Rugged, regal, refined: Land Rover Discovery 35th Anniversary Review

Disco is gone but the funky Land Rover Discovery endures. We test the 35th Anniversary edition and find the only problem is an overwhelming urge to drive to the nearest rowing club

Land Rover Discovery 35th Anniversary edition

The downside of producing a hit is the pressure to reproduce and improve it, lest you be forgotten as a one-hit wonder.

Land Rover may not have realised it when they launched their two-door 4WD wagon back in 1989, but the Discovery quickly became an overland legend.

Disco is gone but the Discovery endures – and it’s just turned 35.

Much less trucky than it started out, the Discovery is now a refined luxury car, but packing all the off-road capability that made it a legend.

Boxy in parts but sleek in others, the Disco feels a little bit special – like a Range Rover Sport, but tougher.

It feels like a big truck when you climb up into it, but you’re soon cocooned in comfort, with a massive central touchscreen taking centre stage in a sparse dashboard and plenty of glass around you.

Land Rover Discovery 35th Anniversary edition

Sitting up high above the common folk, the Disco glides along with all the class of three decades of elite private school tradition, with the usual assistance systems guiding you.

There’s radar cruise stopping you from bumping into other cars and lane-keeping assistance to keep you centred on the road with a gentle tug of the wheel. The only problem you might have is the overwhelming urge to drive directly to the nearest rowing club.

It’s hard to believe the Discovery has only had three major iterations.

Nothing is more important to the British than tradition and the Discovery 35th Anniversary Edition is a study in honouring the past while keeping an eye on the future.

A lot of the Discovery’s quirks are “if you know, you know” inside jokes.

IYKYK… 35th Anniversary extras are subtle but include classy XXXV badging

The rear numberplate might look weird, being mounted off centre, but it’s been done that way to pay homage to the original, which had its spare tyre on the right of the tailgate so the driver could see better over their left shoulder when reversing.

There’s more. The stepped roof looks funky, but it’s steeped in history, going back to the first Disco, which jacked up the roof to make room for the third-row passengers, who sat side-facing back in those days.

Personally, I reckon the Discovery 3 was probably the most iconic one, so blocky yet futuristic and still an impressive lump to this day.

For the 35th Anniversary Edition, Land Rover has added a few subtle but important extras to the Dynamic SE specification, including classy “XXXV” badging, on-board wifi, 18-way heated electric front seats with classic hand-winding armrests, black-out rear windows, four-zone climate control and a fridge in the centre console.

My first ride in a Discovery was in the ’90s on a farm near Emerald and they’ve always had a rural air about them to me. If Range Rovers are for the alps then Discoverys are for towing them out of snow drifts.

The current Discovery keeps all of its farming cred, but it didn’t look like a ringer in town for the Ekka. Finished in “Fuji white” and on 21-inch black alloys with a black and white interior, ours looked more like a royal escort vehicle than something that can pull a 3.5-tonne horse float.

With its mix of style and purpose, I now see why the Discovery has been such a hit. Long may it continue.

Verdict: 4½ stars

Rugged, regal and refined, the 35th Anniversary Discovery is a great celebration of an off-road legend.

Land Rover Discovery 35th anniversary edition

Price: Around $137,000 as tested, plus on-road costs

Warranty/Servicing: Five years/unlimited kilometres/Five years of services (up to 102,000km) for $2850

Engine: 3.0-litre in-line six-cylinder diesel, 257kW/ 700Nm, mild-hybrid tech

Thirst: 7.8 litres per 100km (combined, claimed)

Features: Wifi, fridge, 18-way electric driver’s seat (heated), head-up display