Land Rover's Longest Test Drive
8 October 1998
Land Rover's Longest Test DriveAll-New Discovery Series II Travels Over 18,000 Miles, Across Four Continents
In Four Months, En Route to its Debut at the Paris Motor Show
PARIS, Oct. 7 -- An international group of journalists has
completed one of history's most ambitious new-vehicle test drives -- New
Discovery Trek. Two all-new Land Rover Discovery Series IIs covered over
18,000 miles in four months driving from London to Paris ... the long way.
The Discovery Series II, which made its world debut in late September at the
1998 Paris Motor Show, represents the first complete engineering redesign of
Land Rover's most popular vehicle.
Departing London on June 1, 1998, the two Discovery Series II vehicles
ventured in a southeastern direction across the continent of Europe to
Istanbul and then on across Turkey, Iran, Pakistan and India. On this leg of
the trip, the teams of drivers had to deal with temperatures above 122 degrees
Fahrenheit and road hazards ranging from gun-toting militia to wayward oxcarts
and unlighted, overloaded trucks. Even an odd camel and the occasional monkey
became unexpected hazards.
From Calcutta, India, the vehicles were shipped to Australia, where the
teams drove the V8 and new Td5 diesel-powered Discoverys across the brutal
Gunbarrel Highway to Ayers Rock (known locally as Uluru) and then on to
Melbourne and Sydney. Along the way, they camped overnight in freezing
temperatures and were coated by Australia's pervasive red "bull dust."
From Sydney, the vehicles were air freighted to New York for a 3,360-mile
journey south across the United States. After stops in New Orleans and
Houston, the drivers crossed into Mexico at Nuevo Laredo to encounter what
would be the first of many frustrating delays caused by immigration and
customs red tape at each of the 10 South America border crossings.
Rough roads and record high temperatures in the Americas were made all the
more tiring by heavy rains as the drivers wound through Guatemala, El
Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and the rain forests of Costa Rica.
Another ocean shipment to Spain for the final leg across the Pyrenees
brought the two vehicles and their one-ton Ifor Williams equipment trailer to
the Paris Motor Show for the world premiere of the new Discovery Series II.
By the time vehicles arrived in Paris, they had covered more than 18,000 miles
in four months -- once around the globe -- without a major problem.
Thirty journalists from 10 countries had co-driven during New Discovery
Trek, along with Iain Chapman, Event Director, and Mark Dugmore, Land Rover
Field Engineer.
"New Discovery Trek used pre-production vehicles in an unprecedented show
of confidence in the technology and robust engineering that have gone into
this project," said Tom Purves, Rover Group Sales and Marketing Director.
"Our thanks goes out to all who made it happen."
The event was co-sponsored by Texaco Havoline lubricants and coolant,
Michelin Tire Corporation, Warn Industries, BT Mobiq satellite telephones and
Land Rover Global Expedition clothing. GARMIN GPS, Nevada Communications,
Ifor Williams trailers and Coleman camping equipment provided additional
support.
New Discovery Trek Statistics
* Total distance travelled: 18,000 miles
* Total distance off-road/off-tarmac: approx. 2485 miles
* Longest distance travelled in a day: 776 miles. Wytheville, VA --
New Orleans, LA
* Total driving days: 55
* Countries visited: 27
* Total numbers of continents: Four
* Most countries visited in one day: Five. Italy, Switzerland,
Austria, Liechtenstein, France
* Borders crossed (in and out): 62
* Total journalists participating: 31, representing 12 countries
Land Rover North America, Inc. is a member of the Rover Group, importing
Land Rover vehicles manufactured in Solihull, England. The Rover Group is a
wholly-owned subsidiary of the BMW Group, Munich, Germany.
