Land Rover today digitally revealed the 2023 Range Rover Sport, showing off the luxury SUV’s new features, style, and off-road chops in and around Iceland’s largest power plant, among other places.
It has been 17 years since the first Land Rover Range Rover Sport debuted in 2005, and almost 10 since the last generation was revealed in NYC in March 2013. Over nearly two decades’ time, the Range Rover Sport has sold over 300,000 models in the U.S., making it the most popular Land Rover model in North America.
While the Range Rover upon which the Sport is based has entered its fifth generation of production, the 2023 Range Rover Sport represents just the brand’s third true run at the nameplate. Beyond the artistic shots of swirling volcanic sand highlighted in the reveal, the third-generation Range Rover Sport is, like its older sibling, the 2023 Range Rover, quite nice to look at and be around (if you like Rovers — who doesn’t?). We were granted a chance to get up close and inside the new luxury SUV at a press event in New York City earlier this spring, but won’t get behind the wheel until later this season.
The 2023 Sport’s designers made an overall effort to “declutter” it aesthetically and imbue it with a real “reductive modernism” this time around. This ethos manifests on the vehicle’s exterior with flush surfaces like door handles and glazing, and a laser-welded roof punctuated with two antennas. Riding on the brand’s Modular Longitudinal Architecture Flex (MLA-Flex) platform, the Sport bears a short front overhang and long rear overhang typical of Land Rover, with the three LR-standard horizontal lines converging down the length of the car and creating a rising effect at the rear where the brand has affixed the longest spoiler ever on a Range Rover.
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
Up front, the face of the Sport slopes down from the slimmest LED lights ever used on a Land Rover, set with a unique DRL signature above a double-aperture lower bumper. Combined with the thin grille above it, the split bumper has a triple-decker effect that we’re referring to as the “clubhouse sandwich.” Who’s hungry?
But according to Exterior Design Manager David Eburah, it’s the rear end that has undergone the most significant redesign—drivers should now be able to recognize the 2023 RRS easily from the back at any time of day. New signature lines run vertically from the full-width roof spoiler down and in, drawing the eye to the new Rover-first cross-body LED graphic, lower licence-plate location, and genuine tailpipe exhaust tips available in single, dual, or quad formation.
Overall, the new-gen Rover Sport boasts a 20-per-cent improvement in aerodynamics and a drag coefficient of just 0.30.
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
The ‘decluttering’ theme continues inside with added wireless charging, redesigned and re-positioned door handles for ease of egress, and a driver-focused cockpit. Land Rover’s latest infotainment system is accessible via the brand’s latest 13.1-inch floating HD screen, as is a 29-speaker (plus subwoofer) Meridian audio system, the most powerful ever in a RRS.
Front-seat passengers will sit in 22-way adjustable, heated, and ventilated seats with winged headrests that have speakers embedded within them; while rear-seat passengers enjoy reclining seats with 21 mm more legroom, and 7 mm more knee clearance. The cabin experience is further enhanced with a new active noise-cancellation system that uses microphones and accelerometers inside the wheel arches to monitor exterior sound and calculate the required cancellation effect. Passengers breathe easier, too, thanks to the next-gen air purification system that reduces odours, allergens, bacteria, and even viruses like SARS and COVID-19.
In Canada, power for the 2023 Sport will come from either a six-cylinder Ingenium gas engine with a mild-hybrid assist; an extended Electric Hybrid; or the same 523-horsepower V8 twin turbo available in the current-gen Range Rover. A fully electric model will also follow in 2024.
With an electric range estimate of 77 km, the PP440e Electric Hybrid leans on LR’s 3.0L six-cylinder engine, with a 105-kW electric motor and 31.8-kWh battery working with it to product a total output of 434 horsepower, 619 lb-ft of torque, and a zero-to-100-km/h acceleration time of 5.8 seconds. The V8, meanwhile, will make that run in 4.5 seconds with Dynamic Launch activated, marking a 0.1-second improvement over the 2023 Range Rover. All models will tie into the brand’s eight-speed ZF automatic transmission and all-wheel-drive setup.
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
Power should be put to good use on this new Rover product thanks to a 35-per-cent increase in stiffness over the outgoing model, and improved chassis and suspension technology. Dynamic Air suspension helps keep things smooth by monitoring the road ahead and varying pressure within chambers, while Adaptive Dynamics 2 measures up to 500 external factors per second to reduce body movements via the dampers.
There’s also Adaptive Off-Road Cruise Control, a new driver aid that adjusts speed based on the terrain ahead and which of four comfort modes is selected, thereby “allowing the driver to focus solely on steering the vehicle across challenging terrain.” And like its new Range Rover sibling, the Range Rover Sport gets all-wheel steering, which gives rear wheels up to 7.3 degrees of play to improve stability at high speeds; and reduce the turning circle and increase agility at low speeds.
2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Photo by Land Rover
These features come standard on all new trims and contribute to the new generation being a far superior off-road machine than its predecessor. It has a 45-degree-max gradient and the ability to rise 5.3 inches over standard ride height on its air suspension, thus passing safely through bodies of water as high as 35 inches.
Above the Dynamic S, Dynamic SE, and Dynamic HSE trims sits the top-tier First Edition, which builds on the standard equipment to provide greater functionality with something called the Stormer Handling Pack. This includes Dynamic Response Pro, which provides roll control with a 48-volt electronic system capable of sending 1,000 lb-ft of torque across each axle, as well as the ability for drivers to customize driving modes on- and off-road.
The new Range Rover Sport will be built with the new Range Rover at the Solihull Manufacturing Facility in the U.K. Starting price for the Canadian model is set at $101,750 for the Dynamic S model (compared to the Range Rover’s opening bid of $126,550); $108,450 for the Dynamic SE; $123,050 for the Dynamic HSE; and $133,650 for the First Edition.
Keyword: First Look: 2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport