by John Adolph, Supervising Producer
Where Did We Drive It?
Our 2017 Land Rover Discovery had a lopsided August, with 85 percent of its total miles being driven by Mike Schmidt on one long weekend. He piled in the family and started north along the California coast to Big Sur and Monterey. He then circled back through one of the newer national parks, Pinnacles, and headed south past Morro Bay. Pinnacles was the fifth national park Mike visited in the Discovery, and he says the SUV was just as comfortable a companion on the trip as some of our other long-term cars had been.
What Kind of Fuel Economy Did It Get?
The Disco logged a total of 1,527 miles in August and used 85.61 gallons of premium unleaded, yielding combined mpg of 17.8. Yes, that's 0.2 mpg below the EPA estimate, but when you consider the Schmidt family had two adults, two kids and all their luggage to haul up the coast, it's not that bad of a result. It's still better than our lifetime average of 17.2 mpg.
Average lifetime mpg: 17.2
EPA mpg rating: 18 combined (16 city/21 highway)
Best fill mpg: 21.3
Best range: 449.9 miles
Current odometer: 19,975 miles
Maintenance and Upkeep
Nothing this month.
Logbook Highlights
Interior
"Floor mats are typically nothing notable for me, but the Discovery's all-season mats are worth calling out. First off, I think they look cool, with a chunky industrial design. They're also very functional, with deep channels to keep mud and gunk from spilling out. I also like how grippy they are. They're not made from hard plastic, but instead a softer rubber. And to top it off, there's a matching covering in the cargo area." — Mark Takahashi, senior writer
Utility
"There's a motorized partition at the back of the Discovery's cargo area that serves a few different purposes, but it doesn't always fold down when you open the rear hatch. For posterity, the partition lowers when you open the hatch with the remote, but stays up when you press the switch on the hatch itself.
"To lower the partition when the hatch is open, you press another small button on the left side of the opening, where the power seat folding/unfolding buttons are located. I personally think it's a weird choice to have the remote and hatch unlock buttons do different things, but there's a method to the madness."
"The partition helps keep items in the storage area from falling out when you open the hatch. It doesn't help much if you're on a flat or downhill road surface, but it's invaluable when the Discovery is stopped on a hill. According to the Discovery's press material, the lowered shelf doubles as a sitting area when tailgating or picnicking."— Cameron Rogers, staff writer
Comfort
"The only oddity was when I parked the car in Pinnacles. The car was off, but both the low-range and auto stop-start buttons were flashing without reason. This flashing continued for a minute or so before I tried starting the car again out of fear it might strand us in the triple-digit heat. But it turns out I was just being a ninny, and everything was fine." — Mike Schmidt, vehicle testing manager
"Took it home and back to the office in the morning. As an overall package, it made my soul-crushing commute easier and surprisingly enjoyable. After each leg, I arrived in a better mood than when I left." — John Adolph, supervising producer
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