Spent yesterday at a dealer event at the Brighton Amex football stadium, where I was given the keys to my chosen drives, the RRS 3.0 Autobiography and the Disco 4 HSE. The event saw Harwoods customers of their JLR brands, Bentley & Aston Martin come along and drive two cars of their choice, with free catering, and a behind the scenes tour of the stadium. No salesman, no pressure, just a great day out.
So, onto the cars...

Disco 4 - This has been my lusted after car for a while now, and it was very nice to drive, but there were a couple of niggles. I have a 15 year old lad who is pushing 6', and showing no signs of shrinking. He had acres of head room, but even sitting behind my wife who has her seat forward, he didn't have loads of leg room. Yes there was obviously more than the FL2, but not as much as I thought he would have. The sat nav is just as poor as the FL2, telling me to turn just as I pass junctions. The driving position and cabin comfort however is superb, I love sitting high up, and feel almost vulnerable now in 'normal' cars. The boot space is the real draw for us as a family...massive.
I was left with a bitter sweet impression, in that the car is externally huge, and as my every day transport, I am not sure I could live with it doing mostly town driving. In the HSE spec I would want, I don't think it offers enough over the FL2 to justify the cost, but I can't rule it out just yet.

RRS - Now I was so excited about this one, but again left feeling disappointed. The car I drove was spec'd up and £70k. Once inside, I couldn't really tell the difference to the Evoque, which I think is a beautifully smooth car to drive, but in my opinion is just too posey for me. The technology is beyond pointless. A perfect example is the heated seats (which work very well). On the FL2 I press a button once and they come on. On the RRS I press a button on the console, this over rides the sat nav screen and gives you a picture of the front seats. I then have to select my seat and one of the three heat levels. Why ???. The B pillar is also very wide, and I had to get the rear seat passenger to tell me if it was safe to join traffic on a busy road, as looking over my shoulder was pointless. But the worst thing for me was the seating position, which feels the same height as the Evoque, and lower than the FL2. I didn't like the way the centre console wraps around driver and front passenger, it feels like you are inside two cubicles. The kids felt the RRS wasn't as comfortable in the rear as the Disco, mainly as the seat backs are hard plastic against knees, compared to the Disco or the FL2. The power, gearbox and drive are all superb, but worth two FL2 HSE's ? Not IMO.

So after considering both these two, I wouldn't buy the RRS, and I would want to borrow the Disco for 24 hours to see if the size is something I could get used to. I remember the FL2 felt huge for a while, but it's surprising what you get used to. But the truth is, it's made me realise just how good the FL2 is, and what good value it offers in comparison to it's stable mates, so it will be between the FL2 and Disco 4 when I look to change cars in a few months time.

These are my thoughts and opinions, and I'm sure you will have your own.

I think that is a very fair and balanced write up

I must say that the FL2 always gave confidence in conditions such as driving through floods on a road or deep snow. Yes the Disco can boast greater ground clearance for such circumstances but even in the winter of 2010, I never encountered anything where I thought the Disco would be more useful here. The FL2 conquered it all and as you say is much easier to live with day to day in town etc.

Clarkson once said that as brilliant as the Disco is, it just shouts out that the owner couldn't afford a proper Range Rover (sport not included).

If I hit the lotto jackpot, the top 2 cars on my list are the Aston Martin Vanquish and the FFRR Autobiography supercharged.  LL.B (Hons) - University of Derby
LOT (Lord of Time) - University of Gallifrey

+1 for the Vanquish. Stood right behind one yesterday as the 6.0L V12 started. What a fantastic noise !
Must say, most people flocked around the Jag F type soft top, even though it was painted like Austin Powers Union flag 'Shaguar'

Quote:

If I hit the lotto jackpot, the top 2 cars on my list are the Aston Martin Vanquish and the FFRR Autobiography supercharged. Very Happy

tbh looking at the supposed FL3 I think that would be enough for me although one day I may get a FFRR...

T Terran



'The' Car For The Modern Day UK Roads ( ie all the pot holes )

'A Freelander that leaks oil is just marking its territory' - Wise words

Now a member of the FL2 'Silly Bill' Club