2014 Land Rover Range Rover Sport at the 2013 New York Auto Show

• Competes with: Mercedes-Benz ML63 AMG, Porsche Cayenne, Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT
• Looks like: Meaner and leaner with a heavy dose of Evoque-styling cues
• Drivetrain: 340-hp, supercharged 3.0-liter V-6 or 510-hp, supercharged 5.0-liter V-8; eight-speed automatic transmission
• Hits dealerships: TBD
• Base MSRP: $63,495

North America is Land Rover's best market, and the New York area leads the continent for sales, so it's no surprise that the company used the 2013 New York International Auto Show for the global debut of the 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Sport. The name is still a mouthful to say, but it promises to be more than a handful to handle as well, with a decidedly sporty nature that's meant to slot between the bigger, more posh Range Rover and the smaller, entry-level Evoque.

New York Auto Show Coverage

Outwardly, it looks as if someone has pasted the Evoque's signature elements (front and rear end, especially) over the old Range Rover Sport's silhouette. It works well, however, giving the new Sport a much more aggressive, sporty stance that should prove popular.

Inside, a full revision of the instrument panel makes the Range Rover Sport look even more opulent, with stitched leather covering the dashboard and an optional 12.3-inch fully electronic gauge cluster. A two-seat third row is now available for "occasional use," says Land Rover. It's got a power-folding function that drops it into the floor when not in use. A wide range of interior color choices are also available, with 11 color themes, four aluminum interior trim finishes, three wood veneers and three headliner colors.

Powertrains come in two varieties: a supercharged 3.0-liter V-6 making 340 horsepower and 332 pounds-feet of torque or a supercharged 5.0-liter V-8 producing 510 hp and 461 pounds-feet of torque, both mated to a standard eight-speed automatic transmission. All Range Rover Sports have four-wheel drive with a choice of two transfer cases - a single-speed Torsen or a two-speed locking differential with low range.

The new Range Rover Sport was developed alongside the larger Range Rover and uses a new architecture: an all-aluminum unibody that weighs considerably less than the outgoing model, resulting in weight savings of more than 800 pounds. You know how much quicker your car is with one occupant versus three? Imagine losing five passengers and what that will do for the car's performance. It means the V-6-powered 2014 model is 0.3 seconds faster to 60 mph than the 2013 V-8 model despite being down 35 horsepower from the 2013 version. The 2014 V-8 model is almost a full second quicker to 60 mph than the old model, thanks to the weight-loss program.

It may look like a street monster, but this Land Rover still needs to be able to perform off-road feats as well. The Terrain Response 2 system is included with a new function that allows the Range Rover Sport to detect what kind of terrain it's rolling over and automatically select the best mode to handle it: General, Grass/Gravel/Snow, Mud/Ruts, Sand or Rock Crawl. The truck uses a bevy of systems to aid its state-of-the-art four-wheel-drive system: hill descent control, Gradient Release Control, hill start assist, stability control, traction control and roll stability control.

All of this advanced technology does not come cheap. The new model starts at $63,495 including an $895 destination charge, for the V-6 SE and steps up to $68,495 for the V-6 HSE. You'll need $79,995 to get into a V-8 Supercharged model while the range-topping Autobiography trim starts at $93,295. Land Rover has not stated when the new model will go on sale, but we expect it to be sometime this year.

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2014 Range Rover Sport Spy Shots

The all-new fourth-generation 2013 Land Rover Range Rover just made its debut a couple of months ago at the 2012 Paris Auto Show, and now we can look forward to the next new vehicles from the brand.

One of these is a new generation of the Range Rover Sport, which, unlike the current model, will be much more closely related with the regular Range Rover but feature its own distinct style.

Set to be introduced for the 2014 model year, the new Range Rover Sport will more closely resemble the aggressive lines of the smaller Range Rover Evoque and come with a sharply-angled roof and narrow, slit-like lights both front and rear.

The latest spy shots show more of the Range Rover Sport's front end, though abundant camouflage makes it hard to pick out the overall look; at the rear, the camouflage is even heavier. In earlier spy shots the prototype had been dressed to look like a Volvo, but underneath the camouflage were hints of an aggressive and much more appealing design than the somewhat blocky look of the current model.

The platform will be shared with the latest 2013 Range Rover; it is a lightweight, rivet-bonded aluminum design based on a modified version of the platform underpinning the Jaguar XJ. By combining this with some advanced composite materials, Land Rover engineers are likely to have reduced the vehicle's weight dramatically. In the Range Rover, there have been savings of more than 700 pounds on some variants.

The current model’s engine lineup should carry over, though with significant revisions to make them more environmentally friendly. One possibility is the adoption of an eight-speed automatic instead of the current six-speeder, an option that is already offered on certain models sold overseas.

The new HSE should get a 5.0-liter V-8, good for 375 horsepower and 375 pound-feet of torque, while the range-topping Supercharged variant will likely get a force-fed version of the same V-8 good for 510 Horsepower and 461 pound feet of torque. Other markets will get a turbodiesel V-6 option and potentially a new supercharged gasoline V-6 as well.

The interior will feature a much more premium look and feel, complete with carbon fiber themed packages or traditional polished wood for the trim. A large display screen in the center stack, digital instrument cluster and an available Harmon/Kardon sound system should also feature.

Stay tuned for updates as development progresses, and look for the 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Sport to hit showrooms before the end of 2013.

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Rumours: 2014 Range Rover Sport R-S

Land Rover is currently testing the 2014 model of their new Range Rover Sport model. In a recent interview with Car Advice, Land Rover’s director of chassis engineering David Waide, said that the company is considering sportier offerings to capitalise on buyers willing to pay a premium for focused variants.

It’s one of the areas which the business can expand. You’ve seen this with Jaguar and its XKR-S edition. They’ve done very well with the R-S model. So there’s the ability to do those sorts of things with Land Rover product.

The director mentioned also that a potential Range Rover Sport ‘R-S’ would not relate to a Porsche Cayenne GTS, which he believes is the sportiest SUV in the segment.

If you compare [the XKR-S] with the Porsche equivalents it’s not as sporty; it’s as quick, it sounds fantastic, but it’s also more comfortable. It’s got a balance between GT product and ultimate sports car.

The chassis chief says he is also not chasing SUV-benchmark lap times on for instance the Nurburgring Nordschleife.

We’re not interested in lap times per se. We’re looking much more at the Nurburgring to show that we can stand up to a very sporty driving style on road. For some customers who want some level of track use. They don’t buy that car thinking they can get the ultimate time around the Nurburgring for an SUV. What we are looking to do with the Range Rover Sport is provide a very sporty on-road experience, and it’s more about driver reward and interaction and involvement. It’s a car that you can really enjoy driving.

It looks as though the second generation Range Rover Sport will get the same characteristic sloping roof as the model it replaces. Expect styling cues to come from the highly successful Range Rover Evoque and weight saving measures by using the all-aluminium monocoque architecture from the new Range Rover.
For the first time the company will also sell a Range Rover Sport with seven seats, giving large families the option of buying a Land Rover that isn’t a Discovery.

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