Hi all,
Been a LR owner for a lot of years, mostly Range Rovers and pretty active on rangerovers.net, Currently driving a 2016 SVR. Looking to buy a nice and roomy family car and the Discovery seems like the best all around option. We rented one off of Turo last weekend and fell in love with it. Checked off every single box and some I didn't even know I cared about. Really comfortable, really capable, and really great looking too!

I have a few quick questions I was hoping you could give me your opinions on.

What are the absolute MUST HAVE options? I know I'm getting the meridian sound for sure. But what else are you really happy you got?
The current lease deals are crazy good on 2018 models (I'm in SoCal). In your experience are they still negotiable or should I just save myself the time and no bother try?
What size wheel is best for tire availability ? Keep in mind we'll never be in cold weather, but would like to consider off-road capable tires.
Is the Apple Car Play option available in 2018 models? Is there maybe an update?


Thanks and I look forward to being part of this forum.

 

First, welcome! The D5 is a great truck. I happen to have the TD6 and have now taken it on multiple 20 hour road trips from Texas to the East Coast. It's amazing for long distances.

I'll answer a few of your questions.

Must have:
3-zone climate. Without it, anyone behind the front two seats gets really uncomfortable as there are only two vents for the entire rear of the truck.
Heated and cooled seats.

Don't bother:
Center cooler box. Barely keeps anything cool, much less cold.

Coin toss:
Power rear seats.

Car Play is available as a software update.
LR dealers don't do much negotiating. You might save yourself the aggravation if the lease deals are already good.

Enjoy!

 

Thank you for the reply!
I totally agree with the Cooler box. It's a total waste of perfectly good storage. Great tip on 3-zone climate! I'll be sure to insist on that.

 

Must Haves:
Tow Hitch. There are very little after-market options and most dealers charge a fortune to install the stock hitch.
4-Zone climate. At least four, I wish I got the 3rd row as well. I find the AC in the Disco lacking, so the more climate control, the better.
360 Camera / Surround cameras. On my 2018 it was a small upgrade, but I think it's bundled with the vision package now.
Charging ports in second row. My kids can't live without this, I can't believe it's an option and not standard.

Wish I got:
Locking rear diff
Heated/Cooled seats.

Don't need:
Vision package. My Disco reads speed limit signs and displays it on the dash ...it's petty pointless

Tires:
I got the 21" by mistake (dealer switched silver 20" that shipped with my Disco with black 10-spoke 21" and didn't put a dealer add-on sticker, so I either got the black 21" for free or would have to pay $600 for the black 20" as an upgrade ...crazy.) Anyway, there are no off-road tires for the 21", so if you're looking to go off-road then get the 20" max. The 21" are huge, but I'm not going to lie and say I don't think the 10-spokes look sweet.

Lease:
Yes, you can negotiate a lease. I posted on another thread that the first lease I was quoted from LR was almost $300 more per month than what I'm paying.

 

In my opinion (only had mine a day or so). We have an HSE Lux so some things came standard like the 850W sound system (which is probably the way to go in the D5). 2018 with dealer stock seems to have a lot of deals now, trying to clear out since 2019s are here.

Options to get - look at these carefully as they are not the most expensive options but seem to make a real difference in capability or use

• Tow hitch receiver - not expensive and adds a lot versatility - even adds a proper rear recovery point - seems very expensive and high $$ to add later
• 4 zone climate - love the seats - not sure on options - but the 4 zone seemed the way to go with this large vehicle and 3 rows or cargo area with dog - in my experience kids/pets gets less carsick with good airflow in the back.- This was packaged on mine with the 7 seat luxury package
• 7 seats if you have kids are even transport adults in the back - your needs/preference, but I doubt you can add later and they are out of the way if you don't use it (think it is std on HSE lux, not sure now)
• Love the 360 camera and parking sensors - have to pull in and out of small garage space at home - could only get with adaptive cruise control on 2019 though
• 20" wheels for offroad - seems to have more options that the 19 or other wheel sizes
• Roof rails - low cost add on and seems like a pain and cost more to add after
• Capability plus package - Rear locker and terrain progress control , more options for offroad and adds a lot of capability
• Full size spare tire - strange that is an option and not standard - but a must have for offroad IMO, think it will be pricey afterwards unless you get a takeoff from a previously owned set.

Nice to have

• Electric rear seats - My wife wanted this as she always had issues with other vehicles and clunky 3rd row seats - also makes it easier to gain access to the 3rd row for kids/wife
• Luxury seat package does feel really nice - on the 2019 HSE Lux it came as 7 seat luxury CLimate comfort with heated /cooled front and rear seats and 3rd row heat + 4 zone climate - bit overkill on seat heating/ccoling but 4 zone seemed the way to go with kids/dog, etc

Not sure

• Adaptive Cruise control - have not tested/used in really - but only way to get surround camera system I wanted

 

one size larger tires on the 20 inch wheels is 275/55R20 which is a standard size on many vehicles (GMC) and easy to find many options in tire brands, types

 

locker and 20" rims are must haves to me

 

 

I like what a lot of people posted on what you should have in a Discovery. I particularly like the cruise control when taking long road trips. I don't use it on the freeway with busy traffic though- just not confortable enough to fully trust the sytem. BUT when you use this on long road trips, it really comes in handy especially when you're behind a vehicle that is far ahead of you and you can set the distance from your vehicle to the one in front of you. Really cool feature to have.

 

I found that most of the HSE or LUX models on the lot always had the electric seats with the remote-fold option. I got it by default, but I feel like it's tech and motor weight that's not needed. I rarely put up the 3rd row and to get into the 3rd row, you still have to manually slide the 2nd row forward. I don't see any point at all in the remote seat fold option, especially since I have a rubber mat over the 3rd row that needs to come out first. Pointless option, but seems to be on most pre-builds around here.