The New Landrover Discovery...Ugly?
Discussion
Pintofbest said:
I think they are a grower in terms of looks but there are some real mixed messages on here with extremely stated views. I can't reconcile someone who says the brand is now all about image then says they won't buy one because they think it is hideous (or someother melodramatic word). Same goes for ability, from people who have never driven it.
Here is a plain example, silver with silver wheels, no black pack - i think it looks very understated and the back is actually growing on me but clearly as I'm using it I will be biased, side, front and interior I love.
As for JLR listening to customers, that is what has happened hence a very healthy order bank globally for this.
Sorry, it simply looks like the designers tried too hard to differentiate it from other models but ran out of design fluidity. It's staid yet has no design balance. It's rear quarter alone is awkward. Here is a plain example, silver with silver wheels, no black pack - i think it looks very understated and the back is actually growing on me but clearly as I'm using it I will be biased, side, front and interior I love.
As for JLR listening to customers, that is what has happened hence a very healthy order bank globally for this.
I went to the local dealer launch night last year. My mate and i had a proper look round it, under it and chatted at great length to the "carers" of the demo model.
Roof line is 7cm lower than my D3. The boot is 50 litres smaller and the boot floor to headrest gap is also smaller. So to me, it's less practical inside, regardless of all the usp charging bits etc.
The electric seats for folding, will break. It's a silly gimmic and the 3/4 seats aren't as hard as TV people made out.
Front bumper sits far too low, will get damaged off road. the headlights also don't fit flat at the bottom like the D3/4.
No split tailgate is a big loss. I love that feature on my 3, the massive tailgate has to lift really high to stop people headbutting the sharp corners ( demo launch carer guy said that ), and the wee flap thing is pointless.
The looks are ok, i don't like the curve in the roof being half way down the roof, totally out of sync with the rest of the Discovery range before. The back is f
king horrible. Total afterthought and badly done. The 3/4 had the number plate to the left because of the split tailgate. That is a nod to it, purely for "style" and no practical reason.
I hope it gets better with a facelift as currently. I won't be getting one in a few years as the looks don't sit right with me.
Roof line is 7cm lower than my D3. The boot is 50 litres smaller and the boot floor to headrest gap is also smaller. So to me, it's less practical inside, regardless of all the usp charging bits etc.
The electric seats for folding, will break. It's a silly gimmic and the 3/4 seats aren't as hard as TV people made out.
Front bumper sits far too low, will get damaged off road. the headlights also don't fit flat at the bottom like the D3/4.
No split tailgate is a big loss. I love that feature on my 3, the massive tailgate has to lift really high to stop people headbutting the sharp corners ( demo launch carer guy said that ), and the wee flap thing is pointless.
The looks are ok, i don't like the curve in the roof being half way down the roof, totally out of sync with the rest of the Discovery range before. The back is f
king horrible. Total afterthought and badly done. The 3/4 had the number plate to the left because of the split tailgate. That is a nod to it, purely for "style" and no practical reason.I hope it gets better with a facelift as currently. I won't be getting one in a few years as the looks don't sit right with me.
Given that they're already everywhere and Land Rover have taken tens of thousands of orders, I think it can be assumed that changing the design approach (supposedly on the basis of customer feedback) hasn't been a mistake. If anything, it should be a relief that it's better off road - because like all its rivals, it doesn't need to be.
Saying that, I'm holding out hope for the new Defender, because as a design this is not even in the same league as the Discovery 3.
Saying that, I'm holding out hope for the new Defender, because as a design this is not even in the same league as the Discovery 3.
Pintofbest said:
As for JLR listening to customers, that is what has happened hence a very healthy order bank globally for this.
Hate sweeping statements like that. How on Earth d'you know it wasn't just good marketing? Or expansion of the brand...bringing in cheaper models etc. Seems to me the likelihood is they didn't listen to customers at all - just went for the lowest common denominator ie the LR brand name on a few cheaper, less able, mundane looking hairdresser's cars. The new Disco isn't as bad as the Sport, but looks like a Yank import. Might look better on bigger tyres though... .
I think they've forgotten what the original Discovery was designed for, ie a workhorse. The original one was introduced as a cheaper alternative to the Range Rover to take on the Japanese 4x4's such as the Isuzu and Landcruiser. This new thing doesn't appear to have been designed with any form of work in mind, more a luxury SUV. I have yet to see any promotional photos of it with a tow hook or trailer behind it. Instead they have daft photos of it with a surfboard on the roof or a bike. Not impressed.
