History

“The story of the Land Rover Discovery actually begins at the dawn of the 1980s, and with company reshuffles that saw Land Rover separated from the car making divisions of British Leyland, Austin-Rover and Jaguar. The company’s success in producing off-road vehicles had endured almost criminal neglect during the 1970s – a situation that saw the Range and Land Rover product lines receiving scant development.

British Leyland may have involuntarily ignored the Land Rover marque in the ‘dark years’, but the opposition certainly didn’t. Companies such as Nissan and Toyota were already building their own alternatives, and had established themselves as desirable and rugged in extreme situations. The Land Cruiser, in particular, provided options that the Range Rover didn’t – and that allowed sales of the rivals to expand.

Sales were struggling badly, as Nigel Garton recalls, ‘The Engineering Team felt that we were going in the wrong direction. Our competitors were now flooding the Market with smaller vehicles – Daihatsu, Suzuki, and Toyota were producing these cheaper, more accessible cars, and Land Rover was nowhere to be seen.’

The arrival of Michael Edwardes in the Chairman/Chief Executive role at British Leyland in 1977 ensured that Land Rover’s autonomy within the post-Ryder sprawl of British Leyland was guaranteed. However, the effects of the influx of rivals, and the emergence of the second oil crisis in 1979 began to bite.

‘Dwindling demand in struggling third-world nations, coupled with huge revenue losses in oil producing countries, such as Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, hit Land Rover Sales hard. The Directors expended massive effort trying to seek alternatives to hard currency, but got nowhere,” Nigel said. A drip of new models followed – with the much demanded V8-powered Land Rover arriving in 1979, the five-door Range Rover in 1982, and general shifting of the product lines into a more polarised pairing – the Land Rover, a more utilitarian option, and its bigger brother pushed increasingly upmarket.

That created a widening gap – which would need to be filled. By 1984, and with Solihull expanding to meet demand for the newly-energised Range Rover, the obvious answer was to introduce a third model line, which would not only introduce a new generation of buyers into the Land Rover fold, but also answer the challenge issued by upstarts such as the Mitubishi Shogun (Pajero) and Isuzu Trooper…

What Land Rover needed in order to expand in a sustained way was a product led recovery – mirroring the work being done at Longbridge and Cowley on the volume cars. Nigel relates: ‘Work on a replacement for the improved Range Rover, codenamed Pegasus (which would become the P38A), would be commenced as soon as possible, and work on a new model, codenamed Jay, would start even sooner – its task: to take on the Japanese.’

To pay for this massive programme, Land Rover would cease its 13 worldwide plants, concentrating all production at one vast site in Solihull. The ex-SD1 factory and Paint Shop were to be reopened to accommodate the new models. All Engineers were to support cost cutting activities to further support this investment.

Serious work on the third model line commenced in late 1986, and the project name ‘Jay’ was chosen shortly afterwards. The plan was to base the new challenger on the running gear of the Range Rover, but with a simplified specification, and more down to earth styling to meet the the mid-market ambitions of the new car. The project’s impetus was blunted by the expansion of the Range Rover – with each new model variation came a boost in sales, and a further push upmarket.

The mid-1980s were a frantic time for Land Rover, though – the Range Rover’s development proved to be one of the most unlikely success stories of the decade, as did its major global push. By March 1987, the process was almost complete – the Range Rover had been introduced into the US market, where it met with instant success. This finally gave the Rover board the confidence to release further funding – and approval was finally given to Project Jay the following August; the third line was finally going to make it to production.

Even at this early stage, it was clear that Project Jay would use as much carry-over hardware from the Range Rover as possible. The side benefits of this policy was that the development process would be far less glacial than usual – and the deadline date for introduction would be the autumn of 1989. Even so, this was one of the most ambitious development programmes to be undertaken in the motor industry at the time.

The running gear was almost pure Range Rover – even down to the use of that car’s V8 engine and LT77 manual gearbox. In order not to damage the Range Rover brand, it preserved the use of twin SU carburettors, whereas the 2.5-litre diesel engine (codenamed Gemini 1) – a direct injection unit – was all-new to Land Rover, and had actually been in development since August 1985; before Jay saw the light of day.

