Range Rover Sport (2013-2022) Review

The Range Rover Sport is one of the best SUVs to drive both on the road and in the mud

Strengths & weaknesses

  • Impressive driving experience
  • Luxurious interior with seven-seat option
  • Plug-in hybrid model available
  • Expensive to buy and run
  • Touchscreen interface can be distracting
  • Third row of seats is cramped

Range Rover Sport prices from £21,995   Finance from £514.37 per month

The Range Rover Sport is a Range Rover for the ironman generation. It is designed to be the athletic member of the Range Rover clan, capable of tackling a winding alpine pass just as well as dropping the kids at school or towing a sailing boat to the sea.

It comes in just one bodystyle – unlike the Range Rover, which can be bought with normal or long-wheelbase bodies or even a coupe – and certain versions can be specified with a third row of seats, which turns it into a seven-seat family car.

Like the Range Rover, the Sport is expensive. The most affordable model, a 2-litre four-cylinder petrol, is £64,085, almost £10,000 more expensive than the entry-level Porsche Cayenne, which has a more powerful 3-litre V6 petrol engine.

Those that are feeling extravagant can choose the flagship SVR, a £101,145 supercharged, petrol-slurping V8 monster that will stand the hairs on the back of your neck on end – as your eyes watch the fuel gauge visibly fall with every prod of the accelerator.

Drivers who feel the days of such gas-guzzling antics are just a distant – and guilty - memory should try the P400e. It’s a new plug-in hybrid model, which combines a four-cylinder petrol engine and electric motor to achieve up to 88mpg. Prices start from £72,185.

Other cars buyers should consider include the BMW X5 and Porsche Cayenne. The X5 matches the Range Rover Sport for interior practicality, as it’s also available with seven seats, while the Cayenne is the one to go for if you want the sportiest driving experience. There’s also the BMW X6 and Mercedes GLE Coupe, which are large SUVs but look like coupes with sloping rooflines and a sporty-looking profile. Not to mention the Range Rover Velar. All three are a little less practical than a regular SUV, but they’re fashionable - and for some drivers that’s all that matters.

Inside, the Range Rover Sport oozes class. The dashboard is made from upmarket materials including leather, brushed metal, wood and piano-black trim, depending on your choice. The high driving position feels commanding, the seats are comfortable and a recent update to its dashboard includes the latest split-level touchscreen system, which looks impressive.

There’s space for all of the family, too. The Sport comes with five seats as standard, with plenty of room in the back for even the tallest passengers, while the boot offer 780 litres of luggage space or room for the family dogs. Drop the seats at the touch of a button and bikes will fit in without removing the front wheel.

There’s the option of having two extra seats fitted in the back. These can come in handy from time to time, but don’t rely on them for regular use over long distances, as they’re on the cramped side and best suited to kids. They’re easy to raise or lower, though, being electrically operated from the boot. When they’re up, boot space decreases to a modest 221 litres.

On the road, the Range Rover Sport doesn’t feel as big as it looks. Thanks to adaptive suspension, the Range Rover Sport feels reasonably sporty when tackling a winding road and its surefooted nature gives drivers a feeling of confidence.

It is equally impressive off-road, too. There is 213mm of ground clearance that can be increased to 278mm at the touch of a button, while the wading depth is 85mm. Land Rover’s off-road system called Terrain Response, adapts the car to the surface conditions, be it a road, snow, sand, rocks or mud.

The Range Rover Sport should be a safe car to own. Although Euro NCAP hasn’t tested it, the larger Range Rover (with which the Sport shares much of its structure and safety features) achieved a five-star rating when it was tested in 2012. You can add options to boost the car’s safety credentials, too, including blind-spot monitors, parking aids and a lane-departure warning system.

CLICK TO READ OUR FULL STORY ON RANGE ROVER SPORT DIMENSIONS

 

Key facts

Warranty 3 years, unlimited miles
Boot size 780 litres (5-seat configuration)
Width 2220mm
Length 4879mm
Height 1802mm
Tax (min to max) £1240-£2070 first year; £440-£450 from second year

Best Land Rover Range Rover Sport for...

