We’ve guided you towards Britain’s best driving roads, but the hard stuff need not be your limit for a truly satisfying driving year.
Off road is where the real challenge lies and with a range of vehicles that crave the most rutted trucks and the steepest inclines, Land Rover Experience (LRE) centres offer the most accessible way to get down and dirty. We visited six LREs in the UK to find out how.
LRE Scotland
Discovery Sport TD4 180 HSE Auto
Our adventure begins in the lush, wooded Perthshire hills just outside Dunkeld. The sky is a brilliant blue and instructor Will Cox has a spotless white Discovery Sport ready for us to sully.
Before starting, it’s worth mentioning what hardware the Discovery Sport doesn’t have. Like its Evoque cousin, there’s no low range and it only comes on coils, limiting ride height to 211mm. (Air-sprung Range Rovers clear 295mm.) And our TD4 180 doesn’t get the GKN-sourced Active Driveline that not only defaults to front drive when conditions allow but also features a tractionhunting, torque-vectoring rear e-differential.
However, it does have Land Rover’s proprietary Terrain Response (TR) system to modulate steering, throttle, gearbox, brakes and the electronic centre coupling. Its grass/gravel/snow mode best negotiates the centre’s 280 acres of woodland, with its steep, tight trails, although sand and mud-rut programmes feature, too.
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Guaranteed enjoyment
As much as this article is interesting to read. Going out there and driving a 4x4 vehicle around one of these courses is far more enjoyable and they can teach valuable lessons on how to get the best out of your 4x4 including driving on the road in hazardous conditions such as ice and snow. Having had the opportunity to drive around Eastnor Castle a few years ago I would recommend anyone given the chance, to give it a go. Unfortunately the cost of using these centres is not cheap and does not stop some of the less welcome visitors to Countryside going out in their highly modified 4x4’s down restricted Green lanes. However, whilst out walking this weekend it was delightful to see a convoy of a dozen or so unmodified Mk1 Landrovers slowly making their way along a local unrestricted field road. In the right environment a 4x4 can offer guaranteed enjoyment.
Guaranteed enjoyment
As much as this article is interesting to read. Going out there and driving a 4x4 vehicle around one of these courses is far more enjoyable and they can teach valuable lessons on how to get the best out of your 4x4 including driving on the road in hazardous conditions such as ice and snow. Having had the opportunity to drive around Eastnor Castle a few years ago I would recommend anyone given the chance, to give it a go. Unfortunately the cost of using these centres is not cheap and does not stop some of the less welcome visitors to Countryside going out in their highly modified 4x4’s down restricted Green lanes. However, whilst out walking this weekend it was delightful to see a convoy of a dozen or so unmodified Mk1 Landrovers slowly making their way along a local unrestricted field road. In the right environment a 4x4 can offer guaranteed enjoyment.
Its a good read. However it
Its a good read. However it could have been so much better if it didnt also read like an advert. I wonder what would have been wrong with visiting non Land Rover off road courses as well, and taking various off roaders along? (apart from the obvious lack of pro diesel Land Rover makeup of such an article).