I've just handed by a loaner LR3 / Discovery 3 following a week and a half repair job on my TDV6 MY09. It was a Stornoway Grey, TDV6 SE model.

It proved to be an interesting comparison. The dealer principal kept telling me that it was virtually the same car as my RRS. Same engine, gearbox and chassis. He also told me they were exactly the same length - but I thought the LR3 was longer.

It was quite a different experience. I'm sure the LR3 was a bit faster than my RRS. Also, it did marginally less mpg. There looked like there was a lot more space in the boot ..... but seemed to take the same amount of musical equipment in there as my RRS, so maybe that's an optical illusion. The front seats seemed a lot more spacious - almost FFRR like. However, that could be down to the fact that the RRS console is kind of raised up and all around the driver. It felt a bit snug when I got back into the RRS, but in some ways I like that better - do you need any more space in the front when you are driving?

The LR3 has all of the same buttons and functions as the RRS, but they are a bit more 'Fisher Price' - whereas the RRS makes the same buttons look classy in a different layout.

The LR3 was noisier in the cabin than the RRS - and it didn't seem to drive as smoothly as the RRS.

I really missed my voice control for my satnav and telephone. I didn't like the leather colour .... was it 'sand' ??? What's wrong with black? Also, the premium leather in my RRS is much better than the LR3 standard leather. It seems strange, but I really missed the privacy glass in my RRS when driving the non-privacy glassed LR3.

Despite my RRS and the LR3 both being Stornoway Grey, the RRS looks much sexier, "doesn't look as good as your other one" was a comment a heard a few times from colleagues.

I did use the seven seat option once - when taking son and four of his mates to football plus another dad. That's a great feature and I can see that swinging a sale for a lot of people. Only problem was, we couldn't see how to get people in and out of those backs seats other than to clamber over .... did we miss a trick?

All in all, the LR3 is a great car. In the right colour (I guess silver is best for them) with black leather and the right spec, I would probably be happy to have one .... if it wasn't for the RRS. Indeed, if the children were a wee bit younger, I could see that as a 1st choice car.

Now back in my RRS and feel much more materialistic. I've been mad for flipping years, absolutely years, over the edge for yonks.

I've had Sliver Disco 3s since they came out, all with Alpacca Leather (I hate black!) The HSE has voice control and better leather than the SE, but they all have a more utilitarian feel compared to the RRS. You tip the 2nd row seats forward to get out of the back.

Although they do have the same running gear they are very different cars, never heard of a standard D3 being faster than a RRS though! A D3 is all about multi tasking and the utility side is what has driven its shape. The RRS on the other hand is all about looks and feelings - you pays your money and makes your choice!! Porsche Cayenne S Diesel 66 Plate

RRS has a shortened Disco3 Chassis but at the end of the day there isn't a lot of difference in the overall length
Disco3 is 4.835m long and 2.19m wide
RRS is 4.788m long and 1.983m wide

Believe it or not Freelander 2 is wider and higher than RRS, but only 4.500m long. 2020 Pangea Green 1st Edition D240 New Defender 110 is here and loving it
2018 Melting Silver Mini Countryman PHEV - soon to be replaced
2015MY Corris Grey SDv6 HSE Dynamic, the best car I have ever owned, totally reliable only a cou0le of rattles in 3 years, now no longer in my care
Also in my garage is a 1996 TDi300 Defender 90 County HT made into a fake CSW