The 200Tdi engine was a genuine Land Rover-developed engine, produced when there was a great deal of pressure to buy-in a turbo diesel from VM. In the end, the decision was taken to go with the advanced power unit as late as 1988. It shared is bore centres with the existing Land Rover 2.5-litre turbo diesel, but the block casting was all-new, and topped with an aluminium-alloy cylinder head. Featuring OHV valvetrain, it developed 111bhp at 4000rpm and 195lb ft at just 1800rpm.

Between the initial programme start in 1987 and its launch at the Frankfurt Motor Show on the 16th September 1989, a huge amount of work was undertaken to create a substantially new and cheaper vehicle. Although the carry-over parts were highly visible – doors and windscreen – the Discovery was visually different enough for Land Rover marketeers to work their magic on the new car, while preserving the prestige of the original. The vehicle naming policy also ushered in a change of tack – Land Rover was now the brand with Discovery being the model. The original Land Rover would now be known as the Defender.

The names Highlander and Prairie Rover were also in the running, but the former was taken by Volvo for its off-road truck range – and the latter wouldn’t fit into the company’s new three-model strategy.

A new Landie is born

When the Discovery made its first public appearance at Frankfurt, it made an immediate splash. Heralded as the first new Land Rover in nearly 20 years, it was seen as the vehicle that would guarantee the company’s survival well into the 21st century. The vitally important third line gave the Solihull company a vital weapon to counter the Japanese invasion. Chris Woodark, Land Rover’s Commercial Director put it simply: ‘It’s a leisure vehicle not aimed at the luxury sector at all. Discovery, if you like, is for Yuppies and Range Rover is for people who’ve already made it.’

Offered initially in three-door form only – again, to protect the Range Rover – the Discovery was a stylish vehicle, suitably perked up with the addition of side graphics and those Alpine windows. The main innovation on the styling front was reserved for inside, though. Styled by the Conran Design Group, the Discovery’s interior was a genuine breath of fresh air, featuring light colours, soft-feel plastics and plenty of family friendly features. The brief had been to position the vehicle as a ‘lifestyle accessory’, and had originally featured plenty of novel ideas that didn’t make it to production, such as custom sunglasses holder built into the centre of the steering wheel.

The opposition must have wanted to follow suit – one Japanese Engineer was rapidly escorted off the Frankfurt stand for shaving off texture samples…

When Autocar magazine finally got its hands on an example it came away suitably impressed after comparing it with the Trooper and Shogun, concluding: ‘Faster, more economical, better riding and with the extra traction and balance of permanent 4wd, Discovery has the measure of its rivals. The cleverly designed, well-executed interior is way ahead of the opposition and it has a clear advantage should anyone actually venture off-road.

‘Where Land Rover will struggle initially is in trying to sell the Discovery to people who have grown used to five doors – but its other qualities more than make up for a slight struggle to get into the rear. It has been a long time coming, but with the Discovery, Land Rover shows just how good a ‘recreational’ vehicle can be. With the right build quality, this new champion of Britain’s motor industry is good enough to send the Japanese to the drawing board.’

Model development

In 1990, the first raft of model improvements were ushered in – firstly, the V8 engine received the EFi system it should have enjoyed from the beginning, and then the five-door model – using Range Rover doors – was introduced. By this time, Discovery had established its own niche in the marketplace, and any notion that its upward expansion would dent the appeal of its bigger brother were soon forgotten – if anything, it allowed further upward development of the more expensive car.

The unpopular 2.0MPi version was also introduced – a T-Series power unit (as seen in the 200, 400, 600 and 800 model ranges) was used, making the Discovery the only inline installation of this engine (a fact useful to MGB tuners in later years). It might have been a fleet-manager special, but on the road – and off-road – it was next to useless, and was quietly dropped shortly after introduction.

