Journalists Take on RR Sport

[BMWDave]

DEARBORN, Mich., May 17, 2005 -- Who would risk having his watch crushed beneath a Land Rover for the sake of a demonstration? In Catalunya, Spain, an intrepid soul placed his watch beneath the rear wheel of the all-new Range Rover Sport on a hill climb that no other vehicle had ever completed.
The Range Rover took off without a problem and the watch lived to tell time another day.

The incident occurred at a recent media drive for the Range Rover Sport, due to drive into showrooms this summer. Journalists tested the vehicle's ride and handling in both on- and off-road conditions and came away impressed.

Introduced at this year's North American International Auto Show, the Range Rover Sport combines traditional Land Rover off-road capabilities with improved on-road dynamics and refinement. For example, the Range Rover Sport marks the debut of Land Rover's new Dynamic Response suspension system and performance-tuned chassis. The innovative system senses cornering forces and acts to optimize body control and handling. It also decouples off-road to allow greater wheel articulation during tough all-terrain driving.

At the same time, the Range Rover Sport includes Land Rover's Terrain Response system introduced in the LR3, a unique system that tailors the vehicle's performance to a number of terrains. The SUV is powered in top-line form by a supercharged 390 horsepower 4.2-liter V-8 engine. A normally aspirated V-8 engine option will also be available.



2006 Range Rover Sport
"It's Land Rover's definition of what an on-road SUV should be like," said Finbar McFall, Range Rover brand manager. "The term we've come up with is 'Sports Tourer.' That means it's a combination of comfort, refinement, agility, breadth of capability and command driving."

At the Range Rover Sport media drive in Catalunya, journalists were treated to a remarkable demonstration of the vehicle's off-road ability on the challenging hill.

"This hill ranges between a 35- and 45-degree angle, and on the Range Rover Sport it's demonstrating the capabilities of the grip that it's got," said Ronnie Dale, lead instructor, Land Rover Experience. "No car has ever been up this hill without wheelspin, so what we're trying to do is go up this hill as slowly as we possibly can with no wheelspin."

To climb the hill, the driver selected the Terrain Response Rock Crawl mode, which locks the center and rear differentials to ensure that at least three wheels will always be available for drive. The new Dynamic Response suspension system also played its part.

"Dynamic Response unlocks when there's no roll detected in the pillars of the car and allows maximum wheel travel," Dale explained. "But when there is roll, like going round a corner fast, it keeps the car stiff and keeps all four wheels on the ground at all times."

The hill is also used to demonstrate several other features of the Range Rover Sport, including a handbrake that disengages as soon as the throttle is touched.

The response from the assembled auto writers was as dynamic as the vehicle itself. "Impressive," said freelance auto journalist Morten Dam. "It's impressive. I think they need it to take on the competition."

The Range Rover Sport's creature comforts also came in for praise.

"This is one of very few cars where once you get behind the wheel, everything just fits, everything feels right," said Dag Christian Holm, a freelance automotive journalist. "If you look around, feel the materials, even before you start driving it feels good. It's stable. It handles like a sporty smaller car."

Dam called the Range Rover Sport much more of an off-roader than its competitors, but added that ?It is still capable of delivering a very comfortable ride, good handling. It?s silent, it?s smooth. If you compare it to the Discovery 3 (the LR3 in North America), which is absolutely top of the class, it's the same technology, and it has a benefit because it's shorter, it's more maneuverable."

Holm was equally impressed with Terrain Response. "It's just outstanding," he said. "The Terrain Response system we first got to know in the Disco works really, really well, and it's nice to see that it handles extreme situations. It's impressive. Everyone can be a master in the terrain with just the push of a button."

Describing his experience of the media drive in Australia's The Age, Andrew Heasley wrote:

"What it adds up to is a luxury tourer demonstrably capable on the bitumen (asphalt), and surprisingly capable when the going gets tough.

"For example, a formidable stack of boulders lies ahead, an uneven collection laid out to inflict, it would seem, maximum damage -- big enough to leave a decent scar underneath, split an alloy rim or two and turn on the tears. Aided and abetted by instructors standing on the sidelines, the Sport moves slowly to the face of the leading rocks and the bonnet points evermore skywards. Until, that is, the far side of the boulder's face is encountered and it pitches forward like a drunk on a seesaw.

"One rear wheel is free of the ground, with the car perched precariously on three wheels in this torture test. Pressing on, the Sport shifts its balance again, planting the gravity-defying wheel but then lifting a front wheel clear of the ground as we again point skyward.

"From the driver's seat, it appears a lost cause to proceed. But advance we do, pitching and lurching over the remaining rocks until the course evens out to a dirt track -- sump and other mechanicals intact."

Based on the auto writer's reactions, the Range Rover Sport indeed fits the bill as a vehicle at home both on and off the road.

[Fire It Up]

Sounds good. But you better hope that electronic stuff doesnt fail.

[BMWDave]

Sounds good. But you better hope that electronic stuff doesnt fail.

I hope not.  I sure hope its reliable.  The LR3 has been pretty good so far, and the RR Sport is based off of it, so I think it will be pretty good.

[Fire It Up]

Who wants to refresh my memory of the looks of the RR sport with some pics?    

[giant_mtb]

I'm pretty sure that's it...