Best for Economy – Range Rover Sport HSE P400e

The plug-in hybrid Range Rover Sport returns a claimed 88mpg and CO2 emissions of 73g/km, meaning fuel bills and annual road tax will be the lowest of the range for private buyers, and the most affordable choice for company car drivers. But for private buyers the lower running costs will take a long time to pay for themselves: the car costs about £8,000 more than the standard petrol model, and is almost £5,000 more than the diesel.

Best for Families – Range Rover Sport SDV6 HSE 7-seat

Seven seats are an optional extra on the Range Rover Sport, but they’re handy for busy families and fold up or down at the touch of a button. The entry-level SDV6 HSE diesel will return as much as 37mpg the diesel engine gives plenty of power and performance in all driving conditions.

Best for Performance – Range Rover Sport SVR

The Range Rover Sport is powered by a 542bhp supercharged 5.0 V8 petrol engine. It sounds fantastic and is incredibly fast for such a big car. It’s expensive to run, but this is unlikely to be a concern if you’re contemplating a car that’s this expensive and has such impressive performance - it’ll do 162mph and goes from 0-62mph in just 4.7 seconds.

One to Avoid – Range Rover Sport 5.0 V8 Autobiography Dynamic

The 5.0 V8 supercharged engine is less powerful than the SVR in Autobiography Dynamic trim, but will still be wallet-bustingly expensive to run, with fuel economy of around 20mpg a realistic figure even in gentle driving.

History

March 2013 Range Rover Sport first revealed - 7 seats available as an option for the first time
September 2013 Range Rover Sport SDV6 HEV diesel-electric hybrid added to the range
June 2014 HSE Dynamic and Autobiography Dynamic models available with Stealth Pack, which adds black alloy wheels and gloss black trim on the grille, window surrounds, mirror caps and trim on the tailgate and vents.
July 2014 Slight trim tweaks to the range for the 2015 model year, including new paint choices and a panoramic sunroof with power blinds

Understanding Land Rover Range Rover Sport names

3.0 SDV6 Engine

You'll see the engine's size given in litres, followed by a code that gives you more information. SD indicates that the engine is diesel-powered, while the V6 tells you that it is the six-cylinder version. Petrol engines are simply badged V8. Power and efficiency is boosted by supercharging, which you may see written as S/C. The plug-in hybrid model is called P400e.

Trim HSE

This lets you know the level of equipment included as standard. The entry-level, and cheapest version is HSE, followed by HSE Dynamic, Autobiography Dynamic and, finally, SVR.

Land Rover Range Rover Sport Engines

Diesel 3.0 SDV6 and 4.4 SDV8; Petrol – 2.0 Si4 and 5.0 V8; Plug-in hybrid – 2.0 P400e

There are two diesel engines to choose from in the Range Rover Sport. The entry-level 3.0 SDV6 has 302bhp and goes from 0-60mph in 6.8 seconds, which is good for such a large car. It’s linked to an eight-speed automatic gearbox - every engine is - and it’s very smooth and quiet at all times.

The 4.4 SDV8 is more powerful with 334bhp and is faster from 0-62mph, but it’s not really worth going for over the SDV6 because the boost in power isn’t that noticeable when you’re driving around town. You’ll save more money buying and running the SDV6, too.

The entry-level engine is a 2-litre, four-cylinder petrol, badged Si4. It is tuned to produce 296bhp and performance is brisk, but its engine note isn’t quite in keeping with the car’s upmarket image.

The other petrol option is a supercharged 5.0 V8 engine. It makes a brilliant sound and feels hair-raisingly fast, especially in 567bhp SVR form (the Autobiography Dynamic model has 518bhp). It’ll cost a small fortune to run, though.

