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Road Test: 2009 Land Rover LR3 car review: We've all been there. Some have come back.
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We’ve all been there, sliding down a slimy wet clay path so steep all that can be seen through the windshield is the muddy uphill on the other side of the creek, which is filled with slippery round cobbles. That’s when we were glad we were driving a Land Rover.
What? You weren’t driving a Land Rover. So…you’re reading this still stuck in that creek, huh?
The truth is that there are vehicles with the off-road competence, or a few perhaps better than a Land Rover, but most of those require camouflage and an enlistment. And the others don’t have a choice of real straight grain walnut wood or “grand black lacquer wood” trim. And that’s just to start with.
The Land Rover LR3 is a part of a rejuvenation of the Land Rover fleet that includes the top of the line Range Rover, the Range Rover Sport, plus the new-for-2008 LR2. The LR3 that was new in 2005, a needed replacement for the Discovery. (Full disclosure: The LR3 is still known as the Discovery in other markets).
The LR3 is still fresh as Land Rovers go, particularly with a 4.4-liter 32-valve double overhead cam V-8 now standard equipment. The V-8 produces 300 horsepower and 315 lb-ft of torque. A six-speed automatic transmission is standard. All that’s fairly ordinary. But where it gets interesting is where it also gets somewhat technical. So bear with us. We’ll try to be gentle.The Land Rover LR3 is first and foremost an off-road vehicle because that without being able to make it in the mud and rocks, there really isn’t much point. However, the LR3 goes beyond a simple locking center differential…in other words, a solid connection between the front and rear wheels. That’s a good starting point and where the original Jeeps got mobility that would leave ordinary vehicles sinking into the mud. Basically it gets the vehicle pulling at both ends.
But a shortcoming of that system, which anyone who has driven a “part-time” system like that often found less expensive SUVs, is it that it can’t be used on dry or most wet paved surfaces. It does something called “binding,” which occurs because all four wheels make a different circle when turning, and those with a wider circle have to turn more. But when front and rear are locked together, they can’t, so they fight each other over grip on the pavement.
Hang on, we’re getting to a point. Some SUVs and pickup trucks have four-wheel drive as one choice among rear-wheel drive, four-wheel drive—often called full-time four-wheel drive—and part-time four-wheel drive, often called “automatic” or “auto” on a selector dial. The part-time systems allow some slippage (and some grip) between the front and rear of the car.
For more views of the 2009 Land Rover LR3, check out the slide show below.
Of these, the more sophisticated systems allow the amount of slip-versus-grip to vary. And that simply put is what the Land Rover LR3 does (and other Land Rovers currently sold in the U.S. as well). In fact, because driving in snow or on wet grass is different from driving on mud and ruts and that’s different sand or crawling over rocks, Land Rover has determined the best rated of slip—or when it’s best to lock up front and rear—for each condition and developed software to preselect the settings based on the driver’s observations. Mud and ruts? Just turn the dial, boss.
The LR3 has more tricks up its wheel arches, however, and one is air springs. While this sounds like a soft way to fly—compared to conventional steel springs—the advantage for offroading is the ability to raise the vehicle so that it can clear stumps and logs and not botto
m out in ruts and such. Inflate the springs more and up goes the Land Rover. Again, it’s not something the driver must do; it’s part of the computer program.
m out in ruts and such. Inflate the springs more and up goes the Land Rover. Again, it’s not something the driver must do; it’s part of the computer program.Another bit of mechanical legerdemain is a Land Rover exclusive is a trick that guarantees that the most will be made of the LR3’s ground clearance. Off-road vehicles traditionally have had “live axles” (also called solid axles) front and rear. These have notoriously rough rides when driven on the highway, as anyone who has ever ridden in a Jeep Wrangler can attest. The Land Rover Discovery also had live axles, and though tamer than the Wrangler’s ride, it still left much to be desired. The LR3, however, has fully-independent suspension which provides a much improved on-road ride.
Independent suspension, however, typically decreases ground clearance because the vehicle can, for lack of a better word, squish down in ruts and over rises, allowing the vehicle to drag its undercarriage on particularly rough terrain...which is something an off-road vehicle should not do. Land Rover has “cross linked” the suspension of the LR3 by maintaining enough pressure in the air suspension across the diagonals (left-front and right rear, for example) that it won’t let the LR3’s suspension drag and the vehicle bottom out.
Unlike many four-wheel drive systems, Land Rover does not have a rear-wheel drive only mode. The LR3 remains in all-wheel drive for maximum traction in all situations. However, the four-wheel drive modes are always there even when driving on the highway. Many all-wheel drive crossover vehicles use front-wheel drive until the front wheels slip and then engage the rear wheels. Other full-time systems, including Audi and Subaru, put power to all wheels at all times but are set up for highway and slick road use rather than having the option of off-road.
(Don’t quit now. We’re almost there.)
