2014 Range Rover Sport HSE
August 27, 2014
By: Anthony Murdoch
Refined, luxurious, quiet, smooth and stately in its power delivery. These were just a few adjectives that initially came to mind as I took delivery of the 2014 Range Rover Sport HSE V6, a vehicle which I have to say changed my mind about the whole luxury sport utility vehicle niche, which today of course is extremely important to the bottom line of all major automobile manufactures.
My model at $86,710 exclusive of tax was the 'base' model with the wonderfully powerfully and excellent sounding 3.0-litre supercharged V6, with 340 hp @ 6,500 rpm and 332 lb-ft from a spread of ,3500-5,000 rpm. Options on my tester included Sirius Satellite Radio ($450), Shadow Zebrano Veneer ($350), 21 inch 5 Spoke Style 14 ($1,800), the Vision and Convenience Package ($ 2,250) which includes a host of features such as a Blind Spot Monitor Surround Camera System, Park Assist, Soft Door Close, and the Climate Comfort & Visibility Pack ($ 1,300) which includes Climate Front Seats and Heated Rear Seats (love the cooled front seats), Front Centre Console Cooler Compartment, 16 way Driver / 16 way Passenger Front Seats, Automatic Headlights with High Beam Assist (AHBA), Auto Dimming, Heated, Adjustable, powerfold Mirrors with approach lamps and memory, and Adaptive Xenon Headlights with LED Signature (a cool feature which shines a Land Rover logo on the ground from the mirror, I found it little flashy though).
My tester was the five seat version although a seven seat version is available with negates the spare tire. To say that this is a base car is kind of a joke, as the new Sport is a different animal entirely from the last model. It's aluminum structure (some 800 pounds lighter than the outgoing model) is extremely tight and solid and you can feel that this new structure has made the Sport feel like a lighter car, although it still is big and you have to watch your surroundings. I was very impressed by the feel of the thing, and with adaptive air suspension making things as smooth as butter, the ride was never harsh nor did it ever feel rough.
The V6 is mated to a smooth shifting ZF sourced eight-speed automatic with the same shift-gate as you would find in newer Jags. You can manually input shifts or let it do it on its own. I found that shifts were extremely quick and smooth, but did provide just enough 'bite' to let you know it was changing a cog, something I like in an automatic transmission. The Sport will accelerate to 100 km/h in about 7 seconds, not that quick but quick enough to get you moving fast. I found that the supercharger really kicks in around 3500 rpm, and the engine pulls hard all the way to redline, although it did sound a little coarse at the top end. My tester had nearly 20,000 kms on it and was thoroughly broken in. This is the reason I feel it delivered very good fuel economy for such a large vehicle. I was averaging around 11 litres per 100 km. Not bad at all and it surprised me!
Inside you are swathed in luxury. The leather was smooth and felt good to the touch, and I found the overall materials and fit and finish to be first rate. I did find some of the switch-gear to have a cheap feel however, such as the mirror switches as well as the audio controls. One thing I found very frustrating was the stop-start system. These are becoming common these days and although I do see the merit to saving fuel while at a stop light, I feel it will take a couple of generations to iron and smooth out the system. Thankfully, there is a defeat switch and I hope it will be something that is always on offer.
Land Rover as well as Jaguar have come under a lot of criticism when it comes to their touch screen which controls a host of features such as navigation and climate control as well as radio. It was slow to respond and missed a lot of my inputs. I did not like the side buttons (or touch buttons) as well which were located next to the screen. They really do nothing other then what could be done well on a good screen system.
The Sport is as capable on road as it is off. Its steering is now electrically assisted, and although I found the feedback to be somewhat artificial, it was still direct and capable. I did not venture off road much during my time with the Sport, as I really never had the chance to get out the city and explore its capabilities. There is a a setting switch which selects the drive program and I always just left it in the base setting, although you can manually raise or lower the ride height, and when I was off road for a short time it was so solid that I almost forgot I was in the rough stuff!
Overall I was very impressed by the Sport and I could easily see myself driving one everyday, something that a lot of people already know. What I am looking forward to is comparing the V6 version to the V8 model, which has a lot more power. That should be an interesting ride for sure, although a lot more expensive when it comes time to fill up with fuel.
