A few years ago, when Land Rover last sent me a press car, I took it up a rocky green-lane not far from me. The Rangie tackled everything with ease, so as slow as I could I began taking the wrong line up a couple of rocky steps that would have flummoxed my old 300Tdi Discovery I had at the time.
| Publication Information |
|---|
| Cover Price: Free |
| Format: Digital, 106 pages |
| Frequency: Monthly |
| Subject: 4×4, Off-Roading, Green-Laning |
| Publisher: The Mud Life |
| News, Reviews & Adventure |
The Mud Life Issue 8 November 2019
Turner’s Torque
A few years ago, when Land Rover last sent me a press car, I took it up a rocky green-lane not far from me. It was an L405 Range Rover so obviously an incredibly capable 4×4.
The Rangie tackled everything with ease, so as slow as I could I began taking the wrong line up a couple of rocky steps that would have flummoxed my old 300Tdi Discovery I had at the time. It was far too easy, the big lump of a thing made it look too easy, and in a way it angered me.
As I was dawdling up the rock-strewn lane I noticed an old Suzuki Jimny behind catching me up. It bounced from rock step to rock step and its owner seemed to be having fun, more than me anyway.
This is why love green-laning in Deux Smurf, my 23 year old Toyota Surf. I have to read the road ahead, know which line to take as well as how much momentum I need, something I’ve learned over the last 30 years.
As you can read elsewhere in this months magazine, I was kindly invited on the new Land Rover Discovery Sport launch and it was a similar experience. Press a button, turn the dial and choose a mode, press the cruise control button so the Hill Descent isn’t too fast and it took me everywhere I pointed it.
Arguably there’s no skill in ‘off-roading’ these days, simply trickle on the power and gently let the electronics handle the terrain, quite boring really.
That said, modern vehicles with their new electronic trickery means that on tick-over we’re neither putting the 4×4 or our ever decreasing fragile lanes at risk of damage,
Damian, Editor-in-Chief
TURNER’S TORQUE 5
NEWS 6-7
WHAT’S ON 9
CUPRA ATECA 10-15
HONDA FOREMAN TRX520 16-20
SUBARU FORESTER 22-28
LAND ROVER DISCOVERY 29-34
DACIA DUSTER 36-41
ŠKODA KODIAQ VRS 44-47
BENTLEY BENTAGA 48-51
JEEP RENEGADE TRAILHAWK 52-57
GOODS & GEAR 58-65
GREEN LANING – SUZUKI JIMNY 66-69
MOOCH – OLD COACH LANE 90-93
UNIMOG ON TOUR 76-81
FB PAGE OF THE MONTH 82-83
MOOCH – CALMING THE CRAZY 84-89
DINE OUT WITH DAMIAN 90-91
READER’S RIDES 92-97
PAST JALOPIES – TRAVELLING SMURF PT.2 98-101
RETRO SNAPS 102-103
DIRECTORIES 104-105
About Author
