Now this is what a luxury SUV should be. The Range Rover is fast - especially between 40 and 80 mph - its power delivery is velvety smooth, and its suspension tuning is nearly perfect. It’s amazing how well the Range Rover smooths out rough surfaces and even potholes while still being able to tackle the most extreme off-road tasks. The steering is communicative and nicely weighted without being too heavy at low speeds. The turning radius is also impressive.

Land Rovers have always gone their own way – often literally. While off-roading demands a low center of gravity and muddy trails would seem to warrant hose-out interiors and body-on-frame-construction, the British automaker has long contented itself building tippy-looking unibody boxes with tall greenhouses and opulent cabins – the anti-Humvee, as it were. Further, in recent iterations, they’ve packed their products with immense electronic systems, air suspensions, dial-a-topography Terrain Response controller, and so on… the very sort of complexity that ought to be enough to send English sports car enthusiasts running back to their therapists’ offices.

Land Rover boss Phil Popham says that the firm “is not even considering” an alternative to UK government guarantees on crucial loans, despite speculation over the last 24 hours that the deal is on the brink of collapse.

Jaguar Land Rover’s owner Tata wants the UK government to guarantee a £340m loan from the European Investment Bank, as well as trying to secure a slice of the £2.3bn that’s been made available to help British-based car manufacturers. But there has been intense speculation that Tata is unhappy with conditions being placed on the deal, including the government having a seat on the board.

Land Rover is introducing a new armoured version of its multi award-winning Discovery 4×4 vehicle.

The new Discovery Armoured combines Land Rover’s legendary all-terrain capability with discreet, state-of-the-art protection, whilst providing highly versatile and comfortable transportation for five people and a generous 500kg payload.

Benefiting from Land Rover’s extensive experience in the armoured vehicle market, including the Range Rover Armoured, the Discovery Armoured is supplied with a full three-year, 80,000km factory warranty on the base vehicle and armour, along with comprehensive after-sales support from specialised technicians.