Seven-a-Side

What we like:

Fabulous road presence

Off-roading ability

Decently good performance

Versatility

What we dislike:

Window switches not in the best of places

Piano black type surfaces are magnets for scratches

Hop into the cockpit of the Disco, and its rather boldly styled dash is quite business-like. Its digitised instrument binnacle delivers more than just your speed and rev counter readings. Important information, like wheel articulation, and torque distribution can be displayed, giving you a clearer picture of how the car is working below you.

With plenty of cubby holes, including a nifty storage area behind the rotary air-conditioning controls, ensures that there is more than sufficient space to store your whatnots, and for a touch of natural luxury, the dash is accented with open pore wood strips. One of the things we did not like though were the placement of the power window switches, where they would be at the mercy of our tropical sun, meaning that you might see them deteriorate over the course of time.

The Disco features a good scattering of USB and 12V charge points which you will find a great deal helpful during longer trips. A large storage area in the middle together with plenty of cubby holes also adds to the car’s versatility.

The full-sized Discovery had been conceptualised as a full-7-seater from the beginning. Naturally, accommodation is excellent, with quite the good deal of leg room for those seated at the last row. Cargo room too is uncompromisingly good, with a respectable 258 litres available with all the middle and last row deployed, a generous 1,137 litres when the last row is folded, which is larger than that of the Audi Q7, and for those who want an Ikea run with a spot of off-roading right after, the middle row folds down to deliver 2,406 litres of room… that is even longer than a bed.

In addition, the electric tail gate which sits just inside the boot cavity, and works together with the air suspension, not only makes loading and unloading a little easier; but doubles as a useful bench at the rear.

With the modern day advancement in engine technology, many small engines are able to lug around much larger vehicles, which have traditionally needed larger V6 or even V8 engines to move them.

The new Ingenium 2.0 engine is genuinely a welcome addition to JLR. In countries where the road tax system is dictated by how many bottles of milk your engine represents, the 300hp and 400Nm is actually quite adequate, meaning a car which is a little less costly to run.

Perhaps for those who just want to move seven passengers around in comfort, the Disco will be rather costly, since you are buying into true off-roading ability. There are also those who may not need seats for 7 most of the time, and would love something a little smaller, the Discover Sport is not too far off in capabilities.

But for those who aspire to go a lot further, a little of the time, the seven-seater Disco is something rather magnificent.

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