The little Landie comes with new styling, a new interior, and new drivelines including multiple hybrid options.
Land Rover has just announced a new Discovery Sport for 2020. The little Landie comes with new styling, a new interior, and new drivelines including multiple hybrid options.
The 2020 Discovery Sport starts off with new styling that more closely mimics its bigger sibling. That includes the new grille design and LED headlights as well as all-new bumpers. Take a look out back and it has the same no-rear-bumper look of the bigger Discovery and some cool new LED taillights.
Powertrain options for the Disco Sport include a new 48-volt 296 hp mild hybrid system. It’s the system from the Range Rover Evoque that uses a belt-driven starter-alternator to harvest energy under deceleration and add power under acceleration. The system lets the Discovery Sport shut the gas engine off at speeds under 17 km/h, if the driver is on the brakes. That saves fuel. There’s also a 246 hp turbo four available without the system. Land Rover says a full plug-in hybrid will arrive sometime later this year. Drivers in other markets will get the option of a front-drive manual diesel option, which seems like an odd choice for this luxury crossover. Don’t expect that one here.
A new 40:20:40 folding middle row seat gives owners more configuration options to fit their combo of cargo and passengers. And yes, this continues to be a three-row small crossover. Land Rover has added a new recycled polyester microfiber material it calls Luxtex for a more sustainable interior.
The Discovery Sport will also get the ClearSight rear view mirror camera screen from the Evoque. That gives the driver an HD feed view out of the back unimpeded by passengers, cargo, or D-pillars. A ClearSight Ground View camera lets you see terrain and obstacles immediately in front of the vehicle off-road. Or high curbs when you’re parking.
Infotainment system upgrades include Land Rover’s InControl Touch Pro standard, with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay on the options list. That uses a 10.0-inch display in a revised centre console with more space for small items. The system has a Smart Settings feature that uses artificial intelligence to learn driver settings and adjust seating positions and massage settings (plus music and climate choices) for each driver. Available driver aids include adaptive cruise with steering assist, lane keeping assist, autonomous emergency braking, and driver condition monitor.
The 2020 Land Rover Discover Sport is scheduled to arrive later this year.
Keyword: Land Rover Updates Discovery Sport