• Clean and tidy Disco 3 owned by one family from almost new

• Never off-roaded

• Rare six-speed manual transmission

• Full and comprehensive service history

Having established itself as the leading brand in the full-size leisure SUV sector of the market with the Mk 1 and 2 versions of the Discovery, Land Rover brought itself kicking and screaming into a modern new ear with the Discovery 3.

Now under the ownership of Ford, Land Rover released the highly-anticipated third generation of its best-seller in late 2004. It was a Discovery design revolution - an entirely new vehicle underneath its surface, but retaining some of its classic exterior features. It had a unique modular construction – essentially a monocoque, but with various body sections that could be removed to give the same benefits as a separate chassis. 

The stepped roof remained, as did the reverse C-pillars and the steep angled windscreen. The driving position was also raised into its now familiar command driving position, providing a full unobstructed view of the vehicle’s surroundings.

Two engines were offered – a rare BMW-sourced 4.4-litre petrol V8, a Ford’s own 2.7-litre TDV6 turbodiesel, which was perfect for the model, complete with a choice of six-speed auto or manual transmissions. 

Inside, the vehicle’s infotainment was given a major upgrade and the familiar flexible seven-seat layout remained, however passengers in row three now entered via the rear passenger doors, rather than the tailgate as they had done previously.

One radical feature added to the Discovery 3 was its fully independent air suspension. This system allowed the vehicle to be both raised and lowered to adjust ground clearance - high ground clearance for off-road performance, providing extra stability to the vehicle, and a lower clearance for higher on-road speeds. This was in line with Discovery’s original utilitarian brief for both on and off-road performance, while the biggest technical advance  was its Terrain Response system. 

The electronically controlled system replaced a separate low-range transmission and enhanced Discovery’s off-road capability, automatically configuring the vehicle’s systems, including engine management, gear selection, differential control and ride height selection, to suit the surface selected.

Not that it has been used by many owners! This example was purchased in December 2005 and has never been used off-road since, being mostly used for commuting and school run duties within one family since.

The Discovery was acquired by the vendor’s father-in-law via an automotive broker in 2005. At the time, he wanted to buy a brand new one but there was a long waiting list so instead he used the broker to find a good second-hand example, which was sourced directly from Land Rover’s press and marketing fleet. 

BD05 FXU was six months old at the time, and was its owner’s daily transport for the next 13 years before he replaced it with one of the last-of-the line Discovery 4s. He’d averaged around 9,000 miles a year in his ownership period and had ensured it was properly serviced and maintained throughout, initially with a main dealer and subsequently through a well-known Land Rover specialist in Buckinghamshire. 

In 2018, he passed the car on to his daughter and son-in-law who have used it as a family car since, but as their children walk to school and son-in-law has a smaller vehicle for his day-to-day mileage, it has only really seen weekend and occasional use, clocking up less than 6,000 miles in their ownership. 

They’re selling it because – in recognition of its occasional use only – they’ve acquired a classic Range Rover instead. After all, if you’ve always wanted something and the chance comes up, you may as well…

The history file with this car is something else, containing every bill and receipt back to December 2005 including the original purchase document from the broker, documenting a £26,995 transaction price. That was only £3,000 below the car’s list price, which shows how well the early D3’s held their value back then. 

BD05FXU was then maintained by Hartwell’s Land Rover in Oxford whilst it remained under warranty, after which it was maintained by the independent Land Rover and agricultural specialist that had looked after the owner’s previous Land Rovers for over two decades – a long-standing and trusting relationship that saw the Discovery receive all of the attention it needed over the years, including some major repairs such as the turbo bypass hose and a new clutch. 

There’s a huge folder full of receipts, documenting a thorough and dedicated programme of maintenance.

In the current owner’s custody, it has had a new handbrake module (a very common D3 failure) and a full oil service. 

It comes with two keys and an MOT until November. 

It’s incredible to think that the Discovery 3 is now a 17-year old design as it still looks absolutely brilliant and quite contemporary. 

Finished in silver and with optional upgraded alloys over the standard S, BD05 FXU still looks fresh and bright today. 

Up close, you’ll find a couple of very slight imperfections – there are a couple of small scratches on the passenger side doors which aren’t immediately noticeable, the lock cover from the passenger door handle is absent and there’s one mudflap missing, but overall it still looks great from every angle. 

The alloys are in good order and it is shod with a set of Pirelli Scorpion tyres, which are regarded as the best of the lot among Disco 3 fans. 

Inside, you get tan cloth seats and matching door cards as this was the lighter colour line. It really suits it and it has the added benefit of heated seats both front and rear. 

The cabin is spacious and comfortable and in overall good condition, though there are some imperfections. There are a couple of tiny holes in the driver’s seat, some scratch marks on one inner door card and some minor wear to the steering wheel. 

The carpets are excellent and both of the fold-up rear seats work as intended, though there’s a plastic trim cover missing from one of them. 

The air conditioning blows icy cold, the heated seats work perfectly and the stereo sound quality is excellent. 

With 133k on the clock, the TDV6 is quite low mileage for its year and it starts and runs very smoothly with no known issues. The seller reports that it drives spot on, with strong performance and refined cruising. Just occasionally it hunts for idle on the approach to a junction, but it doesn’t stall nor throw up any fault codes. 

The steering, brakes and suspension are all good, with recent bushes and drop links, along with a new clutch and brake discs and pads. 

It has also very recently had a replacement handbrake module as the previous one seized. It now works exactly as it should, but a ‘handbrake fault’ warning still shows on the dash. 

This is most likely because the vendor’s local garage, who carried out the work, didn’t have the Land Rover-specific software to turn the light off, but it’s not considered a brake warning in MOT terms so it won’t affect the car’s ability to pass a test. 

Unusually for a D3, the car has a manual transmission. These are actually pretty sought after by those who like to tow or do proper off-road work, so while the car has never been used as a mud-plugger it may well be ideal for that purpose in the future. The box is pretty light and pleasant to use, with a dashboard upshift tell-tale helping you to maximise economy and make the best use of its torque curve. 

With a comprehensive history and record of careful ownership, this is a great option if you’re after a nice, well-sorted Discovery 3. So many of them have been subject to hard lives or sloppy maintenance in recent years, but this isn’t one of them.

Apart from its six months as a Land Rover demonstrator, in which it covered less than 7,000 miles, it has been owned by the same family from new, cherished, looked after and seen as an asset. 

It’s actually a reluctant sale – if the owner had the space he’d keep it to go with his Range Rover and Defender 110, but he simply doesn’t have the space and its getting little use, even less so now the Range Rover has arrived. 

If you want a D3 that has been enthusiast-owned all of its life and is in great overall condition, you’ve found it.