I have been to Luton Hoo twice, once in the Freelander 2 and the other time in the DS. (2014 and 2016 respectively). Both occasions were very enjoyable and both instructors were really helpful and enthusiastic throughout. I think wherever these courses are held, you need to get involved and explain what you really want to do. I can only compare it to the old (and now defunct) Ashford Experience Centre which I did in a Freelander 1 and I found both occasions at Luton were much more fun.

The half day is split between an artificial obstacle area and driving around the various tracks on the Luton Hoo estate. The entire area is based around arable fields. I can understand the comments about the artifical obstacle area as it may not be as extreme as some of the areas you see on TV. (or at least it can seem that way)

There were however plenty of oppotunities to drive around the more wooded areas where the ground does get muddy and rutted enough to test the cars. Both times I went, the driving areas were slightly different as they had to rest various areas as they do get quite churned up when its wet.

we have done 4 lr/exp days over the years,3 at the old excellent ashford site with woodlands and deep quarry etc.2 were in d3,s and the last one in a fl2,all were very enjoyable and consisted of road work forestry,log rolls,water and mud sections,the fl/2 was done in the winter,loads of snow and frozen tracks,i was amazed how good the freelander coped it never got stuck once,there were a couple of places where the disco,s rr sports and defenders went where we could not go as we did not have the articulation or ground clearance.the last one was july 2016 at the Honiton site,a friend had recently bought Another d4 so as we were near by on a caravan site he booked it there.3 of us went(he has had landrovers all his life and used to go into competitions)we stayed on site through the woodlands,it was very good,our friend who came had a go as well,he had never driven a 4wd in his life and could not believe how good the car went.he now has a freelander2

Last edited by rnlisg on 14th Feb 2017 1:50 pm. Edited 1 time in total

Dunkeld Scotland.
I have been there driving FL2 after heavy snow, standard road tyres worked perfectly even with only 3 wheels touching the ground at times.
Check my gallery for pictures. Silver FL2 All FL2's (3) Gone
2011 Mercedes C180 CGI Gone
FL2 GS Auto SD with heated leather, factory tints, alloy spare and a few other bits.

Great pics Druand,fl2 looks happy playing up there .must say the evoque looked a bit of a beast,what did it go like?
cheers
sandy

Evoque powered by 6.2 litre V8 LS3 engine used in many US vehicles. This derivative from Corvette. Sequential gearbox.
Other variants have the Jaguar V8 with twin turbos.
Don't think I need to describe how they go in the forrest!!!! All FL2's (3) Gone
2011 Mercedes C180 CGI Gone
FL2 GS Auto SD with heated leather, factory tints, alloy spare and a few other bits.

Thanks for the replies. I have decided that as it is a freebie and because it is so close, I will book with Luton Hoo

Steve

Luton Hoo is good as the first you go to but is quite limited compared to other venues.

I am local to Luton and have been there on a number of occasions. You will still have a fantastic time there but I would also consider Rockingham where the area used is much larger and there is more in the way of muddy hills, woodland tracks etc.

Don't let that put you off though, I cannot recommend the experience highly enough and once you have seen what all LR vehicles can really do in the rough stuff, you'll be amazed, even the so-called less capable Evoque, its auto gearbox and other gizmos make a transfer box irrelevant.

Have a great time and report back here!👍

Had a freebie morning in a DS at Eastnor today and must say it was very enjoyable. Instructor Richard was very friendly and knowledgeable. In contrast to a previous experience elsewhere there was very little of the artificial concrete track and lots of moderately testing woodland track - unfortunately pretty dry today, although we did get the DS nice and muddy. There was a lot of emphasis on taking it slowly over the areas where grounding was a possibility (fair enough) and we used some features that my own DS doesn't have and a few that I had forgotten about. Richard pointed out a number of tracks that are used for the more extreme (ie paid for) trips, and they looked pretty good. Lots of other people at the centre and all the ones I spoke to were having a good time. Being Eastnor there were a few LR engineers there doing pretty extreme stuff in the cars. I also saw a heavily disguised ELECTRIC Land Rover whizz through the car park, and there were some Jaguars going round as well.
Unusually, we did the more extreme stuff first, then I think he still had a bit of time to kill and took me onto some routes that were more farm tracks than anything else. Still interesting though. Eastnor is a long drive for me but I had some private business in Malvern so it suited me well. I'm tempted to go back for a more extreme full day.
The DS I drove had done 3000 miles almost entirely off road, and had stood up to it very well. One small trim rattle but that's hardly surprising. They use the cars on a one day on one day off basis.
Edit: Richard also said that quite a small percentage of owners actually take up the half day offer - get out there and enjoy it folks! Ex AA Series III LWB Safari - Gone
300TDi Disco (bought new - terrible car) sent back after 18 months
Freelander 1 Estate - leased, given back at end of lease
200TDi Disco (bought from a mate with 100,000 on the clock) - Gone
Disco 2 TD5 - sold and exported to France
FR2 TD4 GS - Gone
FR2 SD4 HSE - Now changed for a DS
New model ex-demo Evoque S 180 in white
Unable to order a new DS, so gave up. Now have a Volvo S90 Recharge.

Anyone been to the Cheshire course, just managed to get a date there November as a LRE. lots and lots of free dates IF I was paying

Nothing in Ledbury (nearest ) until late 2018. If it wasn't so bad it'd be funny.

🐑
Freelander 2 HSE auto 2014 ( Florrie ) ..... Try again.
Freelander 2 GS 2012...... Gone.

Odd thing, a few nights ago I was watching a TV programme about the Queen's Balmoral Estate in Scotland and during the advert break there was a phone in competition to stay in some posh hotel and have a Land Rover experience. Sounds like they really are trying to go up market although we all know that the Queen drives LandRovers anyway (and used to fix cars during the war). 3 x FL1 2 manual + 1 auto
5 x FL2 4 manual + 1 auto
Now Discovery Sport P250 MHEV SE

Had couple of days at Eastnor in 2001, pics are from a very wet day.
Got to drive FL1, TD5 Disco, Rangey and Defender. No concrete , just muddy tracks

FL1s kept getting stuck /grounding and needed towing by the TD5

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Just returned from a LR Experience morning at Honiton. (A freebie with my latest FL2)
Had a very informative and enjoyable time with my brother who shared the driving of a RR Sport. I chose to drive both on and off-road.

Will, the instructor, very thoroughly demonstrated (and allowed us to experience) the various transmission modes both on and off-road. The RRS seemed to cope with conditions more smoothly than the DSport I drove last year, and I was suitably impressed with difference.

I was also impressed with the enthusiasm and knowledge of the instructor, especially as he must do this twice a day. I have learnt a lot more about how to judge what conditions need which transmission mode, and felt the difference. (Handy for future use on my FL2)

I am now saving for a modern RRS for when my FL2 wears out. My Piggy Bank says that I will never make it, so I will have to rely on my Lottery ticket.

Great Day Out! FL2 XS SD4 Auto 2010 2012-2017 (21k - 91k miles) (MY2011)
FL2 Metropolis SD4 Auto 2014 2017- (16k - 77k+ miles) (MY2015)
Metro in its 11th Year of (Extended) LR Warranty / Full LR Service History
(Expensive, but Trouble/Worry free - hopefully?)

Glad you had a good day Ian doing a bit of hint dropping to SWMBO after having a day at Peckforton Castle LRE would like to try somewhere else for next birthday
Amazing what these vehicles can do when shown how  If it wasn't so bad it'd be funny.

🐑
Freelander 2 HSE auto 2014 ( Florrie ) ..... Try again.
Freelander 2 GS 2012...... Gone.