1996 Land Rover Discovery ES review from UK and Ireland

Front hub collapsed and 3 bulbs blew within the first 11 miles of driving the vehicle.

Alarm started going off whenever it felt like it.

Air Conditioning packed in.

Cup holder jammed half out!

Engine blew up.

Rear door lock stopped working.

Clutch slave cylinder fell off in the middle lane of the motorway.

Clutch blew up.

I chose a Disco as it was to be the first serious "non-banger" I had ever owned. I bought it a couple of months before getting married with the intention of just being able to drive it and not have the worries that driving an old banger used to give me.

I have never owned such an unreliable vehicle in my 10 years of driving and I've owned some rubbish in the past!

In the 6 months that I've owned it, it has only been on the road for 3 of those. Nearly anything that could go wrong has gone wrong, and then some.

But that said, now that everything is finally working, "Fingers crossed", it really is a pleasure to own and drive. I take it 80 miles a day to work and back down a mixture of winding lanes and a bit of motorway and once I got used to the lack of performance and the body roll (great for toning up the tummy muscles down bumpy lanes) I now thoroughly enjoy the trip in a good level of comfort.

Then at weekends comes the real reason I bought a Landrover, as I load it full of friends and all our hiking kit and head into the hills. From the little I have seen of it so far off-road, I know that it will more than easily cope with anything that I can throw at it. The term "Mountain Goat" has been used before to describe these vehicles off road capabilities and is an excellent comparison.

If you need a vehicle that is capable of towing a trailer of any size, accommodating 7 people, going off-road and doing all of this in style then this is the vehicle for you.

After the false start, I'm now growing rapidly to see why people rave about these vehicles. Although if I ever buy another one then I'm getting a full independent inspection first, as I've found much to my cost that a full service history is no indication of abuse these vehicles can take over the course of their lives.