Well, just home from a 240 mile blat round West Central Scotland from Stirling, along the A811 to Balloch, north along the west shores of Loch Lomond on the A82 to Tarbert then Arrochar, The Rest and Be Thankful to Inveraray and Lochgilphead, then along part of the Crinan Canal on the A816 to Ardfern on the west coast south of Oban................ I left home at 0900 and immediately found the weekend drivers had started which helped keep the pace down until the engine was nicely warmed and we soon settled into a pleasant gaite. Had to stick in the traffic and not duck and dive as the roads between home and Balloch are not brilliant and safe overtaking opportunities rare. After Balloch the road widens and becomes pretty fast all the way up Loch Lomondside and the Sport just gobbled it up................. this wagon (even a diesel) can fairly leap away when asked, no hesitation the 'box just drops silently down a couple of cogs and just blasts away without having to select "Sport" mode. It is a startlingly fast wagon if you have come from a TD6 RR, maybe a bit disappointing if you are used to a BMW M5 though (but you would have just ordered a Supercharged instead!). The fuel comsumption is amazing despite lots of quick sprints and blasts up to 95mph it never went below 26.5mpg.................. OK so I wasn't burying my right foot in the cut pile, the roads are such that that isn't necessary and anyway the car just bounds away with a nice steady downward prod on the right pedal. It just goes and goes!
One time I pulled out to overtake and had to stand on the brakes - firm and nicely weighted, but the rear end did try to fish tail a bit, but that was VERY hard braking.
If you intend to do transcontinental blasts, this is a superb wagon to do it in, nearly silent from the engine noise point of view, just a distant growl when you want to poke a stick in it's eye and provoke it. Negligable wind rustle (only really noticable when the wipers came on automatically in a brief shower of rain) and so quiet and relaxing. I arrived 8 minutes late on a 2 hour trip, and managed to average 26.8mpg shown on the trip computer.
The homeward trip was back along the same route............. with 2 passengers and a weeks worth of sailing gear. Suffice to say I've just sold another RRSport - probably a TDv6 HSE - for LR! My friend who is used to a company XJ Jag or big BMW is about to change his present 7 series BM 760iL and is so impressed, he's sold on the Sport after one trip, he loved my TD6 but this is just so much better for fast blasting. The trip home was at a slightly more sedate speed due to volumes of daytrippers out enjoying the scenery and sunshine so we just held back and trundled along in comfort at a steady 55-65mph sort of gaite. When opportunities presented some fun was had in sport mode and wellying it...................... this wagon is SO reassuring to drive very fast and is very confidence inspiring. It just doesn't roll in fast curves/ bends taken at speeds that would have you braking hard in the bigger RR so that you didn't slide round on the seat, in the Sport the seats hold you in place so nicely.
Comfort is superb, I arrived home after 5 hours driving with no aches (the bigger RR was the same though) although I find the nonadjustable (for tilt, they do raise and lower) headrestraints mean I have to have the seat back more raked back than I am used to with the TD6RR.
My companions comments.................. "that is so comfortable" and even though one is somewhat broad of beam he was very comfortable in the front passenger seat. The rear passsenger is in his 90's and his only comment - "what is the engine, a V8?" He is a retired mechanical engineer and he was gobsmacked when I told him it is a V6 Diesel, he just would not believe me until I opened the doors with the engine running............. that convinced him.Until last year he was driving round in a Merc S320 so he really must have been impressed!
To cap it all when I turned into my driveway arriving home the trip computer showed 27.8mpg average consumption.

I have definately bought the right car! Sorry all you petrolheads, but once the TDv6 is in the powerband (from about 1400rpm you have max torque available all the way to the the rev limiter). The in-gear performance leaves a TD6 RR gasping and wheezing while it's turbo wakes up and I think that there are few places where the extra speed of the V8 and Supercharged can be used on British roads. The TDv6 is not a GTi beater but by golly it will give one a nasty fright in a high speed dual on British roads and will severely embarrass many so called "Hot Hatches", it's plenty fast enough for me.
Faults found....................... well apart from the unadjustable head restraint I am disppaointed to find that the fuel gauge is back to Ford standards............................ creeps off the full mark like a snail to halfway and then plummets like a stone toward empty! I refuelled 73litres for the 418 miles that the car has covered since delivery which is an average of 25.8mpg on the first tankfull. Can you see me grinning from ear to ear!

