in front of a trailer, but despite being only subtly tweaked inside feels far more luxurious.

That hasn’t prevented it from suffering all the same issues as time has gone on. You need to body and dishes up an appealing all-round blend of comfort, kit and general driving manners.The third row of seats is only suitable for little ‘uns, though, and off-road it’s a Discovery in name only.

It’s a more practical proposition than the closely related Evoque, and you won’t need to live with the fear of Posh Spice jokes. You start off by buying the best you can possibly afford – and at the top of the market, they don’t come cheap. Get it right, though, and this is as good as a modern Land Rover has ever been.

Pros: Most LR fans’ idea of what a Range Rover should be like Cons: Still a potential money pit, and the best are expensive might shudder at the price if you’re buying new, though – but on the used market, there are some tidy looking deals to be had, even on high-spec examples.

Pros: More practical than an Evoque, and less vulgar. Seven seats. Capable enough off-road Cons: Back seats only for small mammals. Price of top models monster. As an all-rounder, at launch it was the most capable Land Rover on sale – the new Defender will be going some to wrest that crown from it.

All the engines in the range are refined and flexible, and its chassis is remarkably supple for such a big vehicle. There’s no end of electronics working away in the background, but the effect is very convincing – as is an interior that might make you wonder why you’d bother paying more for a Range Rover. Just be careful not to go wild with the options and end up paying more for a Discovery…

Pros: Immense blend of comfort and practicality

Cons: Feels more like a softroader than a proper Discovery

Discovery Sport (2019-on) £21,000-£62,000

after the first. That’s because once again, it’s related to the Evoque, which was ready for a full new model in 2019.

The Sport is a premium midsized SUV with seven seats and a decent level of off-road ability. It’s a massively popular choice for the school run – and, with the arrival of a plug-in hybrid option last year, as a company car. Quality has taken a step up from the first model – it’s now a convincing premium vehicle, and the range offers enough choices to suit anybody with the means to buy one.

Pros: Classy and practical cabin, all-round good to drive

Cons: You can get a Defender for the price of some models

Products Vehicles News

Adventure Workshop

Series IIA Lightweight (1970). Station wagon. 2.25 petrol taken from a civvy Series III. New carb, EFI, parabolics, 205R16 radials, FWH, stainless exhaust, inertial belts. £12,000. Barnoldswick, Lancs. 07866 544677 06/23/008

Series III 88” ST (1974). 62,805 miles. 200 Tdi. Good chassis and bulkhead. PAS. Recent new springs and shocks, exhaust and Range Rover diffs. Comes with full hardtop. MOT June. £9350. Ashbourne. 07825 915332 05/23/003

Series IIA 109” Station Wagon (1971). 2286cc petrol. Good chassis and bodywork. Roof rack from a 130. Split-charge, USB charger, overdrive. New shocks in 2017. £9595. Northampton. 07770 925165 04/23/004

Series I 80” (1950). 26,900 miles. 2.0 engine. New seats, hood, tyres, brakes. Freshly serviced. Lovely patina, interesting history. Heritage cert. Sry-stored for years. Huge investment potential. £20,500. Malvern. 07446 228704 04/23/001

Series II 88” HT (1960). 200 Tdi, on the button. Overdrive. Chassis solid. New complete doors sills, tyres, rad, lights, seats and complete respray in last year. Last owner 30 years. £8750. Doncaster. 07368 366571 05/23/002

Defender 90 Td5 HT (2001). 139,000 miles. Stage 1 remap, Ashcroft box, Disco 2 transfer case. Raptor dash, on-board air, ATs, full rack, front/rear spots. Extensive history. MOT Jan. £11,000. Bedford. 07985 134914 06/23/001

Defender 90 Td5 HT (2000). 84,000 miles. Clean chassis, no welding, recent service and wax. Sunroof, LEDs, new Sawtooths and tyres, LEDs, side bars, lined interior. Long MOT. May PX. £15,495. Buxton. 07742 155451 06/23/002

Defender 110 2.4 TDCi (2011).