Land Rover and some other off-road capable vehicles have hill-descent control. This system uses the vehicle’s traction control sensors but the other way around. Traction control senses that a wheel is spinning, it applies a brake on that wheel to slow it down. On the other hand, hill-descent control uses brakes to maintain a set speed for going down a hill, but if a wheel should lock up, the system releases the skidding wheel momentarily, a sliding wheel having less traction than one still turning. (This works only until there isn’t enough traction for any wheel not to skid, of course, at which point no electronic trickery can help—although a trained off-roader still has a few tricks left, more about which later).
Although the LR3 doesn’t have the ability to go where no other SUV will go, no one beats Land Rover style.
The LR3 seats seven in three rows as standard equipment. Each successive row is slightly higher than the one before. It’s called “stadium seating” because each row can see over the row before like, well, in a stadium. The second row folds 35:30:35 to optimize cargo space options, and the seats fold flat to make loading cargo easier.
The LR3 comes in two trim levels, the SE and the HSE. Both are mechanically identical. The LR3 SE, however, comes standard with a 240-watt Harman/kardon AM/FM-stereo with a six-disc in-dash CD changer, nine speakers and steering-wheel-mounted controls. The HSE raises the stakes to a 540-watt audio system with LOGIC7 digital surround sound and 14 speakers.A DVD-based navigation system with a seven-inch LCD touch sensitive screen is standard in the HSE and offered in package in the SE. A special screen displays a schematic of the LR3’s suspension and drivetrain choices which includes the front-wheel-angle position, suspension movement indication, status of the hill descent control and the current suspension setting.
The seats are comfortable for a long day in the woods or on the highway. The soft leather is standard and the front seats have standard power adjustment including lumbar support. Dual zone front automatic climate control is standard and the rear seating area has separate climate control.
Rear parking assist is standard on both LR3 models while front assist is standard on the HSE but optional on the SE. The HSE also has Bi-Xenon (HID low and high beam) headlamps. It’s optional on the SE. Adapative lighting, which swivels with the steering movement, is optional with the HSE…and, we might add, addictive.
The LR3’s keyless remote locking has a feature that can lower the air suspension for easier access. Treat her like a lady, we say.
The ultimate luxury for a vehicle with the off-road credentials of the LR3 is its smooth and quiet on-road ride. Wind noise is minimal and road noise—is there any—is soaked up by the LR3’s suspension and body insulation.
Handling is surprisingly good for a tall vehicle that’s so well adapted to off-road conditions. The steering is precise and the chassis responsive. The LR3 tracks well on the highway. Of course, its overall height and mass limit cornering ability but it does go around corners remarkably well.
Of course, that and other features are what come with a base price of $49,300 for the SE. For the fancier HSE, prices start at $54,800, a fully optioned HSE listing for $58,975. (Prices are for 2008; 2009 prices not available at writing). Add to that an EPA estimated 12/17 mpg city/highway, and that on premium fuel. The best things in life may be free, but the gosh darn really good ones are not even inexpensive.
Still, when you were on that hillside we were talking about, there were still a few tricks left and those can be learned at the Land Rover Experience off-road driving schools. Going off road? Learn what your Land Rover can really do. It beats walking home, because your Land Rover can go places you can’t walk. You’ve been there, haven’t you?
Illustrations Land Rover LR3 courtesy Land Rover North America.
| Engine | 300-hp/4.4L SOHC 32-v V8 |
| Displacement, cc | 4394 |
| Compression ratio | 10.5:1 |
| Horsepower @ rpm | 300 @ 5500 |
| Torque, lb-ft @ rpm | 315 @ 4000 |
| Fuel requirement | Premium |
| Transmission | Six-speed automatic |
| Drivetrain layout | Front engine longitudinal full-time 4WD w/ low range |
| Suspension, front | Double wishbone ind. w/ long-travel air springs |
| Suspension, rear | Double wishbone ind. w/ long-travel air springs |
| Brakes, type, dia. f/r, in. | 4-wheel ventilated disc, 13.3 / 13.8 |
| Wheels, SE / HSE | 18 x 8 alloy / 19 x 8 alloy |
| Tires, SE / HSE | 255/60HR18 mud/snow / 255/55HR18 mud/snow |
| Dimensions | |
| Length, in. | 190.9 |
| Width, in. | 75.4 |
| Height, in. | 74.5 |
| Wheelbase, in. | 113.6 |
| Cargo, min/max, cu. ft. | 9.9 / 90.3 |
| Ground clear., norm., in. | 7.3 |
| Ground clear., max., in. | 9.5 |
| Curb weight, lbs. | 5,796 |
| Towing cap., max., lbs | 7,716 |
| Payload, max., lbs. | 1,325 |
| Performance | |
| 0-60 mph, sec. | 8.4 |
| Top speed, mph | 124 |
| Fuel, econ, EPA city / hwy, mpg | 12 / 17 |
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