Range Rover Sport s'charged :driven

• Classy cabin, with power and style
• It'll hurt the planet
• On sale now for £61,995

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If you struggle to tell the difference between Range Rovers and Range Rover Sports, Land Rover’s 2010-model-year revamps have given the two slightly different looks to help you out. The Sport now looks a little sleeker at the front, a little lower, a little wider and, yes,
a little sportier.

It has also benefited from some fresh thinking inside. The dashboard layout is mildly tweaked, with some smarter knobs and buttons, but the biggest change is to the quality of the materials. This is now a properly plush, decently spacious cabin with plenty of leather, and tasteful use of brushed aluminium, too.

The navigation and in-car entertainment systems have been revamped, and a smart TFT screen is used to display important information in the centre of the driver’s display.

Range-topping model
This is no simple makeover, though, especially for this range-topping supercharged model. Out goes the old 4.2 V8 and in comes a brand-new 5.0-litre V8.

Okay, so maybe a 5.0-litre V8 isn’t the best choice of engine in these environmentally aware times – the excellent 3.6 V8 diesel and latest 3.0 V6 diesels are more sensible choices – but the new 5.0 is greener, more economical and yet more powerful than the old 4.2.

The Sport defies its bulk by going from zero to 60mph in less than six seconds, while some clever ‘Adaptive Dynamics’ technology keeps it glued to the road and makes it feel much smaller and more agile that its size suggests.

One less than welcome reminder of the Sport’s athletic ideals is a ride that’ll jiggle you about more than you might expect from something that wears a Range Rover badge.

Our verdict
A better quality, more sporting Range Rover Sport