36,700 miles. One owner. Stage 1 remap. New grille, rack, snorkel, spotlights, sports seats, tow bar, full length rear and side tinted windows. MOT Sept. £29,000. Lincoln, 07793 370271 05/23/007

Defender 110 300Tdi Wolf ST (1998). 109,000 miles. Remus upgrade. Original engine (rebuilt). Mechanically great. New exhaust, BFGs, RadHaz kit, pioneer kit. MOT May. £18,000. Weston-superMare. 07896 535749 04/23/006

90 300Tdi (1987). 153,000 miles. LT77 box. Engine and box 10 years ago, all in good order. Nearly new 7.50x16 Michelins, K&N, snorkel, rock sliders. Not pristine but drives well. MOT Feb. £6000. Wantage. 07980 262210 06/23/003

Defender 90 2.5 TD (1989). 82,000 miles. Solid chassis and bulkhead. Fresh Miami Blue and Alpina White paint. New tyres, recent engine service. Recent MOT (no advisories). £14,000. Oldbury. 07480 236664 05/23/004

Defender 110 Td5 Utility (1954). 204,000 miles. Air-con, winch, roof tent, awning. Plus overland trailer with fridge, grille, inverter, electrichook-up. Vehicle £10,950, trailer £7500. £18,995. Tunbridge Wells. 07796 282058 05/23/006

Defender 110 2.4 TDCi (2007). Dry stored for 5 years. Fortune spent with LR specialist, hydraulic winch, bespoke 400l aluminium water tank, new interior, professional respray. MOT Oct. £16,750. Bordon. 07775 597127 04/23/003

Defender 90 300Tdi Wolf SoftTop (1998). First reg 2019. 2000 miles in last 3 years. Regularly serviced, recent cam belt. Great condition. Pioneer tools, rope, jerry can etc. MOT Sept. £15,950. Coventry. 07957 137688 04/23/002

Defender 90 2.4 TDCi SVX (2009). 18,250 miles. Very rare 60th anniversary model. Sat, nav, air-con heated seats. Great condition, completely original, no mechanical issues. One owner. £44,995. Swindon 07515 353588 05/23/005

Range Rover Classic (1991). Full Disco Td5 running gear (engine, manual box and transfer case). All rust prone areas replaced, extensive mechanical and electrical refurbishment. £22,000. Kilkenny. 00353 83 310 3104 06/23/005

Range Rover Pick-up (1993). 150,000 miles. Pro conversion. Discovery Tdi, auto box. Air-con, sunroof, electric seats. Solid chassis (not shortened), mechanically sound. MOT July. £6000. Chester. 07849 522557 05/23/001

Discovery 300Tdi 3-door (1995). 100,000 miles. Sound engine, gearbox, axles. Chassis rust. 4 BFGs (cost £500+). Brink towbar, recent HD battery. Current owner 19 years. No MOT. £1600. Milnthorpe. 07984 173743 04/23/007

West

Look after a Land Rover, and it will last forever. This longevity, which is almost unique in the car industry, means a vast number of classic Land Rovers are still on the road today – and not just as classics, but as historical vehicles still working for their living to this day.

Land Rover: The Great British Classic celebrates this magnificent heritage by focusing on the best of Land Rover from its early days. A high-quality publication from the makers of 4x4 magazine and The Landy newspaper, it covers a broad spectrum of historical vehicles: not just Series I, II and III Land Rovers from the postwar years, but also the first generations of Range Rovers, Discoverys and Freelanders, as well as the 90s and 110s that were later to become the legendary Defender.

Covering the vehicles’ history, spotlighting case studies of restored and otherwise much-loved examples and searching out stories of adventure behind the wheel, Land Rover: The Great British Classicc is a publication for everyone who admires Land Rovers from the early days.

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