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Old 12-01-2019, 11:28 PM   #1
robg
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Picked up a range rover sport

So, this was unexpected. A friend who works at an LR dealer hooked me up with an employee pin deal on a 2020 RRS HSE. Asked that I not disclose the terms but the lease was comparable to the x3 40i I had been considering. Catch was that I had to take delivery by Nov 30th. My wife was excited by the prospect (and she does most of the driving these days) so we made the decision to go for it. Picked it up Saturday morning and did a road trip with the family this (about 300 miles round trip), so already have some initial impressions.

Likes:
-Looks: i've always liked the looks of the current gen RRS. The facelift in 2018 made it even sharper, IMO. Unlike the X3, I actually glance back at this when I park it. Very nice. Not usually into white cars, but it looks good on this vehicle (Had a choice between a red and white one so we went with white). Wish it had the black contrast roof option but oh well.
-Engine: this one has the new inline 6 with turbo + electric supercharger (similar to mercedes system in the "53" engines). Night and day better than the old v6 (i test drove one a couple years ago) in terms of smoothness, responsiveness and performance. Feels quicker than our x3 35i. I'm sure any "40" engined BMW would blow it away though. Fuel economy is about the same as we were getting in the x3. Start/stop is the best i've ever experienced-- no need to shut it off. Very smooth and restarts instantly.
-Seats: Feel stiff at first but very comfortable on a road trip- even more so than the multicontours in my old F10 though less adjustable. These have heating and cooling (which I've never had before).
-Build quality: Doors have an 80s Benz vault-like feel to them, no squeaks/rattles, very nice materials, great fit/finish. Was a a bit worried given LR's reputation, but so far so good.
-Digital cluster: Sharp graphics and very configurable. I settled on a 1 dial layout w/ media on the left and map on the right. Lots of information without looking cluttered. Not as easy as Audi's digital cockpit to change views though.
-Adaptive cruise control: another feature I've never had before. Tried it out in a traffic jam and it was great. Really lowers your stress level.
-Steering: Was surprised by this but the steering actually has better feel than my x3 did. You can feel the road surface, it loads up in corners and has just the right amount of weight (not adjustable).
-Handling: Better than expected /hides its weight well. Not in the same league as an x3 40i of course. Much more controlled and balanced than the Q7 i rented over the summer. Doesn't pitch or roll noticeably.
-Interior overall: Really nice leather, simple + pleasing design with just a touch of wood. Just makes you feel good to be there.

Dislikes:
-Infotainment: I already miss idrive. It's slow to boot up and can be slow to respond. Voice control of nav is like a 2011 era BMW. No online voice POI search. Does come standard with Carplay thankfully. Too bad cause the female british nav voice is perfect--I could listen to her all day and I like the intergration on the cluster. Graphics are nice looking atleast.
-Storage. the X3 had a larger door bins and various compartments in the cargo area which this lacks. Has a full size spare which I guess explains the lack of underfloor storage-- but still. It came with this Land Rover branded storage thing, which is fine, but it still takes up room. There is a nice large hidden compartment under the front cupholders though.
-Feels stiffer than expected at lower speeds on crappy roads. My wife disagrees fwiw. Think they should include adaptive dampers as standard like bmw does on the x5.
-Turn signal sound: Too loud and just sounds annoying.
-Parking it in tight spots. It's noticeably bigger than the x3 and I wish it had the surround camera option. Rear camera doesn't seem as good as BMWs. Visibility out the back is decent.

Overall my wife is thrilled and i like it better than I thought I would. She does about 80% of the driving these days so that's good. Our 5 year old kept saying "this is the nicest car I've ever had"- lol.
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Old 12-01-2019, 11:31 PM   #2
rumatt
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Whoa, nice!

More pics needed.
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Old 12-02-2019, 03:05 AM   #3
Alan
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It’s a Range Rover sport ... no need to say more

Beautiful truck ... love it !! Big time congrats !!
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Old 12-02-2019, 06:59 AM   #4
wdc330i
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Hey, very cool. And a fun change.

BTW, Siri has a female British voice, which carries over to Apple Maps nav...
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Old 12-02-2019, 07:54 AM   #5
clyde
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Enjoy!
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OH NOES!!!!!1 MY CAR HAS T3H UND3R5T33R5555!!!!!!1oneone!!!!11

Team WTF?!
What are you gonna do?
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Old 12-02-2019, 09:28 AM   #6
FC
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Nice! I like those.
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Old 12-02-2019, 10:01 AM   #7
JST
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Yeah, those are pretty cool looking. Engine sounds interesting; kind of cool that everyone is going back to inline sixes. Or at least JLR and Daimler are, anyway.
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Old 12-02-2019, 10:12 AM   #8
John V
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As much as I want to hate these things, I do love the look. Congrats.
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Old 12-02-2019, 11:41 AM   #9
Jeff_DML
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Sweet, congrats
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Old 12-02-2019, 01:32 PM   #10
equ
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Congrats! They definitely look better than the bmw X's.
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