Land Rover launches 350hp Discovery 35th Edition

Forgotten all about Land Rover's seven-seat SUV? The quickest one yet is intended to jog your memory...

By PH Staff / Tuesday, 9 July 2024 / Loading comments

We haven’t heard much about the Land Rover Discovery in the past few years, and there’s a good reason for that: Defender. The firm’s newer, fancier, better-to-drive and now much more famous sibling has cannibalised sales of its seven-seat SUV to the extent that the model has been placed firmly on the back burner ahead of an eventual replacement (which may or may not be electric). But evidently there’s life in the old dag yet because Land Rover says there’s a celebratory 35th Edition incoming.

On the one hand, you might think the prospect of some bespoke ‘XXXV’ badging and ‘Discovery’ tread plates is merely a sign that Land Rover wants to shift as many units as possible before it turns off the production line (and you wouldn’t be far wrong) but that doesn’t mean 35 years of Discovery isn’t worth celebrating. For some of that period - most notably when Discovery 3 and 4 were in their pomp - the model was arguably the Land Rover to buy. Especially if you planned on doing actual off-roading. Or big miles.

The current version isn’t quite as special, although its maker has a useful kicker for anyone interested in the 35th Edition: it will be used to introduce the new 350hp 3.0-litre, six-cylinder Ingenium unit to the lineup. Not quite as exciting as the prospect of driving a Defender powered by the lustier, 516lb-ft-of-torque engine (because, again, it’s better to drive) but it’s notable nevertheless for resulting in the most powerful Discovery to date. Meaning that a new D350, available across the range, will drop the model’s 0-60mph time to a decidedly crisp 5.9 seconds. You’ll even be able to get a Commercial version, if you can live with a 34mpg average.

Of course, the 35 Edition will be considerably ritzier than that. Land Rover has not supplied any pictures of the incoming flagship, but says it will get 22-inch gloss black wheels with matching spare, a panoramic roof, 20-way heated and cooled seats, four-zone climate control, a head-up display and heated steering wheel as standard. It also suggests that the new model will be available in strictly limited numbers and only in a choice of Santorini Black or Carpathian Grey. Prices start at £79,990, which, for the record, is a tiny bit cheaper than the £81,530 the eight-seat Defender 130 starts at with the same engine. Decisions, decisions.