Our Project Heartland Land Rover LR3 hits the trail!
We recently purchased a 2006 Land Rover LR3 to replace our venerable Land Rover Discovery II. Spending $7,000, we got our hands on a new off-road support vehicle that is already a bit built up. Sporting a suspension lift, off-road tires and other off-road goodies, our new/old LR3 certainly looked the part.
Is it a proper off-roader or a poser?
We needed to see if our newest acquisition was a proper off-roader or a poser. To do this, the boys (Roman and Tommy) headed to to Saints John Pass trail to wring out the LR3. This trail is located near Keystone ski resort, then head to the town of Montezuma and you’ll find the start of the trail. This scenic run takes you high in the Rocky Mountains, our Project Heartland Land Rover LR3 ventured over some moderately challenging terrain and went high over the tree-line.
Our Project Heartland Land Rover LR3 weighs around 5,600 lbs. That’s a lot for the 300 horsepower AJV8 that makes 315 lbs feet of torque. It has a six-speed automatic transmission and, so far, it’s running beautifully. The question is, with Land Rover’s mediocre reliability reputation, will it last over time.
Especially with all the off-roading we do at TFL.
Why do we call it “Project Heartland?”
That was the code name Land Rover gave this vehicle during its development. We’re not that clever to come up with any other reason, nor do we expect to drive this Land Rover through the Midwest anytime soon. Still, it’s kind of fun to use the name as part of the vehicle’s mystique.
In this video, Tommy and Roman have a lot of fun with our new Project Heartland Land Rover LR3.
