Paris show: Land Rover Discovery fronts up

LAND Rover has given the world its first glimpse of the all-new Discovery off-roader ahead of its Paris motor show debut later this month.

While more details and images of the Discovery will be slowly revealed in the lead up to its Paris debut, the new model is set to roll into Australian dealerships in the second quarter of 2017.

Land Rover chief design officer Gerry McGovern highlighted the dramatic changes of the new Discovery compared with the outgoing model.

“New Discovery redefines the large SUV. Land Rover’s design and engineering teams have revolutionised the Discovery DNA to create a highly desirable, extremely versatile and hugely capable premium SUV.”

The Indian-owned British brand has only revealed the front end of the third-generation Discovery, but the images show that it will mark the most dramatic change in the nameplate’s 27-year history.

The bold front-end styling is virtually identical to that of the Discovery Vision concept that was wheeled out at the 2014 New York motor show to preview a new family of Discovery models and variants.

Land Rover’s new look is light years away from the boxy, slab-sided look of all previous generations and the signature squared-off headlight design and rectangular grille have been ditched in favour of a a sleeker and more narrow set of lights and a much thinner grille.

It has a bulging front bumper that gives the impression that the lights and grille sit higher on the front, while the front side air intakes give a sporty look.

Land Rover has continued the theme it started with the updated version of the existing model by incorporating a Discovery badge above the grille, instead of the old Land Rover badge.

Spy pictures of the Disco testing in Europe reveal that the big seven-seater it will follow previous generations by featuring a stepped roofline , although the new version is far more subtle than the outgoing model.

The spy shots also show that the tail-light design and overall rear-end design will follow the look of the Discovery Vision concept.

Interior spy shots show that the cabin will have a more modern look, with Jaguar Land Rover’s now familiar InControl Touch central screen and pop-up gear shifter Land Rover is staying quiet for now on mechanicals but it is believed the Discovery will use the Range Rover’s aluminium monocoque underpinnings and is expected to be much lighter than the Disco 4 that weighs up to 2570kg in Australian-spec guise.

Engines are also a secret for now, but expect the Discovery to be powered by some of JLR’s new lightweight Ingenium diesel engines.

JLR Australia senior public affairs executive James Scrimshaw told GoAuto that the company was still happy with the Discovery’s sales in its final year, adding that it is achieving “the best sales of its life”.

So far this year 2013 Discoveries have found homes in Australia, representing a 6.5 per cent increase over the first eight months of 2015.

It remains one of the top sellers in the premium large SUV segment, but is trailing the BMW X5 (3084), its Range Rover Sport stablemate (2111), and is just behind the Audi Q7 (2049) in year-to-date sales.

Mr Scrimshaw said that while JLR Australia had ordered enough stock of the outgoing Discovery to ensure supply until the new model launches next year, it could be tight in the second quarter of 2017.

“The last few months of production has been locked in so there will be a period of time there where we will be probably be a little bit short of stock,” he said. “So it’s one of things, if you are interested in one don’t wait until April or May next year as it may be a bit tough.”