By Otsile Kadiege

After countless prototype images surfaced on the internet and recent teasers hyping the vehicle ahead of its official debut, Land Rover’s hotly-anticipated Range Rover Sport has officially been unveiled. The sleek newcomer boasts an evolutionary exterior design, a plush interior with new technologies, a range of powerful powertrains including petrol, diesel and electrified powerplants, a host of advanced driver assistance systems, an advanced architecture, as well as renowned off-road capabilities.

Evolutionary exterior design

The new Range Rover Sport has evolved into a sleek SUV with minimalist design cues inherited from its bigger brother – the new Range Rover and it lives up to its ‘Sport’ nameplate with sporty accents all-round. Upfront the new Range Rover Sport features a slim patterned grille with signature Land Rover badging. It’s flanked by crystal-like Digital LED lighting units with distinctive Daytime Running Lights (DRLs). The front bumper features numerous air inlets however it’s hard to tell if all are functional.

The side profile is uncluttered thanks to minimal use of body lines and flush door handles which are neatly tucked away into the doors. The slim headlights of the new Range Rover Sport have been mirrored to the rear as the taillights are also slim in design and also use LED technology. Other highlights include a sculpted tailgate with a full-width feature bearing the Range Rover script. A characteristic shoulder line runs the length of the vehicle, accentuated by new lower fender details and the longest spoiler ever fitted to a Range Rover.

The exterior colour choice introduces Satin Eiger Grey and Giola Green to the colour palette, while Varesine Blue is available for the first time on a Range Rover Sport. For the ultimate in personalisation, the exclusive SV Bespoke Match to Sample service enables owners to make New Range Rover Sport truly their own. The exterior dimensions of the new Range Rover Sport are as follows: the length is 4,946mm, width (inc. mirrors) 2,209mm, height is measured at 1,820mm, has a wheelbase of 2,997mm and a turning circle of 10.95m.

Luxurious interior design and new technologies

Inside, the cabin of the new Range Rover Sport looks pleasantly familiar thanks to a handful of features like the slanting dashboard design, a multi-functional steering wheel, a 13.1-inch touch display with haptic feedback and runs on the brands award-winning Pivi Pro infotainment system which also features “Hey Land Rover” voice assistant, wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay and Amazon Alexa, a 13.7-inch configurable digital instrument cluster, and a high-resolution head-up display.

Other highlights include a Cabin Air Purification Pro filtration system, active noise cancellation, traditional rotary dials for climate control, an optional advanced Meridian Signature Sound System with up to 29 speakers – including a subwoofer – with 1,430W of amplifier power, rear seat entertainment with two 11.4-inch touchscreens, 30 colours ambient lighting, a load area offering 835 litres of luggage capacity and expands to 1,860 litres with the rear seats folded down.

The new Range Rover Sport will be available with a wider choice of sustainable materials than ever before. Lightweight UltrafabricsTM are offered in several colourways, including Duo Tone Light Cloud and Ebony, or Raven Blue and Ebony – contemporary and nuanced colour options that are introduced for New Range Rover Sport. The sophisticated new options for the Dynamic model feature contrasting elements to the beautifully sculpted seats and dashboard.

Advanced driver assistance systems

The new Range Rover Sport’s features the latest safety-focused Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). All models are fitted with Emergency Braking, 3D Surround Camera, including front and rear parking sensors, Wade Sensing, ClearSight Ground View and Manoeuvring Lights – Cruise Control, Driver Condition Monitor, Lane Keep Assist and Traffic Sign Recognition.

Additional standard features include Driver Assist Pack – Adaptive Cruise Control with Steering Assist, Driver Condition Response, Rear Collision Monitor and Occupant Protection Assist, and Blind Spot Assist Pack – Blind Spot Assist and Rear Traffic Monitor.

Performance

Powering the new Range Rover Sport is a choice of petrol-electric plug-in hybrids and mild hybrid petrol and diesel engines. From launch the full engine line-up includes the following:

Diesel

D250, 183kW 3.0-litre six-cylinder, MHEV, 600Nm

D300, 221kW 3.0-litre six-cylinder, MHEV, 650Nm

D350, 258kW 3.0-litre six-cylinder, MHEV, 700Nm

Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle

P510e, 375kW 3.0-litre six-cylinder, PHEV, 700Nm of torque

Petrol – available in 2023

P360, 265kW 3.0-litre six-cylinder, MHEV, 500Nm

P400, 294kW 3.0-litre six-cylinder, MHEV, 550Nm

P530, 390kW 4.4-litre Twin Turbo V8, 750Nm

All new Range Rover Sports are paired an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission and the latest generation of Land Rover’s Intelligent All-Wheel Drive (iAWD) system with Intelligent Driveline Dynamics.

Land Rover will build the new Range Rover Sport on the MLA-Flex architecture. It will feature Dynamic Air Suspension and Adaptive Dynamics, all-Wheel Steering – standard on P510e Electric Hybrid and P530 and Electronic Active Differential with Torque Vectoring by Braking, Adaptive Off-Road Cruise Control.

Availability

The New Range Rover Sport will be introduced in South Africa toward the end of 2022 with pricing to be announced at a later date.