Last edited by Tim in Scotland on Sun Jun 12 2005 5:32pm. Edited 7 times in total

Excellent write up Tim.
Cant wait for the end of the month now (come on land rover deliver early) the more I read about the TDV6 the more I feel happy with my decision not to get a V8 Variant. Its out there somewhere. Second V10 Treg on the drive at the moment.

Biggles you really must come along to Beamish in it!
This wagon will a superb wagon to drive the A66 across the Lakes and Northumbria in, even when the groccles are out in force with their caravans in tow!

Tim,
Wished I could be there, We will be on a trans-atlantic flight on the 1st July and hopefully will be the proud owner of my RRS by then, Her indoors has already said it will be our first visit to the USA which I will actually want to come home from. ( Love the place ).
I have friends quieing up to look after it for me while we are away. Even new Disco 3 owners who want to see the difference between the two cars. Its out there somewhere. Second V10 Treg on the drive at the moment.

I had a 200 mile test drive a couple of weeks ago in a TDV6 and would agree with most of Tim's comments. Whilst a little bit more performance would not go amiss the smoothness makes the BMW engine in the RR seem embarrassing.

I was on the point of buying a RRTD6 at the time but immediately decided the RRS was the better option for me. Being impulsive and with no name on any waiting list I was keen to get in one straight away and my options were to take the demo (after 90 days on demo), place an order or buy the V8 that was available. The demo was green with alpaca leather so I ruled it out (bad luck and dirty seats) and an order was 9 months(ish) so I bought the silver/ebony V8 and put another order in so that when it comes up I can go for broke with the s/c or be a litle more restrained with the TDV6, or just stick with the V8 and cancel.

Or sell the option and make a wee profit!

I took an unregistered car on the showroom floor on launch day...............
The only options I might have added were the satnav and the hands free phone, but as I can live without both I made do with changing the alloys for some Disco 3 18" 10 spokers as you will ses in my pics

Tim,
How you finding the RRS after a cople of weeks ownership, any little niggles apart from the bonnet catch and rear hooks.
Have you at any point found something, and thought what a good idea. How about storage compartments, sunglasses holder etc are there enough or do you find it lacking, I always thought the P38A had way to little storage for the jumble that we carry round on a daily basis. Its out there somewhere. Second V10 Treg on the drive at the moment.

Great bits - front cup holders are brill for stowing house keys and mobile phone as there is a "slot" between the 2 cup holes just the right size for a Nokia 6310i

Not sure about the electronic parking brake.......... keep forgetting to engage it when I park up, at traffic lights I have no problems as always go to Neutral and engage it anyway...... hate to sit churning the hydraulics and dazzling the driver behind with the brake lights.......... wonder what the insurance would say if I parked it, put gearbox to park and forgot the parking brake..... P is supposed to lock the box, but do you trust it?
I'm not a smoker but if I were the tiny ashtray would not please!
There's no proper clock anywhere on the dash, just the digital display in the top right of the radio screen, means you have to look away from the road to see the time - may be different on cars with satnav though and they may have a display on the satnav screen. Unlike the RR there is no time display on the trip computer in the instrument binnacle.
Tailgate, both bits need an amazing slam to make sure they are closed, otherwise remote locking sounds the horn when you lock or a chime sounds if you drive off and haven't fully closed it.
I miss the electric lumbar adjustment of the bigger RR's driver's seat, but the Sport's seats I find very comfortable, the RR's were very comfy for my ample frame, but these are even better and grip you better.

Cannot think of much else at present................... Oh yes,
I cannot put my roof bars on the roof...... no gutter, and no flaps to hide the screw in points that RR had, you have to buy the awful load carrying system that spoils the lines and is permanent and makes a heap of wind noise!

