I have been given a brief to design to new discovery 5. I have to give it eco aesthetics to quieten greenpeace basically.
If there is anyne that fancies answering or giving their opinions on a few questions it would be greatly appreciated!...(some of the questions have obvious answers that any land rover fan knows but it would be worth asking anyway)
1. What are the Discovery's Unique selling points?
And if there is a price overlap on the low spec range rover, why not buy that instead?
2. What is the Market of the Discovery?
3. How many people buy it for it's offraod ability? and actually use it offroad?
4. Is there a trend to the typr of people who buy Ladn Rover's?
5. Which is the flagship model?
6. What role does land rover have in the 21st century and beyond?
Thanks again to anyone taking part!
1. USPs - more off road ability than any direct rivals combined with refinement and luxury. The price overlap is largely irrelevant because the Discovery is a family vehicle (as well has having seven seats) whereas the RR is not.
2. Primarily the family/adventure market, however it is now seen as an upmarket vehicle and a rival to the BMW X5, Audi Q7 etc - both of which are sold in large numbers to executives and business people.
3. I think that a proportion of Discovery buyers will purchase it because of its reputation as a good off road vehicle, but a smaller proportion will actually use its ability. It has moved further and further away from the Defender in terms of how much off road use they get.
4. Since the Land Rover brand has diversified so much now, there isn't much of a trend between buyers of the marque in general. At one end of the spectrum is the Defender (where there is a definite trend in terms of buyers and users) and at the other end is the Range Rover, Range Rover Evoque, Range Rover Sport and Freelander 2. I would like to think that Land Rover owners in general tend to be more adventurous and more 'outdoorsy'.
Whilst the Defender is a totally classless vehicle (someone driving a Defender could "own the land or work the land"), the Discovery, Range Rover and to a certain extent the Freelander tend to be bought by middle class, well off purchasers (not least because of the relatively high list prices and exclusivity) but because of the image these cars have.
5. The flagship Discovery or the flagship Land Rover?
6. The role of the Land Rover has changed dramatically over the past few decades. Whereas thirty years ago a Land Rover was an essential piece of equipment for any farm or industry to have, it has become less and less important, being replaced by other vehicles and machines as time goes on. Although still widely used, the market for 'utility' Land Rovers (i.e. the Defender) has shrunk relatively. Hence why they are planning on a replacement in the near future. The brand has not only diversified, but in my opinion has shifted itself from this utilitarian, working image to one of luxury and executives in order to survive and grow.
Hope there's something there that you hadn't thought about... what course are you studying by the way, and where?
