Friyay: A weekend with the Range Rover Sport
You know what gets you through traffic real quick? A giant white luxury SUV
In India, nothing on the streets screams ‘authority’ like a huge SUV the colour of cocaine. And sure enough, from the day JLR India dropped off the Sport till the day they picked it up, I went about my motoring with the confidence — possibly arrogance — of a crime boss/politician. Possibly both.
The RR Sport is second in the hierarchy of vehicles under the “Range Rover” umbrella, after the eponymous “Range Rover”, which is even larger than the Sport. Below this come the spectacular Velar and Evoque, followed by the more utilitarian “Land Rover” branded SUVs. The Sport just barely fit between the metal pipes separating my parking spot from the others, so I’m not sure where I’ll put the full-fat Rangie long-wheelbase when the media vehicles comes around. I can tell you, however, that even at this size, the Range Rover Sport commands authority, respect and affords a high perch to survey the teeming hordes. Quite literally, in fact — there’s a button to lower the suspension so that you may slide your royal posterior more easily into the luxurious leather seats.
As requested by JLR personnel, I have not put the Sport through the full two Golden Retriever test as usual, even though the boot is plenty big enough to accomodate one, and two will be a breeze with the second row seats folded. Humans are well catered-to as well, with generous legroom at the back — a very likely place for the owner to be seated. The Range Rover Sport — and all succeeding vehicles — carry over the touchscreen centrepiece that captivated so many in the Velar. There’s two of them, and once you’re used to the system, it’s easy to navigate. Touch targets are big and you don’t need to hunt around much. It’s still a look-to-do-it sort of situation, but there are some clever buts that I did like.
For instance, the steering wheel (again, like the Velar) has context-sensitive buttons. So they’re one panel per side of the wheel, but they’re like little screens, and the icon on them changes depending on function. It’s a neat trick, and they’re still tactile buttons, so I’m happy. Speaking of the steering, the Sport is very easy and comfortable to drive, and while they’ve built a reputation on being mountain goats, this vehicle clearly aims to please with plushness. The motor in our test car was the 3.0-litre V6 making 255hp and 600Nm of torque. That’s where you’re at in the rarified space of Range Rovers. You get a base diesel motor that makes 600Nm! And spoil you, it does.
Despite making just 255hp, the Range Rover Sport moves with authority. And the way it transports itself is silky, muted and reeks of the “big stick” cliche. The automatic transmission is quick and gets out of the way, as I would expect for a vehicle of this type. You can go play with your flappy paddles on your playstation, thank you. For the time I had it, I was truly spoiled by the 600Nm, which allows one to leap ahead when needed. What’s an exceptionally dignified leap? An equestrian analogy escapes me. All I know is that I no longer want less than 600Nm. 400? 470? Aage badho bhai. The motor is also shockingly quiet, both inside the vehicle and out. There’s a satisfying thrum when you give it extra throttle, and it’s not at all unpleasant like most diesels. It’s enough to make one wonder, apna time kab ayega?
Ride quality, once again, is plush and while there are driving modes to be explored, things generally stay on the cosseted, comfy side, in keeping with the intent of the SUV. There are, of course, a bunch of options in the range, including a monster V8 petrol motor, or a more thrifty Ingenium four-cylinder. Then of course, there are the fancy bits, of which our test car had many. The dark chrome accents, the two-tone paintjob, the wild matrix LED headlamps and the spectacular panoramic sunroof, among others.
With prices starting at Rs 1.02cr, and going up all the way to Rs 2.03cr for the hot SVR model, there’s a Range Rover Sport for you no matter where you are on the crime/politics/entertainment success ladder. Unfortunately, I am in neither of those fields. Unless you count the Motovore YouTube channel. Like, subscribe, share, hit the bell notification icon. Ok?
