Sales just keep on rising but high prices fail to put off Land Rover connoisseurs , writes Frederic Manby
Land rovers cost more than other four-wheel drives, but its position seems secure because sales keep rising.
Registrations in Britain in 2007 reached 46,552, up 8.78 per cent on 2006 – an increase of almost 3,760 vehicles.
In comparison, its Ford stablemate Jaguar saw UK numbers down by around 4,400 in a 19 per cent slide. Both companies look likely to be sold to Tata of India. The world waits.
I spent Christmas and New Year in the company of Land Rover’s Freelander, this one with diesel power and automatic gears. It was more than a year since I’d been in the Freelander, brand new at the end of 2006. Since then I had driven the latest Honda CR-V, Kia Sportage and Nissan’s X-Trail.
All of them have decent off-road ability. What marks out the Freelander is heritage and social image. Land Rover only makes four-wheel drive vehicles and they cut a dash from Tottenham to Tokyo. The most unlikely swaggerer is the Defender, usually dressed with alloys, metallic paint and driven with studied nonchalance by people with an assured demeanour.
I know my place: in the dark-blue Freelander, Baltic blue in fact. The seats were ebony leather with ebony carpet and ebony facia. The first thing I noticed was that body colour. Just about every Freelander I see is silver. In inky blue, it looks more subtle.
What I feel about the Freelander is mostly gleaned visually because, as far as I can judge, its rivals perform just as well for everyday transport.
When I see a Freelander, my first thought is that it is being driven by someone who can afford to pay more. All its rivals, including the big-seller RAV4, cost much less. The Freelander is, in my eyes, the best looker but if I was strapped for cash, I’d be heading for the Kia showroom. The diesel automatic is £17,995 … but it is not a Land Rover.
The very cheapest Freelander is the 2.2 diesel in S trim at £20,960. This model is the only Freelander with standard suspension. The others have Terrain Response, which optimises the traction and suspension for grip; prices for these open at £23,460 for the GS.
My HSE was the top dog, priced at £30,960 plus some extras. The six-speed automatic gearbox with Tiptronic function added £1,370. The body paint was £490. A full-size spare wheel (they must have heard I dislike space-saver spare wheels) was £120. Adaptive bi-xenon lamps added £995.
Of particular interest was the automatic gearbox in conjunction with the 160hp diesel. This is a convenient way to get around and, in theory, shouldn’t cost too much in fuel. Land Rover quotes 25.7mpg urban, 41.5mpg out of town, and 33.2mpg combined (with hefty road tax band F on 224g/km of ).
My earlier experience with a manual diesel suggested that fuel economy fell rather shy of the official figures and, based on the car’s computer, the same pertains with the
diesel auto combo.
Much of the time, the display showed 26 miles a gallon, with anything over 30mpg resulting from a no-stop single journey. Still, these vehicles are solid, built to last, and have other qualities.
Mostly, my thoughts were on the genre rather than this model. In winter weather, when roads are flooding, it was assuring to be in something that stood high enough to wade and splash with impunity. Driving over the moors to Masham, for example, when the night was blowing across the road, the Freelander just felt more at home than the more economical, domestic goddess, the Mondeo diesel automatic (which returns 36-40mpg).
This country-life image goes with the Freelander more than with any rival: the others exude rural life. As I reflected when I was last splashing around in a borrowed 4×4, they have a place, but one which will cost the user more in the years ahead.
(this article was taken from The Scotsman)