We review the Land Rover Discovery from price to economy and all its features
LAND ROVER sales are soaring in China and we really had a high-flying drive on the eve of the Beijing Show.
Sun Motors took the wheel of the millionth Discovery model as it came to the end of an epic 8,000-mile journey after rolling off the production lines in Birmingham and finally arriving at the Beijing Motor Show.
Disco fever ... the Land Rover Discovery never misses a beat
It has taken the Discovery across 13 countries where it has encountered everything from heavy snow and freezing ice, crossed over mountain passes and become one of the few foreign cars to drive through Chernobyl.
Not to be outdone, I decided we had to put the battered Discovery to one final, gruelling test of endurance as we trekked our way across a desert 1,000 miles from Beijing.
And as you can see from our pictures, the Discovery confirmed why it is the best all-round vehicle in the world.
It even added the ability to fly to its other amazing off-road qualities.
As we came over the top of a 75ft mountain of a sand dune at speed, we kicked up our own desert storm, fully airborne with all four wheels off the ground. We then met some men in military uniforms who had dune buggies and decided they wanted to race us across the sand hills.
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In fact, everyone seemed to want to race us, including, bizarrely, British sandboarder and snowboard champion Dom Harington who was on holiday.
Of course, they all lost out to the Disco because it performs as well in sand dunes as it does wading across rivers, in snow and on Tarmac.
Fortunately, the Chinese schoolchildren we met were more interested in the Discovery, a rare sight in the city of Yinchuan, than they were in racing us.
In my day behind the wheel of the Discovery, it never missed a beat despite the pummelling it took. Remarkably, in the 8,000 mile trip, the only tool used was a screwdriver to remove dust from a blocked air filter.
Oh yes, and the three Discoveries that made the trip in convoy only had two punctures on the entire journey.
Incredibly it took just 54 days to complete the amazing adventure before it was driven on to Land Rover’s stand at the show.
It was an unwashed tribute to the brand’s legendary ability to go where other vehicles can’t.