Land Rover Range Rover Sport
Ratings
3 stars
Summary
Big, classy and capable of draining oilfields at a sitting - who said the old-school SUV was dead?
Review
The Range Rover Sport is supposed to be Land Rover's answer to road-biased SUVs like the BMW X5 and Mercedes ML, combining the ruggedness of existing Land Rover products with more tarmac-friendly driving dynamics.
Design is similar to that of the full-sized Range Rover, with a lower roofline and sleeker styling, although under the surface the Sport is more closely related to the Discovery. It certainly radiates plenty of road presence - it's no wonder the carparks at the training grounds of Premiership football clubs are full of them. Inside the cabin it stays broadly impressive too, thanks to the customary high seating position and plenty of space for both front and rear seat occupants. Many of the interior plastics feel cheap to the touch, though, especially the centre console and its switchgear.
On road it's soon clear that this Range Rover doesn't really live up to the "Sport" side of its moniker - it feels barely different to drive than the full-sized Range Rover, and it certainly can't match the dynamic attachment of a BMW X5. The steering is slightly vague and progress is always accompanied by a strong sensation of the vast momentum you're lugging around, a view reinforced by the crashy ride quality. The payback is genuine off-road ability, with a clever variable traction control system allowing you to select the right programme for pretty much any kind of terrain.
Three engines are available. Both V8 petrol motors provide strong performance, especially the supercharged 4.2 litre unit, but both also suffer from horrendous fuel economy. The 2.7 litre V6 diesel is considerably less rapid, but should at least be able to get over 25 mpg on a long run.
Ratings Breakdown
Styling
4 star
Aesthetically it's job done: the Sport looks like a lower and slightly smaller version of the full-sized Range Rover.
Handling
3 star
Vague steering and body roll mean that the Sport is never as much fun to drive as its more road-biased rivals.
Comfort
3 star
The well finished cabin is a great place to spend time, but ride quality is relatively poor - the RR Sport heaving and crashing over bumps in the road.
Quality & Reliability
3 star
Solidly constructed, but parts of the interior feel very low-rent considering the Sport's serious pricetag.
Performance
4 star
Both petrol V8s are rapid, the supercharged 4.2 extremely so. Diesel is reasonably quick and respectably frugal, although no match for X5 3.0d or ML 320 CDI.
Roominess
4 star
Lots of room inside and a nice, deep boot that's can be accessed via a separately opening tailgate glass.
Running Costs
2 star
Relatively strong residual values offset some of the high cost of ownership, but terrible fuel economy and expensive servicing mean only footballers and lottery winners should apply.
Value for money
3 star
It looks expensive compared to rivals and many toys are reserved for the pricier reaches of the options list.