Last edited by Tim in Scotland on Thu Jun 16 2005 5:48pm. Edited 2 times in total

Im not to worried about the roof bars, these have always been a constant niggle on my current car, causing wind noise but they are good grab handles when washing the car roof.
How do you find the rear seat space for storage, cup holders etc. Its out there somewhere. Second V10 Treg on the drive at the moment.

Storage in the boot area, like cubbies is NIL! In the RR there was a huge side cubby on the nearside of the boot that swallowed my waterproofs, electric compressor (anybody here who hasn't had a Landy before, these are a good investment...... LR tyres take a huge amount of air and a footpump is worthless unless you want to spend an hour pumping up a flat tyre!) fluoro working anorak, riggers boots, ALL the gortex seat covers and a warning triangle down inside without them rattling round in the boot space. As I drive round solo 99% of the time I haven't noticed any shortage of storage space in the rear seating area...... there are pockets in the backs of the front chairs and small cubbies in the rear door casings otherwise that is it! In the front there are 2 glove boxes on the passengerside, the centre cubby (which also has a moulding to hold CD boxes..... the ICE unit takes 6 CD in the slot in the dash)
Unlike RR there is no top section of the centre cubby. There are slots in the doors just big enough to take the owners manual and service records folder. There's no sunglasses holder like RR and I use the front cupholder to hold my phone, house keys and a couple of pens, this has a sliding louvred cover so they can be hidden.

Here is what I will have to use to stow some of the gear I used to have stashed in the big RR


Here is the very useful Freelander netting that I used in the RR to stop stuff sliding to the front of the boot............ on the Sport I was intending to put it across the boot lip area, I could get 6 carrier bags of shopping inside it! It has a elasticated slot in the top and eyes at the top and bottom left and right corners to hook onto the boot coamimg moulded in hooks


Here is what I could get into the rear cubby of the RR with careful packing and not even use any boot space:

Where do I put these now:
First aid kit and condensed version of St John's Ambulance 1st Aid manual(not one in the Sport like the RR had under the front passenger seat.) - I'm also a trained paramedic so insist on a decent 1st aid kit and carry things others don't bother with........ like a Laerdal face mask and pocket size resusitator
Small container oil
2l Freshwater to top up the reservoir on a trip
Boots, jacket, boilersuit, gloves and clobber for dealing with a flat in the middle of nowhere.
Electric compressor
Towing strop and shackles
Full set of RR gortex seat covers
Spare rear number plate in case of onroad towing
Tub of wet paper towels for cleaning up
Damp fake chamois cloth, for cleaning number plates and lights after getting dirty offroad.
Small bottle of screen wash additive
Spray de-icer
2 Space blankets

In the winter I also used to add
Tupperware of chocolate bars and dried fruit
A spade
Waterproof trousers

I know it's overkill but it is surprising how often I had to delve in there to haul stuff out to help other people stuck on the hills in some old Landy or broken down at the roadside................ even when I was windsurfing I had to fix broken people on the beach and once had to use most of the bandages in my kit to give 1st aid to a Jetski rider who had got too close to a speedboat and put out a foot to fend off, but it went straight into the outboard's prop.................

There's nowhere at all to stash any of that in the Sport other than the B&Q plastic box you see in the top picture so I cannot be helpful anymore! So what do you think I should leave at home?

We should be fine with the RRS then...

As the Disco II has nothing like the storage that the Tdi had. We wanted a 5 seater to get the rear cubby boxes but ended up with a 7 seater to get ACE and SLS. Most of the kit we used to stash had to be left in the garage.
It just require more frequent reviwe of what you carry for trips.

I just hope our Lintran dog box will fit in the RRS boot as its the best thing ever for containing two lively dogs (one with a liking for eating wires and anything else that he considers edible). Renny Thomson
MSA Scrutineer

Not trying to be funny, but would you not have been better off with a Discovery 3?

Simon wrote:

Not trying to be funny, but would you not have been better off with a Discovery 3?

Tim, with the S4 cab I'd have had to invest in a trailer to cart that much tackle around with me


I think you need one of these


 
" WITH MORE EXTRAS THAN A HOLLYWOOD EPIC "

MDP wrote:

Tim, with the S4 cab I'd have had to invest in a trailer to cart that much tackle around with me


I think you need one of these