Disco+Ford=LR3

[BigMike]

I asked this question on the LR3 Forum and didn't get a response, so I'll ask it here.

Does anybody know if Ford is responsible for the LR3 body style?

The reason I ask, is that my first SUV was an '83 Ford Bronco II. IMHO, the LR3 looks like a sleeker version of my old BII.

 

[capthook]

Land Rover under Ford Control > Try building a real truck!

I was thinking (almost) the same thing last night when my wife and I saw one on the freeway. We also test drove one about 2 months ago and were not impressed. We own the DII, and as we drove a DIII past one last night I noticed a few things:

*The DII sits (alot!) higher than the D3; and looks way better. Take into consideration that this vehicle (the new D3) has no accessories @ all. I have a ladder, a grill guard, etc... that makes this DII look tough + ready for a fat trail. Toughness level of the DIII = verrrrry low.

*The D3 looks like 'everything else' out there now,
kind of a cross between a bread-box + a Scion XB

*The D3 doesn't look like a 'truck' anymore. It sits like a saturn SUV and looks like its unfinished some how. This one had no spare tire on the back (***?!) and in way of 'utilitarian purpose' I cannot find any.

Why does Ford want to make a vehicle that is more 'widely' acceptable as an SUV and less of a real truck? If I wanted a Lexus want-to-be-suv, or a MBZ Can't get over the hill - I'd buy one, k?

I've come to the conclusion that Ford is attempting to make the LR brand more synonomus with Soccor mom's and grocery runs. While there is nothing wrong with that, I think the freelander fits the bill perfectly for that application & they need to leave the Disco alone. The Discovery should be a REAL truck, not a milk + cookies runner.

I don't want to make D3 owners look bad, I'm just saying - I'd love to see a 'stock' DII + DIII battle it out in some real 4x4 action and see who comes out on top. Without a doubt the DII would win, it has more friggin' ground clearance (one of the biggest problems with modern SUV's, no clearance!) and I just don't see myself taking a DIII into the rubicon trail. I would, however, brave it in the DII. It's a very capable vehicle.

 

[disco1]

Capthook. I have to agree with what you are saying. With each new model, off-road ability is whittled away, and more useless functions are added. This exacerbates the endless stream of computer error codes, which in most cases are only resettable by the dealer. On top of this, the electronics are becoming so sopisticated, that on-road, off road, repairs are becoming impossible, with "limp home" mode becoming a reality. The market for LR is obviously moving away from off-road ability, and more towards the 'soft', mums and dads, SUV market. Don't laugh, but in the not too distant future, I can see the LR dealer service/breakdown vehicle, equipped with TESTBOOK, arriving at your roadside 'breakdown' (sell the cars cheap, recoup on servicing).

 

[capthook]

Capthook. I have to agree with what you are saying. With each new model, off-road ability is whittled away, and more useless functions are added. This exacerbates the endless stream of computer error codes, which in most cases are only resettable by the dealer. On top of this, the electronics are becoming so sopisticated, that on-road, off road, repairs are becoming impossible, with "limp home" mode becoming a reality. The market for LR is obviously moving away from off-road ability, and more towards the 'soft', mums and dads, SUV market. Don't laugh, but in the not too distant future, I can see the LR dealer service/breakdown vehicle, equipped with TESTBOOK, arriving at your roadside 'breakdown' (sell the cars cheap, recoup on servicing).

Yeah, I can't wait until my hood is bolted shut with 7-point hex bolts w/ center points - and only the dealer can open it. And, not to mension - even if I could open it, could I fix it? Prob. not with todays sophisticated electronics under our hoods. A buddy of mine recently took his 2003 Ford 4x4 into a niiiiice mud pit. You know what caused it to be towed after us screwing around with it for 2 hours? A Harmonic balancer. ***?! This $120 part costs $700 for Ford to take off and replace. My friend, while he didn't curse wasn't all that happy about it. What happened to spray the mud off and start? LoL

 

[BigMike]

My guess is that you're both right. The design has taken the character out of the appearance of the truck. It looks like everything else or a Bronco II.

 

[joey]

Hmmm didn't they(series owners) say basically the same thing when the Range Rover and the Discovery came out... more electrics not as tough... too many creature comforts...

 

[disco1]

I don't know Joey, I'm not that old!

 

[joey]

Now that is messed up.... neither am I, but I read alot of boards and search just about everything on alot of different topics....

J/K of course... we are all just having fun

I am a knowledge ******.... I know a little about a lot of things.... and what I don't know the internet can teach me...

 

[ColeCam]

A long time ago there was a vehicle that could go places that no automobile today can even think about going, it never had electronic failure, needed no winch, could idle for days without overheating, could forge rivers without drowning, could carry a person or two....It was a horse. But horses don't have the transportation market cornered anymore, so I think LR is looking at their future, and it is not in providing the best off road capabilities. It is in providing a comfortable vehicle for 5-6 people that can drive through 3 inches of snow and not slide off the road.

 

[MightyMax]

I really like the look of the LR3, but the more I see it i think it looks like the 05 Pathfinders. My neighbor has a 05 Pathfinder and I keep mistaking it for an LR3.

I do believe the LR3 looks more like a truck my gf would drive to and from dance class. I wouldn't want to take it offroad in fear of exactly what was said above, what the hell would i do if it broke down.....i'll need a laptop with an internet connection so land rover could connect in and charge me 1000 to reset some code that was set off from the mud.

I am bias to an extent, but the Disco's have been a dream vehicle of mine for YEARS now, and don't believe that Land Rover (Ford) should be messing with a good thing in such a drastic way. There are a lot more things that can be done to the existing DII design, without taking it to the extreme of the DIII.

Just my 2 cents