Land Rover Discovery Sport 2.2 TD4 190 CV 4x4 HSE Luxury, first contact

Diego G. Moreira 26 November 2015 7 min.

Land Rover Discovery Sport 2.2 TD4 190 CV 4x4 HSE Luxury, first contact

Land Rover has announced the arrival of the new 2.0-litre diesel engines Ingenium to the range of the Discovery Sport, but the first units of the Freelander successor reached the dealer network with the well-known 2.2 TD4 engine in 150 and 190 CV versions. This latter one is the engine we tested in the new Land Rover Discovery Sport, and there are surely still some units with this engine in the dealer network.

The first thing that surprises about the new Discovery Sport is the increase in interior space and quality, a quality more typical of a Range Rover, where all the trim levels live up to expectations (and, it must be said, to the price). This SUV offers room for up to seven occupants and off-road capabilities similar to those of the Range Rover Evoque.

Exterior design, following in the footsteps of the Evoque

From the front, the Discovery Sport takes the main design features of the Range Rover Evoque and adapts them to a slightly larger car with its 4.58 metres in length and up to seven seats inside. The front headlights feature LED technology for the daytime running lights and fog lights, while the main lighting is bi-xenon. In the side view, the colour combination between the different pillars of the car stands out. It is longer than an Evoque, and our unit uses a two-tone finish for the roof and bodywork, making it very eye-catching.

The A and B pillars are black like the roof and the mirrors, while the C pillar is body-coloured and considerably wider than the rest of the pillars. This two-tone combination is also seen at the rear, again black on the upper part and body-coloured on the lower part, a rear end where the light clusters that emulate those of the Evoque stand out, but with clear differences in design and LED technology. Externally the design is very distinctive; it leaves nobody indifferent.

Quality interior

What pleasantly surprised us is the driving position and the overall finish of the interior of the Land Rover Discovery Sport. The interior materials , the fit and finish, the perceived quality: everything is in line with its premium SUV level, and there is not a single material that strikes a discordant note. The driving position is made of soft-touch materials both on its upper and lower parts, with a simple design and a central console with the (touch) multimedia and climate controls. In the lower part we can see the Terrain Response controls, which are essential in a Land Rover.

The instrumentation is very complete, with a digital central section and analogue speedometer and rev counter. The driving position is comfortable, high, with good visibility and with quality seats (leather, perforated and heated, typical of the HSE trim) that hold the body well. In the rear seats the most notable thing is the versatility and the space, because there is more than enough room for legs and head, and in addition we can adjust the backrest angle of the seats or slide them longitudinally to gain more space for the third row/boot or for legs in the second row.

The third row is somewhat tight, with two individual seats that are suitable for small people or agile ones, both for access and for being comfortable in the seats themselves, although it is always an interesting extra. The boot offers a capacity ranging from 541 litres to 454 litres.

Engine and performance: 2.2 TD4 190 CV 4×4

As for the engine, we will not go into too much detail, since, as we already mentioned in the introduction to this first contact, our unit had the 2.2 diesel engine, which has now been replaced by the new 2.0 Ingenium engines. Although the 2.2 TD4 in our unit is no stranger to the Land Rover brand or to Jaguar, it is a four-cylinder engine with quite good performance, plenty of strength (420 Nm of torque) and it moves the Land Rover Discovery Sport with ease.

Paired with the engine is a nine-speed ZF automatic gearbox. The most notable thing about the gearbox is the comfort it offers and the almost perfect operating range at any speed (this is the advantage of having nine gears). It has paddle shifters on the steering wheel for sequential control, as well as a sport mode that seeks a quicker engine response by raising the revs. As for consumption, in our test the average consumption was around 7 litres per 100 km at a normal pace (on the open road we can achieve 6.5 litres per 100 km).

Handling

Behind the wheel, the Discovery Sport has little in common with the sensations offered by the Discovery, which is much more oriented towards off-road use than this new member of the Discovery family. On the road it is a comfortable, composed car with good soundproofing. It is also not afraid of city driving, and its dimensions are quite suitable for getting around town without too many problems (with the parking sensors and camera, or even with the assisted parking system, parking is easy).

The agility of the Discovery Sport surprised us, close to that of the Range Rover Evoque. As for the off-road features, it has the Terrain Response system (which lets you choose between grass, gravel and snow, mud with ruts, or sand) and the Active Driveline all-wheel-drive system, which distributes torque between two or four wheels depending on the situation and surface. Because of all this, it does not have a generous ground clearance, but it handles off the tarmac with considerable ease, and it is above the average for its segment.

Equipment and prices

Our unit had the most complete equipment level, but we were pleased to learn that the safety equipment is very comprehensive even from the base trim. This is because hill descent control, the driver’s knee airbag and the emergency braking system come as standard. In addition, it is worth highlighting some of the equipment our unit had that are a notable novelty for the Discovery Sport.

A system we see more and more models with is the head-up display, which projects speed (or navigation) information onto the windscreen. The parking assistant is also not missing, which as a novelty works for both parallel and bay parking. Safety is reinforced with features such as the blind-spot warning or the lane departure warning, as well as traffic sign recognition.

The entire multimedia system is controlled from the 8-inch touchscreen, with the Meridian sound system in our unit standing out in particular.