horstpower: 5 Land Rover Discovery Sport Discoveries

The Glass roof is ginormous
No other car has a glass ceiling quite as dramatic as the one fitted in the Discovery Sport. It really allows passengers to take in the full beauty of the mountains and buildings the car will drive past. However, it should be noted seeing out of the front windshield in cars fitted with the built in heater is less clear. The heating elements make the window seem dirty. Only get it if you desperately need the heat.

You can take it off road

A friend and I took the Discovery Sport to the back country to see how it fares on the rough stuff. And I have to say it fared quite well. The Terrain response system works well at configuring Discovery Sports systems for whatever conditions lie ahead. After traversing some pretty challenging sections of road we felt pretty pleased with our progress. Only to discover a Honda Civic parked around the bend that also made it through (I wouldn't have taken my Accord out there). It's still a crossover mainly meant for the road, and there is no low range. But in the modern society the roads it can't handle require specialized vehicles anyway.

The 9-Speed Automatic has no idea what it wants to do
It's neat to be greeted by a rotating transmission dial every time you start the engine. But it's not neat how much you have to push the the car just to get a down shift. And when you do it's rough. It's shame too, because the 2.0 Litre 240 hp turbocharged 4-cylinder, sourced from Ford, is remarkably smooth in the Discovery Sport. I liked the engine a lot.

The interior is not what you expect
A few Land Rover lovers I know were a little underwhelmed by the interior of the Discovery Sport. Certainly the mid-ranged SE I tested with the all Black interior didn't help much. If you're expecting super levels of luxury, perhaps look towards the Range Rover line. That's not to say that the interior in here isn't functional and logical. Buttons are where you expect them, and they give off a unique click sound when you press them. Also a third-row seat is optional, but don't. Just don't.

The Exterior is fabulous
Part of the problem with the interior has to do with the looks on the outside. It looks like a more rugged version of the Range Rover Evoque, only with better proportions. It wears it’s outfit well in both the city and in the outdoors. There are hints of lumber sexuality here. Most of the other small luxury crossovers that the Discovery Sport competes with look pretty forgettable.

2015 Land Rover Discover Sport HSE

Price as tested (Base Price): $51,765 ($48.065) inc. Freight + PDI

Engine: 2.0 Litre Direct Injection Turbocharged 4-cylinder

Power: 240 hp Torque: 250 lb-ft

Transmission: 9-speed automatic

Fuel Consumption NRCan (city|hwy|combined): 11.9 | 9 | 10.6 L/100km

Friday, October 30, 2015

5 Land Rover Discovery Sport Discoveries

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