Range Rover Sport

Not many were impressed when the Range Rover Sport was first launched back in 2005. It seemed more like a low cost variant, launched purely to bump up numbers. It did get the revered ‘Range Rover’ tag, some of its skills and a price tag that made it accessible to many more. But what it lost in the process were the things that made Range Rovers – a sense of distinction, the regal air and also some of its toughness.

Now eight years later there is a new one and unlike before it has its work cut-out in what is an all-new three-car model range. It slots in between the Evoque and the all-new Range Rover, intends to offer best of both worlds and fill the price void created by the repositioning of the bigger car.

We take the 2013 Range Rover Sport for a quick spin first on an open runaway and then for some more through an extreme off-road trail to find out if the new one lives up to the expectations.

The 2013 Range Rover Sport is a whole lot bigger – 62mm longer and 55mm wider to be precise, than the outgoing model. However, it is designed to look leaner and sleeker than before. It borrows a bit from both the Range Rover and the Evoque including the new headlamp design; but ultimately looks a lot different in both size and stance.

The bumper is new, so is the grille; the bonnet has been redesigned and the headlamp console is large and elongated with LED DRLs. The side profile is altered a lot as well – the trademark shark-fin vents are replaced by smaller vents and it gets a detailed shoulder line which along with the waist line and body skirting exude a sense of motion. The floating roof from the new design philosophy with blacked-out pillars is slanting towards the rear end, it makes the Range Rover Sport look longer than it actually is.

The tail is also very well put together, however the lamps here seem too small for the size of the car. The roofline is extended and it doubles up to do the job of the spoiler. It does not get the split tailgate from the Range Rover and the rear bumper is chunkier with a silver bash-plate that adds ruggedness to the overall design.

The ground clearance is lowered and that coupled with flared wheel-arches gives the new Range Rover Sport a very aggressive stance. The previous generation model did not deserve the ‘Sport’ badge for its looks – this one however does earn that tag, looking a lot leaner and meaner and also the best among the three.

The interiors of the new car looks similar to that of the top-end Range Rover, however there is a certain difference as the latter feels more exquisite. Despite numerous features available with the SUV, the dashboard is clean and crisp without too many buttons. The steering wheel however does get more than a fair number of controls to aid the driver, but I think most would opt to take direct control of the infotainment system. The centrally mounted large touch screen is very easy to operate and offers detailed information on loads of things.

It gets leather upholstery for everything from seats to steering to door handles and the interiors are either beige or black with wooden or aluminium inserts depending upon the exterior colour. It has a seven seat configuration, but I didn’t find much time in the short ride to check the space or the utility of the last row. However with the longer wheelbase it certainly has more cabin space than its predecessor. The second row is also spacious and can comfortably seat three when required.

Despite lowering the ground clearance it is still quite tall (even with adjustable damping set at the lowest) and that means ingress and egress for passengers is not likely to be an easy task. The overall ergonomics are very friendly and luxurious, however too many things are a part of the option pack and I am not too sure if it is a nice thing when you are paying well over a crore for even the basic variant.

The Range Rover Sport is available with both petrol and diesel engines in India. The petrol Autobiography version gets a 5.0-litre supercharged V8 that puts out 503bhp and 625Nm of torque, the diesel on the other hand is available in S, SE and HSE trims. All three of them are powered by 3.0-litre turbocharged SDV6 good for 290bhp and 600Nm of torque. Both engines are mated to the eight-speed ZF gearbox that powers all four wheels.

I drove the HSE variant, first on the runway with traffic cones as hurdles and later at the off-road track at ‘19 Degree North’ in Amby Valley. On the straights, the Sport has sufficient grunt to handle any sort of situation that you might encounter in your daily travel. It is in fact lot more potent than the previous generation SUV with the 420kg weight loss programme courtesy the new Range Rover platform. This diesel version can hit 100kph mark in under 7.5 seconds and the brakes do manage to bring it to a stand-still in a jiffy – although it does feel a bit twitchy under braking due to its size.

The enormous size also means that it has decent amount of body-roll and the suspension isn’t sporty enough to be track friendly. But that does not reflect too badly on its overall performance, it is really quick, agile and the ride is absolutely comfortable with the adaptive suspension package.

The HSE does not get the famed Terrain Response 2 System as part of the standard pack and has to make do with Torsen central differential. In fact, it does not even have a low range gearbox and that was the primary reason I was a bit skeptic about its off-roading capabilities. But the Range Rover Sport did manage to come clean through boulders, slush, water wadding, slippery inclines and declines; may be not without batting an eyelid but it certainly without losing its composure. But I would definitely suggest taking the extra Off Road Pack, in case you intend to take it to your farm house in the mountains.

The Range Rover Sport finds a perfect balance between the smaller Evoque and the full-sized Range Rover. It does not look as sporty as the Evoque nor looks too stately like its elder sibling. It is also the quickest of the three and has the best overall performance both On / Off road provided it has the same electronics pack from the Range Rover. And the best part is, it has a starting price of less than Rs 1.10 crore (ex-showroom Mumbai) that makes it a lot more affordable than the Range Rover.

Looking at the competition in this segment is a little difficult; there can’t be any outright winners since most SUVs that cost over a crore will do your bidding in every situation. But each of them has a different personality; like the Toyota Land Cruiser is a Boxer, the Porsche Cayenne is a Samurai, while this one is a Hitman. And this characteristic of the Range Rover Sport works in its advantage in more ways than one– the black tuxedo also lets it mingle with the saloons!

It may be a tad more expensive than the premium saloons like the Mercedes S-Class, BMW 7 Series, Jaguar XJ and the Audi A8. However it does look like an interesting option, it might not be as comfortable as the sedans but certainly has the same charisma, seven-seats and off-road abilities and this makes it an outright winner in practicality.