Further improvements came in 1994, when the 200Tdi and 3.5-litre V8 engines were replaced by the uprated 300 TDi and 3.9-litre ex-Range Rover engines. Along with the new engines, a stronger R380 gearbox became available in all manual models, which also boasted improved change quality. There were few external differences to be seen, but larger headlamps and a second set of rear lights in the bumper were the main giveaway.

The basic Discovery style lasted far longer than many people would have predicted, thanks to the launch of the Series II models. Codenamed Tempest, the heavily-revised car was to all intents and purposes, a brand new vehicle – and, according to industry rumours, should have received a brand new body closely related to the style of the 2006 LR3 models.

As it was, the completely reskinned Series II Discovery was unveiled in 1998, and became one of the main Rover Group beneficiaries of BMW-era financial investment. Quality and performance was drastically improved over the original models and, in the aftermath of the Freelander launch, the range was predictably pushed further upmarket.

The interior and exterior were significantly reworked and the rear end was extended to give more boot and passenger space. The warbly TD5 engine was introduced, and the V8 versions were now offered in 4.0-litre form – and the classic engine line would end up seeing out its days sat under the Discovery’s bonnet.

The chassis took a great leap forward, too, and ACE (Active Cornering Enhancement, an electronically controlled hydraulic anti-roll bar system) was introduced on the more expensive models, introducing the concept of low-roll cornering to Discovery drivers. A simpler version of the system using Hydragas as its springing medium (the intention being to offer two very different suspension set-ups for off- and on-road use) was also planned by the engineers, but never made it into production. Hill Descent Control – a Freelander innovation – was also introduced.

Conclusions

The Discovery was indeed a massive car for Land Rover – and, as the press rightly predicted back in Franfurt 1989, it guaranteed not only the survival of Land Rover into the 21st century, but ushered in an era of continued growth and success. The introduction of the original car raised buyer expectations and saw the Japanese rivals raise their game in order to meet the new challenge.

The huge sales came at a price, though – and burgeoning numbers of 4x4s in city streets caused their own problems, leading eventually to a social backlash that is gaining momentum to this day. However, that aside, it’s a genuine British success story, and the sustained profitability of Land Rover in a backdrop of the Ford PAG division break-up, is a clear demonstration that the right product delivered at the right time can still go an awful long way…”

Author: Keith Adams

More interesting facts and history from other sources

Discovery Series I (1989–1998)

The Discovery Series I was introduced into the United Kingdom in October 1989.The company code-named the vehicle “Project Jay”. The new model was based on the chassis and drivetrain of the more upmarket Range Rover, but with a lower price aimed at a larger market segment intended to compete with Japanese competition. This was the only Discovery generation with a four-cylinder petrol engine.

The Discovery was initially only available as a three-door version; the five-door body style became available in 1990. Both were fitted with five seats, with the option to have two jump seats fitted in the boot. Land Rover employed an external consultancy, Conran Design Group, to design the interior. They were instructed to ignore current car interior design and position the vehicle as a ‘lifestyle accessory’. Their interior incorporated a number of original features, although some ideas shown on the original interior mock-ups (constructed inside a Range Rover bodyshell at Conran’s workshops) were left on the shelf, such as a custom sunglasses holder built into the centre of the steering wheel. The design was unveiled to critical acclaim, and won a British Design Award in 1989.

The original transmission was a dual-ratio five-speed manual with drive via a transfer case with a lockable centre differential.

Much of the interior was constructed from ‘Sonar Blue’ plastic (with blue cloth trim), with magazine holders above the windscreen, hand-holds for rear passengers incorporated into the head restraints of the front seats, remote radio controls on the instrument cluster, twin removable sunroof panels (including a special zip-up storage bag behind the rear seats) and a Land Rover-branded cloth fabric holdall in the front centre console for oddments storage that could be removed from the vehicle and worn as a handbag using a supplied shoulder strap (relatively few of these bags have survived, making them collectable items). Despite such features, the interior’s basic structure was the same as the Range Rover and virtually all the switchgear and instruments came from other Rover Group cars such as the Maestro and Montego. Similarly, the Discovery utilised several Range Rover body panels, as well as headlights from the Freight Rover van and taillights from the Maestro van. The latter would continue to bear the Austin Rover ‘chevron’ logo on their lenses until production of the first generation Discovery ended in 1998, ten years after Austin Rover ceased to exist.

