The Land Rover Experiment: Part One

Cars

Dawn’s early light in the late spring. I am about to conduct and experiment. Two people. Tons of kit (surfboards, wetsuits, camera gear) and seven hundred miles from the Southwest of England to the Northeast of Scotland. My steed: A Landrover Discovery 3.

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You see, there’s a lot of talk about the demise of the ‘gas guzzling SUV’. The very statement, a hackneyed Americanism, is loaded with jarred, mistaken political posturing. Or that’s the theory, anyway.

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Our argument is that for certain trips, there’s little better: more energy efficient, comfortable, practical _ not to mention aesthetically pleasing, than loading a a bulletproof, Solihull-built TDV6 Disco with gear, people and Diesel and heading out on an adventure.

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So, we have chosen to head to the far north of Scotland to go surfing. No, we’re not masochists, but need to see how we can join some of the best surfers on the planet at the Highland Open, and paddle out to some of the best surf in Europe – without bothering with the hassle of taxi rides to airports, interminable check-in procedures and excess baggage: followed then by car hire, rigid travel schedules and all manner of other wagonless adventures.

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We’ll log the amount of fuel we use, and calculate the approximate emissions we generate: and we reckon we’ll save time, energy and pounds sterling. As well as demonstrating that a motor like the Disco 3 is still the best vehicle for adventure ever invented.

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Well, at least we’ll test the theory. Stay tuned for dispatches from the Far North.

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