2005 Land Rover LR3 Preview

What I like best about the cargo area is the door that accesses it. Gone is the horribly useless swinging door, which not only was too heavy to stay open on steeper grades, but

Gone is the horribly useless swinging door, replaced with a more practical minivan-like upward opening liftgate. (Photo: Land Rover)

being that it was optimized for British roadways getting anything into it while parallel parked is pretty well impossible without first walking into the road itself. This problem isn't proprietary to the old Discovery mind you, or the equally impractical Freelander, but many Asian SUVs such as the Honda CR-V or Lexus GX 470, whose designers didn't go so far to think about the needs of North American, Continental European or for that matter Chinese buyers, produce right-hinged side-swinging doors. To make a short story long, the new LR3 now incorporates a minivan-like upward opening liftgate, ideal for all markets. Smart thinking Land Rover.

It was smart thinking to ditch the old 4.6-liter V8 too. While it has come a long way since Rover sourced it from Buick decades ago, it wasn't very refined or efficient anymore, at least compared to modern multivalve, quad-cam V8s. The replacement is refined and efficient, however, now sourced from Jaguar's 4.2-liter unit. In LR3 trim the 32-valve DOHC engine's displacement gets enlarged by 200 cubic centimeters to 4.4-liters. The engine now makes 83 additional horsepower over the outgoing overhead valve, 2-valve per cylinder lump, matching the old V8's peak torque rating with its 300 horsepower. The new 4.4-liter V8's improved 315 lb-ft of torque maximizes at a higher 4,000 rpm compared to the outgoing model's 2,800 rpm, which shouldn't make much of a difference getting off the line but may be felt in extreme

Gone is the old 4.6-liter V8 Land Rover engine, replaced by a refined and efficient Jaguar 4.2-liter unit. (Photo: Land Rover)

off-road conditions. The new engine's improved fuel economy, however, will be appreciated in both situations. In order to prep the engine for 4x4 use Land Rover has sealed it from dust and water, and revised its air intakes to allow deep river wading.

While the new 4.4-liter V8 is much more efficient than the outgoing 4.6-liter, with fuel costs escalating to the point that most consumers, including myself, are feeling a significant pinch in their budgets, buying patterns are starting to show smaller SUVs rising in popularity. Large SUVs are still selling fairly well, however, but long-term extortion at the pump will no doubt reduce their market dominance in the U.S. especially.