The designers of the original model had been forced to economise and use the “parts bin” of the -then parent company, Rover. The 200 series used the basic body shell structure from the Range Rover, door handles from the Morris Marina, tail lights from the Austin Maestro van, and interior switchgear and instrumentation from Rover’s surplus parts.

In 1992, the Discovery received several additions and improvements. The interior was offered in a more traditional beige as well as the distinctive (but controversial) light blue, an automatic gearbox was made available on 200Tdi models, new colours were added to the range (and the large ‘compass and mountain’ side decals worn by early Discoveries to disguise wavy panel fit around the rear three quarter windows were no longer fitted) and the ‘SE’ pack (incorporating alloy wheels, front driving lights, roof bars and a special range of metallic paints) was introduced as an option. A two-seater, three-door Discovery Commercial version, lacking rear-side windows, was later offered by Land Rover Special Vehicles also known as SVO (Special Vehicles Operations).

Before 1994, the Discovery was available with either the 2.5-litre 200 Tdi engine or the 3.5-litre Rover V8. Early V8 engines used a twin SU carburettor system, switching to Lucas 14CUX fuel injection in 1990. A 2.0-litre petrol engine from the Rover stable was briefly available in a model known as the 2.0-litre Mpi I4. This was intended to attract fleet managers, since UK (and Italian) tax laws benefitted vehicles under 2.0 litres. A combination of changes in taxation and lack of power for such a heavy vehicle led to the demise of this engine, despite its fitting to several Discoveries supplied to the British Royal family. One of these was notably driven by Prince Philip around Windsor Great Park, in his position as Park Ranger.

The transmission was a permanent four-wheel drive system, with a high and low range transfer box, locking centre differential at the transfer box. Similarly to the rest of the Land Rover range, the handbrake acts on the transmission at the back of the transfer box, therefore locking the rear prop shaft or both front and rear prop shafts if the central differential lock is engaged.

In Australia, the Series I launched in April 1991, available only as a three-door estate in 3.5-litre V8i guise with 115 kW (154 hp) and 260 N⋅m (190 lb⋅ft) and coupled with a five-speed manual gearbox. In October 1991, Land Rover launched the five-door body variant in base V8i and luxury HL versions. Both featured central locking, electric windows, headlight washers and heated door mirrors, with the HL adding alloy wheels, air conditioning, driving lights and an improved audio system. Furthermore, the Tdi engine became available, rated at 83 kW (111 hp) and 265 N⋅m (195 lb⋅ft). In early-1993, a four-speed automatic option was added to the Australian range and the HL was discontinued.

1994 update

In 1994, many changes were made to the Discovery. It reached some markets as the “Discovery 2”; the 200Tdi and 3.5 L V8 engines were replaced with the 2.5 L 300Tdi 4-cylinder and 3.9-litre Rover V8 engines. The 300Tdi introduced a Bosch electronic emissions control for certain models and markets. At around this time, a stronger R380 gearbox was fitted to all manual models. The newer models featured larger headlamps and a second set of rear lights in the bumper. The new rear lights had their wiring configuration changed several times to meet real or expected European safety legislation. Some vehicles were left with an arrangement where the vulnerable bumper contains the only working direction-indicator lights; other examples have these lights duplicated in the traditional rear pillar location.

North America

The 1994 model year marked the first year that the Land Rover Discovery was sold in the United States. Airbags were incorporated into the design of the 1994 model to meet the requirements of US motor vehicle safety regulations, though they were not fitted as standard in all markets. All North American specification (NAS) models were fitted with the 3.9-litre V8 from the Range Rover SE models, and later models saw a change to the 4.0-litre version of the engine.