Show pony. Pic courtesy of LR media division
- I think I should add my views to the 'You know you live in the country when' thread in the Lounge
Show pony. Pic courtesy of LR media division
Edited by Jonmx on Monday 10th April 23:48
The back end looks like it's had a stroke.
One side going to shop, the other coming back with the change.
Then again i'm probably not their target market, but anyone that spends upwards of £50k with all the bells and whistles won't be the sharpest tool in the shed, but probably one of the more well off ones.
One side going to shop, the other coming back with the change.
Then again i'm probably not their target market, but anyone that spends upwards of £50k with all the bells and whistles won't be the sharpest tool in the shed, but probably one of the more well off ones.
Edited by BlueHave on Tuesday 11th April 05:41
Sa Calobra said:
Do well healed old money customers buy RR still or is it more new money and finance customers? Lots of Evoques and garish RRs around. I doubt they are old money.
Maybe but I would think they will mostly be keeping older ones and running them for years ...
only the proles buy a new car every 3 years !! old money is spent keeping roofs on old stately piles and paying the staff !!
Sa Calobra said:
Do well healed old money customers buy RR still or is it more new money and finance customers? Lots of Evoques and garish RRs around. I doubt they are old money.
Both, and amazingly it's frowned upon to not sell to someone just because they are new money or wanting finance, or that your inbuilt armchair prejudices make you think that just based on their car choice. Who'd have thought it.popeyewhite said:
Pintofbest said:
As for JLR listening to customers, that is what has happened hence a very healthy order bank globally for this.
Hate sweeping statements like that. How on Earth d'you know it wasn't just good marketing? Or expansion of the brand...bringing in cheaper models etc. Seems to me the likelihood is they didn't listen to customers at all - just went for the lowest common denominator ie the LR brand name on a few cheaper, less able, mundane looking hairdresser's cars. The new Disco isn't as bad as the Sport, but looks like a Yank import. Might look better on bigger tyres though... .The Disco 3/4 are class acts. Workhorse machine but refinement of luxo barge especially the D4 with the 3 li'eerr.
In Disco 3/4 ive moved house with it, towed 7.5ton truck out of ditch, towed others in snow, taken 6 people in 4 hour journeys in comfort and they just look the business. Very few cars have ever been this good.
Does the D5 temp . NO... tis Ugly and not purposeful like the D3/4. Can the D5 tow as well? can it off road? has it got the space? does it still have the double chassis... I don't know. If it does then why make it look like are larger discovery Sport? and that's a shame because the discover sport is a million miles behind the D4.
In Disco 3/4 ive moved house with it, towed 7.5ton truck out of ditch, towed others in snow, taken 6 people in 4 hour journeys in comfort and they just look the business. Very few cars have ever been this good.
Does the D5 temp . NO... tis Ugly and not purposeful like the D3/4. Can the D5 tow as well? can it off road? has it got the space? does it still have the double chassis... I don't know. If it does then why make it look like are larger discovery Sport? and that's a shame because the discover sport is a million miles behind the D4.
The original Discovery was a triumph of function over form. It looks like that because it had to - the headlights and tail-lights were borrowed from vans, it shared panels and interior structure with the Range Rover, and the step in the roof was a necessity to give the rear seats the additional clearance over the front seats. It's a remarkable design triumph - a cobbled-together bunch of old BL parts turned into a supreme off-roading machine.
This new one is the antithesis of that approach. It's a great irony that for a car where form has clearly been the primary concern throughout the design process, they've managed to produce such a poorly proportioned, ugly car. The original shouldn't work but has a utilitarian charm and a logic to each of its elements. This one is just a mess.
This new one is the antithesis of that approach. It's a great irony that for a car where form has clearly been the primary concern throughout the design process, they've managed to produce such a poorly proportioned, ugly car. The original shouldn't work but has a utilitarian charm and a logic to each of its elements. This one is just a mess.
Shame they couldn't have kept the roof lights and perhaps added the raised rear roof from the previous Discos and dropped the silly too-small-for-a-spare-wheel-anyway asymmetrical rear end that they have carried over.
Edited to add:
After looking closely at a few more images I can see that they have actually kept a vestigial raised rear roof and the rear sunroof does fold over the sides slightly to remind us of the roof lights.
I think it will begin to look better with time.
Edited to add:
After looking closely at a few more images I can see that they have actually kept a vestigial raised rear roof and the rear sunroof does fold over the sides slightly to remind us of the roof lights.
I think it will begin to look better with time.
Edited by swisstoni on Tuesday 11th April 22:28
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