By: Anthony Murdoch
Refined, luxurious, quiet, smooth and stately in its power delivery. These were just a few adjectives that initially came to mind as I took delivery of the 2014 Range Rover Sport HSE V6, a vehicle which I have to say changed my mind about the whole luxury sport utility vehicle niche, which today of course is extremely important to the bottom line of all major automobile manufactures.
My model at $86,710 exclusive of tax was the 'base' model with the wonderfully powerfully and excellent sounding 3.0-litre supercharged V6, with 340 hp @ 6,500 rpm and 332 lb-ft from a spread of ,3500-5,000 rpm. Options on my tester included Sirius Satellite Radio ($450), Shadow Zebrano Veneer ($350), 21 inch 5 Spoke Style 14 ($1,800), the Vision and Convenience Package ($ 2,250) which includes a host of features such as a Blind Spot Monitor Surround Camera System, Park Assist, Soft Door Close, and the Climate Comfort & Visibility Pack ($ 1,300) which includes Climate Front Seats and Heated Rear Seats (love the cooled front seats), Front Centre Console Cooler Compartment, 16 way Driver / 16 way Passenger Front Seats, Automatic Headlights with High Beam Assist (AHBA), Auto Dimming, Heated, Adjustable, powerfold Mirrors with approach lamps and memory, and Adaptive Xenon Headlights with LED Signature (a cool feature which shines a Land Rover logo on the ground from the mirror, I found it little flashy though).
My tester was the five seat version although a seven seat version is available with negates the spare tire. To say that this is a base car is kind of a joke, as the new Sport is a different animal entirely from the last model. It's aluminum structure (some 800 pounds lighter than the outgoing model) is extremely tight and solid and you can feel that this new structure has made the Sport feel like a lighter car, although it still is big and you have to watch your surroundings. I was very impressed by the feel of the thing, and with adaptive air suspension making things as smooth as butter, the ride was never harsh nor did it ever feel rough.
The V6 is mated to a smooth shifting ZF sourced eight-speed automatic with the same shift-gate as you would find in newer Jags. You can manually input shifts or let it do it on its own. I found that shifts were extremely quick and smooth, but did provide just enough 'bite' to let you know it was changing a cog, something I like in an automatic transmission. The Sport will accelerate to 100 km/h in about 7 seconds, not that quick but quick enough to get you moving fast. I found that the supercharger really kicks in around 3500 rpm, and the engine pulls hard all the way to redline, although it did sound a little coarse at the top end. My tester had nearly 20,000 kms on it and was thoroughly broken in. This is the reason I feel it delivered very good fuel economy for such a large vehicle. I was averaging around 11 litres per 100 km. Not bad at all and it surprised me!
Inside you are swathed in luxury. The leather was smooth and felt good to the touch, and I found the overall materials and fit and finish to be first rate. I did find some of the switch-gear to have a cheap feel however, such as the mirror switches as well as the audio controls. One thing I found very frustrating was the stop-start system. These are becoming common these days and although I do see the merit to saving fuel while at a stop light, I feel it will take a couple of generations to iron and smooth out the system. Thankfully, there is a defeat switch and I hope it will be something that is always on offer.
Land Rover as well as Jaguar have come under a lot of criticism when it comes to their touch screen which controls a host of features such as navigation and climate control as well as radio. It was slow to respond and missed a lot of my inputs. I did not like the side buttons (or touch buttons) as well which were located next to the screen. They really do nothing other then what could be done well on a good screen system.
The Sport is as capable on road as it is off. Its steering is now electrically assisted, and although I found the feedback to be somewhat artificial, it was still direct and capable. I did not venture off road much during my time with the Sport, as I really never had the chance to get out the city and explore its capabilities. There is a a setting switch which selects the drive program and I always just left it in the base setting, although you can manually raise or lower the ride height, and when I was off road for a short time it was so solid that I almost forgot I was in the rough stuff!
Overall I was very impressed by the Sport and I could easily see myself driving one everyday, something that a lot of people already know. What I am looking forward to is comparing the V6 version to the V8 model, which has a lot more power. That should be an interesting ride for sure, although a lot more expensive when it comes time to fill up with fuel.
|
|