Technically speaking, the 1996-98 US models with 4.0-litre engines had the same displacement as the 3.9-litre engines fitted to the earlier 1994-95 US models; the differences between the engines involved improvements to the block rigidity and pistons, and a change from the Lucas 14CUX engine management to the distributor-less Generic Engine Management System (“GEMS”). In earlier 3.9-litre US engines, the fuel injection computer (14CUX) did not control the ignition, which was instead controlled by a traditional system with an ignition coil and distributor made by Lucas. The GEMS system was developed jointly by Lucas and SAGEM; it controlled both spark timing and fuel injection. Unlike the earlier systems fitted to Rover V8 engines, GEMS was made OBD-IIcompliant. This change was largely driven by the federal requirement (starting in 1996) for vehicles sold in the United States to meet the OBD-II specification.

Other versions

In Japan, a badge-engineered version of the Discovery I was offered, called the Honda Crossroad. The Rover companies had a cross-holding relationship with Honda UK since the early-1980s. The relationship ended after Rover was taken over by German carmaker BMW in 1994. (Honda revived the nameplate ‘Crossroad’ in another small sport utility vehicle in 2007.)

In the Republic of Ireland, local tax laws meant that the first ever example of a Discovery Commercial (van) was launched there in 1991. A revised version was launched in 1993, shortly after the UK market example of late-1992. The Irish examples have formed the basis of the Discovery’s success and high sales there, as commercials are on a much lower tax band.

Special editions

• Country Life (Switzerland, 1991): The Country Life was a five-door V8i Discovery with special interior trim, including a leather-wrapped Nardi steering wheel, wood door and console trim, and identifying decals. It also included a picnic basket. A total of 50 Country Life editions were built.

• Orienteer (Australia, 1992): The Orienteer models were all three-door, equipped with the V8 engine. They were fitted with five-spoke alloy wheels and driving lights, and “compass” side graphics. 75 Orienteer Discoveries were built; because they sold out quickly, this special edition was offered again for the 1993 model year.

• Freestyle (France, 1993): The Freestyle was available as either a three-door or five-door, and all were painted metallic blue and adorned with Freestyle decals. They were fitted with front and rear anti-roll bars and the “Freestyle” five-spoke alloy wheels.

• County Rider (France, 1993): Intended to appeal to equestrians, the County Rider was equipped with a rear floor liner, rub-strips and wheel-arch protectors, mudflaps, floor mats, an adjustable towbar, and a saddle rack. Available as either a three- or five-door, all were painted green with special decals.

• Rossignol (Australia, 1993): Named for Skis Rossignol, this was a three-door V8i painted in Caprice blue-green metallic and fitted with a ski rack. It was also fitted with rub strips, wheel arch protectors, and other items that were optional on the base models.

• Camel Trophy (Japan, 1995): All were painted Sandglow Yellow, and built with roof racks to which were fitted metal Camel Trophy plates. Available was either the V8 with automatic gearbox, or 300Tdi diesel with five-speed manual.

• Sunseeker (Germany, 1996): Fitted with a chromed front bullbar and painted metallic blue with special decals. All were in the five-door configuration with deep-dish alloy wheels.

• Goodwood (UK, 1997): Before it was discovered that the name “Goodwood” was controlled by the owners of the Goodwood Circuit, Land Rover had already planned production of 500 Goodwood special edition examples. They were painted British Racing Green (renamed to “Goodwood Green”) with coachlines and special badging, and trimmed with a leather-wrapped steering wheel and walnut interior accents. All were also fitted with dished alloy wheels. Because of the legal objection to the use of the Goodwood name, the single unit built for the London Motor Show was the only one actually badged as such and the remaining 499 were left unnamed.

• Horse and Hound (UK, 1997): Twenty of these were produced, as a result of a joint promotional effort between Lex Land Rover (of Maidenhead) and Horse & Hound magazine. All were five-door Tdi models with an individual series number and special decals.

• Argyll (UK, 1997): Available as either a V8i or Tdi and painted either Oxford Blue or Woodcote Green. Re-introduced in 1998 as a three-door variant.

