WR Fleet: 2008 Land Rover LR2 HSE

Our LR2 HSE model had just over 3000 miles on the odometer when it arrived in our fleet, and it was already showing signs of wear. The cover over the driver’s side door handle is supposed to come off in case you need to use the key, but it fell off of our test car and would not go back. We’ve had some problems with build quality on past Land Rovers, and it seems this still hasn’t been completely resolved.

The new LR2 is beautiful, though. This new HSE model features a sportier look due to body-color bumpers and side sills, a rear spoiler, titanium door handles, and nineteen-inch alloy wheels.

(Click through the jump to read the rest of this review and click the images below to open a gallery.)

We took the LR2 on an 847-mile journey to Northern Michigan, and ended up with beautiful, dry weather, while Southern Michigan was hammered with snow.

We found on-road handling to be quite good. The LR2 never felt top-heavy in quick turns, and it didn’t have the floaty feel (think Chevrolet Suburban) of a large SUV. Driving in the city and parallel parking were simple.

The 3.2-liter inline-six is matched to a new six-speed automatic transmission and produces 230 horsepower. Even with this much power, the vehicle felt slow during off-the-line acceleration, but managed to get up to speed quickly once we were on our way. On a downward slope, however, downshifts managed by the cruise control were jerky and noisy. We averaged 21 miles per gallon, which is right in line with the EPA fuel economy estimates of 16 city and 23 highway. This isn’t too bad for a small SUV with true off-road capability.

The interior of the HSE is quite nice, with new model-specific features such as an eight-way-adjustable driver and six-way passenger seat and a center console storage box with a sliding cover. The square back end creates plenty of cargo space that easily fit our luggage, a cooler, three bags of groceries, a laptop, and a few miscellaneous items, all nicely packed underneath the cargo cover.

All in all, our Land Rover LR2 proved to be a nice driver. It accommodated all our needs with few distractions or annoyances. While we are happy spring is on the way, we would have loved some snow to play in and test out all the functions the vehicle has to offer. This little Rover proved to be quite pleasant during our journey North.

2008 Land Rover LR2 HSE
Engine: Inline-6, 3.2 liters, 24v
Output: 230 hp/234 lb-ft
0-60 MPH: 8.4 sec
Weight: 4255 lb
Cargo Capacity: 58.9 cu ft
Price as Tested: $41,400