- Journey of Discovery takes centre stage: Land Rover celebrates the historic 50-day 10,000 mile marathon expedition from Birmingham to Beijing this year
- New show stand inspired by Discovery production line: unique design recreates the scene inside one of Jaguar Land Rover’s production facilities
- Discovery 4 in action: visitors have the chance to explore the car’s off-road capabilities on the challenging Land Rover Experience course
Whitley, 27 June 2012 – Land Rover will be using the Goodwood Festival of Speed to celebrate the conclusion of the Journey of Discovery.
The 1,000,000th Land Rover Discovery was produced at JLR’s Solihull plant earlier this year and to celebrate the milestone, this special vehicle undertook a 50-day, 10,000-mile cross-continent expedition.
The journey from Birmingham, UK to Beijing, China, aimed to raise £1,000,000 for Land Rover’s Global Humanitarian Partner, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).
The exceptional achievements of the Discovery provide the focus for Land Rover’s activities, helping celebrate production of the model having passed the one million milestone. The enduring success of Discovery will be represented by the latest Discovery 4 on display and in off-road action, while Land Rover’s unmissable new stand will recreate the Solihull production line where the car is built.
Discovery has picked up more than 200 awards around the world and last year saw record sales of almost 45,000 units across 170 worldwide markets. It also stands as an excellent example of UK design, engineering and manufacturing, with 83 per cent of production being exported from its West Midlands manufacturing base.
The Land Rover Discovery 4 is one of the world’s most practical vehicles – it can seat seven passengers, has a load space volume of up to 2,500 litres and is packed with technology including Land Rover’s award-winning Terrain Response System, which adapts the vehicle to respond to differing terrains and driving conditions including snow and sand.
The success of the Discovery alongside other Land Rover models has helped to create a positive momentum at the company’s Solihull operations. The facility now employs around 6,000 people following a recruitment drive launched six month ago, boosting the workforce by 20% to support its expansion plans.
Returning to the Festival of Speed for the seventh consecutive year, Land Rover promises plenty to engage visitors with its vehicle display, off-road demonstration opportunities and the chance to win prizes in a “build your own Discovery” competition.
Jeremy Hicks, Managing Director of Jaguar Land Rover UK, said: “The Goodwood Festival of Speed is a unique event that gives us a great opportunity to celebrate the achievements of Discovery 4.
“We are particularly proud of our role in British manufacturing and this is reflected in our new festival stand, which gives a flavour of our Solihull production. Land Rover is a long-established supporter of the Festival of Speed and we are pleased to be adding to the special character of the occasion.”
Land Rover Show Stand
Land Rover’s innovative festival show stand design evokes the atmosphere within the Solihull manufacturing facility and how a Discovery 4 is put together, complete with overhead lifts and illustrations of how chassis and body are brought together. Adding to the authentic atmosphere, the structure will even be decorated with the same black-and-yellow hazard markings and safety notices that are all part of the real-world manufacturing environment.
The stand will showcase vehicles from Land Rover’s international multi-award-winning range, including the Range Rover, Range Rover Sport and Range Rover Evoque, together with the Freelander 2 and a Discovery 4 expedition vehicle.
Bringing the factory to the festival in this way helps recognise the great achievements at the Solihull plant, where a workforce of more than 6,000 people have helped make Discovery a global success. By building almost 150,000 vehicles last year, Solihull provides great momentum for increasing both Land Rover’s business and the productivity of the UK motor industry as a whole. Its contribution will be further strengthened as a result of Land Rover’s investment in expanding the workforce and redeveloping the plant ready for new model introductions from 2014. This comes at a time when the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) predict the breaking of all-time UK manufacturing records by the end of 2015.
Land Rover Experience
Festival visitors will not only be able to admire Land Rover vehicles on display, there will also be opportunities to test out their off-road performance first-hand. Land Rover Experience will be organising passenger drives over a special course, designed to demonstrate how Land Rover’s Terrain Response technology adjusts vehicle performance to suit the demands of different off-road conditions.
Discovery competition
The Festival of Speed will provide an opportunity for visitors to interact with Land Rover’s “been anywhere interesting lately?” advertising campaign. Visitors can pick up a cardboard model of the millionth Discovery expedition vehicle and then take it on a journey. Visitors will be encouraged to send in photos of where they have taken their Discovery to Land Rover’s Facebook page at facebook.com/landrover.uk.
Hospitality for Land Rover owners
Land Rover owners will be able to enjoy special facilities at the Festival of Speed, with admission to a private hospitality centre offering complimentary refreshments. The unit will be located alongside the Land Rover Experience stand and access can be gained on presentation of a Land Rover key fob.
