Land Rover Range Rover Sport SUV

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Land Rover Range Rover Sport SUV
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Full 2012 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Review

What's New for 2012

/For 2012, the Land Rover Range Rover Sport sees a variety of small changes, ranging from cosmetic to functional. The former include revised exterior trim details (such as black trim around the head- and taillights) while the latter include updated audio and infotainment systems.

Introduction

Given logical reasoning and its styling, the 2012 Land Rover Range Rover Sport must be a sporty version of the Range Rover, right? Not exactly. Despite its name, the Range Rover Sport has more in common with the former Land Rover LR3 than the top-of-the-line Range Rover. Although the styling is very similar between the two Rovers, the Sport is almost 8 inches shorter and has nearly 2.5 inches less ground clearance. As such, it doesn't boast the impressive off-road chops of its big brother.

Still, the Sport and as such is plenty capable on slippery terrain thanks to features such as full-time four-wheel drive, a two-speed transfer case, ascent and descent controls and an electronic locking rear differential. There's even a system that calibrates the powertrain and suspension settings to optimize traction in conditions including snow, dirt, mud and gravel. Even if Range Rover Sport owners never go off-road, the Sport is more willing to dirty its boots than most of its competitors. And there's plenty of on-road performance as well, given the available 510-horsepower supercharged V8 that puts straight-line performance in line with rivals like the BMW X5 M and Porsche Cayenne Turbo.