FirstDrive: Land Rover Freelander:When Land Rover decided to show off the Freelander's new automatic gearbox it did so in style, whisking Paddy Comynoff for a test drive in Iceland
There used to be a time - and it wasn't really that long ago - when the arrival of something as straightforward as a new gearbox to a car would be heralded by, at best, a press release followed by a brief test drive. Not so these days.
Land Rover's Freelander has been with us since December of last year, and sales have been good ever since, following the rest of the Land Rover family in becoming a big seller. However, an omission from the initial line-up was an automatic gearbox for the Freelander diesel.
With diesel making up the overwhelming majority of sales and the Freelander elevating itself to a more executive position, an automatic seems like the ideal blend. Now you can have one - for a €3,000 premium.
But rather than a press release full of hyperbole, Land Rover decided that Iceland was the best place to display the merits of adding a self-shifter to their diesel Freelander. And who were we to argue?
Iceland has developed dramatically as a tourist destination over the past decade, helped by greater access to flights, with Iceland Express in particular operating reasonable low-cost flights to Reykjavik.
The first thing to know about Iceland is that, well, it isn't really as icy as you might think. From June to August it is quite mild, and you will only really find snow on the highlands. But it is a country of contrasts. The weather changes within minutes from heavy rain to biting winds to sunshine. And the contrasting forces of fire and ice exist side by side. Some 11 per cent of the country is covered in glaciers and about 30 per cent is lava fields.
Collecting the new cars from Keflavik International airport, we set off north. The gearbox fitted to the car is not new, as we have already seen it and indeed driven it in the petrol V6 version, a car that is unlikely to find too many homes in Ireland.
Here, however, teamed with the rather excellent 2.2-litre diesel engine, it makes for a good marriage. As with so many of these transmissions you have the option of just putting it in "D" and letting it do the work, or pulling it across once to make it change gear in a more "sporty" fashion, holding the gears longer and shifting down more readily to assist acceleration. Finally, CommandShift allows manual sequential gear changing.
About 170km later (or three hours driving) towards the northwest of the country to Snaefellsbae, and the Freelander has been put through the traditional barrage of on- and off-roading that is now the hallmark of any Land Rover event.
There was a blast down a beach to explore several of the Terrain Response settings. Operating Terrain Response, Land Rover's four-wheel drive system is like operating your washing machine. You turn a large dial and choose the right cycle depending on the surface you intend to grapple. It really couldn't be easier.
Whether many owners would elect to bash their new expensive Land Rover off some sandbanks depends on their bank balance and their sanity, but the effect is not missed on anyone who tries it.
Our first night is in Hotel Budir, which stands on the edge of Iceland's Snaefell peninsula. This is a seemingly remote and fascinating area that has the Atlantic on one side and is surrounded by breathtaking mountains and topped by an icy blue sky that stays lit much longer than you would expect. At this time of year the sun stays around past midnight and returns a few hours later.
The next day and it was time for more Freelander abuse as we headed back towards Reykjavik, tackling a variety of surfaces. Many of Iceland's roads can change from tarmac to gravel and this makes for slippery conditions. With the traction control light dancing and the gravel setting engaged, the pelting rain and cavernous potholes left our car somewhat bruised - but more was to come. Heading inland, we ignored the roadside signs warning of impassable roads ahead as the Land Rover team guided us right up towards a glacier.
Through raging blizzards that made visibility a distant memory, we followed a balloon-tyred Defender up until our road tyres gave up the ghost. Luckily a rope was never too far away.
The 2.2-litre diesel puts out just under 160bhp and 400Nm of torque and the auto box saps little of the power. 0-100km/h comes in 11.7 seconds and reaches a top speed of 181km/h, yet will still return 7.5 l/100km (37.7mpg). On such bad terrain, you need all your concentration for the steering and braking, so the auto box was a welcome addition.
On our clogged roads and through our stop/start city driving it is likely to be equally welcome. Returning to Reykjavik tired and with the steering of our Freelander a little knocked out of line, it was time to explore a little of the city that really doesn't sleep.
MORE THAN 62 PER CENTof Iceland's 304,334 people live here and it is home to a young, energetic population. If you come to visit you will need at least two days. Make it a weekend and you can get involved in the pub-crawl, a drinking orgy that begins at 11pm each Friday and continues throughout the night.
You must also take a swim at a geothermal swimming pool or at Nauthólsvík Geothermal beach and strut your stuff in some of the capital's achingly cool bars. And be warned: Icelandic food can be a little scary, so expect to see Lundi (puffin), Svio (singed sheep's head complete with eyeballs) and Hakarl (shark meat that has been buried in gravel) on menus. Only for the truly adventurous and leaden of stomach. Also remember Iceland's reputation for being expensive is well deserved. Everything from beer to food and accommodation is incredibly expensive.
Speaking of which, the Freelander 2.2-litre diesel with a six-speed automatic transmission is available immediately as a €3,000 option. So this means you will pay from €44,990 for the basic model and up to €58,100 for the top spec HSE.
Land Rover expects about 150 automatic diesels to find homes in the remainder of this year with a 60/40 split in favour of the automatic of the expected 750 units for 2008.
Factfile
Land Rover Freelander 2.2-litre TD4 Automatic
2,179cc 4-cyl diesel offering 160bhp and 400Nm of torque
Performance: Max Speed 181 km/h 0-100km/h 11.7 secs
Fuel Economy:7.5 l/100km
CO2:194g/km
Price:From €44,990-€58,100 (€3,000 for automatic)