• XD (US, 1997): 250 built by Land Rover Special Vehicles for the North American market. Based on the SD trim package; automatic transmission, no sunroofs, manual cloth seats, and deleted roof bars. Features included AA Yellow paint, “XD” embroidered seat covers, spare tire cover with “XD” logo, low-profile Safety Devices roof rack, brush guard, skid plate, and an optional “event decal package” installed by dealers.

• Aviemore (UK, 1998): Base on the seven-seat GS model, the Aviemore had special badging and was available as either British Racing Green over beige cloth or Rioja Red over grey cloth. It was also equipped with dished alloy wheels and a heated windscreen.

• Anniversary 50 (UK, 1998): Designed to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of Land Rover, this edition had special fiftieth anniversary badging and either Atlantis Blue or White Gold paint. The interior was Lightstone leather, and the wheels were the “Boost” style alloy design. It was built as a V8 automatic or Tdi (with either the automatic or manual gearbox.)

• Safari (UK, 1998): Again based on the seven-seat GS, the Safari was painted Epsom Green and was equipped with a rear ladder, roof rails, and additional fog lamps. It was available with either the V8 or Tdi engine, although the manual gearbox was only offered in conjunction with the Tdi. A total of 1,100 were built.

• Trophy (Netherlands)

• Camel Trophy (Germany, 1998): Painted Sandglow Yellow with “Tornado” style alloy wheels. Equipped with a snorkel air intake, trail lamps, a roof rack, a ladder, and a bullbar.

• Trophy (Germany, 1998): Not to be confused with the “Camel Trophy” edition also available in Germany during the same year, the “Trophy” had alloy wheels and air conditioning, twin airbags, a front bar with additional lamps, and a special spare tyre cover. The Trophy was only available with the 300Tdi engine.

• Esquire (Germany, 1998): Like the Trophy, the Esquire was equipped with twin airbags, air conditioning, and alloy wheels, but it was also standardised with ABS and the interior was trimmed with wood and leather.

Source: wikipedia, internet, different avto magazines.

And if you are interested even more..

..then here is something from Land Rover:

On 16th September 1989, Discovery 1 made its debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Its now iconic name ‘Discovery’ was chosen ahead of other options including ‘Highlander’ and the ‘Prairie Rover’. The design included its now instantly recognisable stepped roof, reverse C-pillars and clamshell bonnet. To ensure it did not detract from the Range Rover, Discovery was initially launched only as a 3-door model rather than 5-door. The chassis and drivetrain were however taken from the existing Range Rover.

The interior offered comfort with features suitable for everyday life. For example, centrally located radio controls, twin removable sunroof panels and a detachable shoulder bag located to the rear of the centre console for storage, which could be removed and used outdoors. The interior design received critical acclaim at the time, including a British Design Award in 1989. There was seating for five, with the option to add an additional two jump seats in the rear.

When launched, you could purchase a Discovery with either a 2.5-litre 200 Tdi diesel or a 3.5-litre Rover V8 petrol engine. The original transmission was a dual-ratio five-speed manual with drive via a transfer case with a lockable centre differential. This lockable differential became an integral design feature which allowed Discovery to perform so capably off-road. Putting the vehicle manually into low range allowed you to control traction and stability on all off-road terrain using engine braking, enabling maximum control, before the days of systems such as Terrain Response, Hill Descent Control and Traction Control.

Another key feature of Discovery’s versatility was its towing capability. The original vehicle offered 3,500kg maximum towing weight for trailers with overrun brakes. As Discovery progressed over the years, towing remained a pillar of its capabilities, which would eventually become an award-winning feature in later editions.

In 1990, Land Rover launched the 5-door model which featured fuel-injected V8i and luxury ES versions. These updated models also incorporated further features such as central locking and electric windows, with air conditioning and heated door mirrors also available on the ES.

Following a model update in 1994, further changes were made to the Discovery. The 200Tdi and 3.5 V8 engines were replaced with 2.5-litre 300Tdi and 3.9-litre Rover V8 engines, as well as the addition of stronger gearboxes. The updated models also featured external design revisions such as larger headlights and a second set of rear-lights in the bumper. 

These changes paved the way for the second generation Discovery, which would launch in 1998.

Source: Land Rover