There’s also a petrol-electric plug-in hybrid available, marked as the P400e. It uses the 2-litre four-cylinder petrol engine, combined with an electric motor to make 398bhp. It’s faster and more efficient than the regular diesels, but it will take many years to recoup the additional cost in reduced fuel bills. For company car users, however, whose tax is based on the car’s emissions, that won’t be such a concern.

 

Mpg

Bhp

0 - 62mph

top speed

3.0 SDV6

37.7mpg

302bhp

6.8 secs

130mph

4.4 SDV8

34mpg

334bhp

6.9 secs

135mph

2.0 Si4

29.4mpg

296bhp

7 secs

125mph

5.0 V8

21.2mpg

518bhp

5.0 secs

155mph

5.0 V8 SVR

21.1mpg

567bhp

4.3 secs

176mph

2.0 P400e

88.3mpg

398bhp

6.3 secs

137mph

Land Rover Range Rover Sport Trims

HSE, HSE Dynamic, Autobiography Dynamic, SVR

The Range Rover Sport might be expensive but it feels luxurious. All models come with a very generous equipment list.

The entry-level model in the range is HSE. It comes with Xenon headlights, automatic lights and wipers, 20-inch alloy wheels, fully electric heated leather seats, sat-nav, parking sensors and cameras and dual-zone climate control, which allows each front passenger to set the temperature as they like it. There’s also roof-mounting points, voice control for certain infotainment functions and a 4G WiFi connection service, as well as a vehicle tracking device to help prevent theft.

Step up to HSE Dynamic for a sportier look with a bodykit, 21-inch alloy wheels and subtle add-ons to the interior to give a racier vibe.

Autobiography Dynamic models bring 22-inch alloy wheels, gloss-black finish for parts of the car’s bodywork and automatically dimming and folding wing mirrors with lights that show the way at night. There are also seats that are both heated and ventilated, so you can cool yourself on a hot day, triple-zone climate control, adaptive cruise control that controls the accelerator and brake to maintain a set distance from the car in front, as well as a high-end sound system made by Meridian and a panoramic glass sunroof. The small Si4 petrol engine is not available with this trim level.

Range Rover Sport SVR models are focused on performance, so there’s a very sporty looking bodykit, big 22-inch alloy wheels and sports seats in both the front and rear of the car.

 

Land Rover Range Rover Sport Reliability and warranty

Reliability has been a bit of a concern with Land Rovers for quite a few years, and the Range Rover Sport was too new to feature in the 2014 Driver Power owner satisfaction survey, but made its debut in the 2015 survey and came an impressive 22nd place out of 200 cars. Owners love the car’s ride quality, seat comfort and road handling, while it did pretty well for reliability, too, coming 20th. Land Rover came an average 19th place out of 32 manufacturers, and the dealers fared even worse - coming 28th out of 32.

Buyers can be reassured by a three-year, unlimited-mileage warranty, though, which will cover you for any serious issues that may crop up.

Used Land Rover Range Rover Sport

The Range Rover Sport is a very desirable car, and this means it holds its value well. The most affordable, 2013 models are now dipping to £35,000 with a relatively high mileage and the popular 3-litre diesel engine.

A complete and well-documented service history is desirable, and look to see that the car has been cared for with a money-no-object attitude.

It’s a big car and will be expensive to service, while parts such as replacement tyres will be pricey, too, so check how much tread is on the big tyres and that the brake discs and pads have lots of life left in them.

Despite its off-road ability, it’s unlikely many Range Rover Sports will have ventured too far from a tarmac road. Even so, check for any damage underneath the car before you buy.

    1 year old 2 years old 3 years old

Best for performance Range Rover Sport SVR

Price £52,490 £52,490 £52,490

Best for families Range Rover Sport 7-seat

Price £27,995 £27,995 £27,995

Best for economy Range Rover Sport P400e

Price £21,995 £21,995 £21,995

Other Editions

Range Rover Sport PHEV (2018 – 2022)

The Range Rover Sport P400e plug-in hybrid (PHEV) is a luxury SUV that uses electric assistance to save fuel. Here’s all you need to know