Land Rover Discovery Sport launched in India at Rs 46.10 lakh

The Land Rover Discovery Sport has finally been launched in India at Rs 46.10 lakh (ex-Mumbai). The prices go up to Rs 62.18 lakh (ex-Mumbai) for the top most seven-seater HSE luxury variant. The Sport is the first in the line of a new family of Discovery branded vehicles from the British carmaker. The SUV bridges the gap between Land Rover and Range Rover products.

The Discovery Sport is an extension of the Evoque platform with a longer wheelbase and more utilitarian aggregates. That sort of explains why the exteriors may seem all too familiar. The clamshell bonnet, the sculpted grille and the slim headlamp are all derivatives of the Range Rover family.

On the inside, the interior styling too is very familiar, which is a good thing since it is a lot like the more premium Range Rover models. The positioning of various controls has changed but the large yet slim dashboard is split by the wide centre stack like its siblings.

The cabin too is spacious. Three of the four variants, that is the top SE, HSE and HSE Luxury trims get both five-seater and seven-seater configurations while the base variant is only available with five seats. There are advantages and disadvantages to the 5+2 configuration. The obvious advantage is the ability to carry more passengers which no other SUV at this price point will offer, making this a very attractive proposition. The offset is that the last row of seats folds into the floor, which means you will still get the benefits of huge luggage room but no full size spare wheel, only a space saver. The middle row also folds flat if you need the additional space and it can also slide forward or back to increase kneeroom.  The middle row also offers up to 999mm of legroom.

There are two engine options that come with Land Rover Discovery Sport - the TD4 and the SD4. However, only the top-end HSE Luxury variant gets the SD4 engine. While both the new engines are 2.2-litre 4-cylinder diesel units, the TD4 offers 150PS, substantially lower than the 190 horses churned out by the SD4. But torque is an impressive 400Nm (for TD4) and 420Nm (for SD4), both kicking in at just 1,750rpm. The engines come mated to a 9-speed automatic transmission that is meant to extract better efficiency.

The powertrain is a full time 4WD system that uses a contemporary and electronically controlled Haldex centre differential. There is, however, also an Active Driveline system that uses two electronic clutches which are optional as of now. Depending on the driving condition, the Active Driveline allows the Discovery Sport to switch between four-wheel drive and two-wheel drive. The Active Driveline hasn't been confirmed for India yet, but it makes sense, given our markets traffic conditions and emphasis on fuel efficiency.

The Discovery Sport gets the Terrain Response System as standard - the system allows a variety of driving programmes to take over the power train. To add to its off-road capability the Discovery Sport also has around 200mm of ground clearance with an impressive 600mm wading depth. Adaptive dynamics with MagneRide will only be available on the top variant.

2015 Land Rover Discovery Sport drive review

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