A SMALLER, CHEAPER, faster, more nimble model - that's the essence of Range Rover Sport, which is designed to make a meal out of the benchmark BMWX5. No doubt, Land Rover hopes it will also clean up the likes of the Volkswagen Touareg and Porsche Cayenne along the way.
Land Rover launched the Sport in the hinterland around Byron Bay, in Australia's New South Wales. The tight, winding roads of the lush, rolling hills provide a similar drive to Route Twisk - and a perfect venue to test the Sport's prowess.
Range Rover Sport uses a shortened version of the Discovery 3's T5 platform: a hydroformed separate chassis with a monocoque body bolted on top. It's a five-door, five-seat model, with the choice of one turbo-diesel and two petrol engines.
The Sport V8's engine has 220kW/ 425Nm outputs. The hero model, the Sport Supercharged, uses an Eaton Supercharger running 8kPa boost pressure and develops 287kW and 550Nm. Both V8s have variable valve timing on exhaust valves.
Tucked behind the three engine versions is the ZFHP26 six-speed auto transmission with manual and sport modes. Full-time four-wheel drive and dual-range transfer case is standard.
Land Rover says the V8 Supercharged version available in Hong Kong will achieve 0-100km/h in 7.6 seconds and reach a top speed of 225km/h. For a vehicle weighing about 2.5 tonnes, those are impressive figures.
In addition to the anti-skid brakes, electronic brake-force distribution, stability control and five terrain response programmes that Discovery 3 gets, the Sport has a feature called active roll mitigation. This senses when a roll-over is imminent and uses individual brake control to straighten the vehicle and reduce the chance of tipping. Although stability control can be de-activated, it's only a partial de-activation. If you push the Sport too hard, the traction control system will still intervene, applying pressure to individual brakes and limiting engine output to reduce skidding.
