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The new Land Rover Discovery Sport is part of the Land Rover brands segmentation plan: now on offer from the LR stable are three ranges of 4x4/SUV. Beginning with the rugged Defender range followed by the premium Discovery variety and topping out with the elite Range Rover collection. Each having a variety of models within its specific series. The Freelander 2 is gone; replaced by the Discovery Sport, which slots in under its bigger brother, the much loved go anywhere Discovery. So, for those of you who thought the new Discovery Sport replaced the boxy Discovery, it didn’t. It is in fact, a smaller sportier sibling.

These days - families need to be multi-functional. Mom must work, as must dad, kids are tri-lingual while training to be future Olympians. It’s never a dull moment, downloading information about the world on multi-sized smart devices all while carrying school projects and lift clubbing kids and mounting pavements – the Discovery Sport can do it all.

The new Disco Sport is a multi-talented vehicle – versatility is its strongest point. It is highly adaptable, much like a Swiss army knife. Designed as a true Land Rover, it will go further off-the-beaten-track than any of its competitors. It’s also capable of wading in water up to depths of 600 mm. Like no other car in its class, the Disco Sport has a 2-3-2 seating arrangement: two seats upfront, three in the middle and two kid’s seats in the boot, which can be stowed if preferred. The Disco Sport is big enough to carry up to seven. It has the ability to adjust the size of its boot by either sliding the rear seats forward or flattening them completely. It offers four 12V charging sockets and six USB ports with easy access for all passengers. It has a secret storage compartment. It comes with an advanced vehicle management system, called Terrain Response® which via the switch of a button lets the computer know that you’re going to take your Disco for a bundu bashing. It does what it needs to, and you can go pretty much wherever you want.

The Disco Sport range is driven by a choice of the two diesel engines 2.2l TD4 (only available on the entry level Pure model) with 110 kW and the 2.2l SD4 with 140 kW or a 2.0l petrol engine, with 177 kW. All are turbo charged and mated with a dynamic 9-speed automatic gearbox. The range is denoted by four category names that symbolise the level of luxury standard features: Pure, SE, HSE and HSE Luxury.  

Prices begin at around R550K and go up to R740K. My pick of the bunch would be the SD4 in SE, retailing at approx. R640K. All prices include a 5 year/100,000km Maintenance Plan and Roadside Assistance.

www.landrover.co.za