1998 Land Rover Discovery By appointment to Her Majesty, ready to go anywhere. By Ray Thursby, New Car Test Drive .com

In the days when utility vehicles were just that, durable and crude workhorses with no "sport" pretensions,

there were Land Rovers. They could follow any trail, no matter how rough, or make their own trail when there

wasn't one. Comfort was a semi-waterproof top. That was sufficient when getting there was a necessity, not fun.

When sport-utility vehicles gained popularity, there were Range Rovers. The early Range Rovers trekking

through the wilds of Beverly Hills in the 1970s helped make four-wheel beasts of burden fashionable.

In 1994, a lower-priced Land Rover Discovery was added to the Range Rover line. Unchanged in basic form since

then, the Discovery has carved a solid niche for itself in the $30,000 class. The Discovery is no poseur. It is

as rugged as it looks, providing off-road capability that few vehicles can match.

The 1998 Discovery is far more refined than it was when it was introduced and the quality is substantially

better than it was just two years ago. This year's LSE model offers some nice trim details and a new choice of colors.