2014 Land Rover Range Rover Sport

2014 Land Rover Range Rover Sport

Episode 3319
Auto Value and Bumper to BumperTire Rack "The Way Tire Buying Should Be"

With last year’s near total transformation of Land Rover’s Range Rover, sales for the ruggedly premium utility brand are up double digits. Indeed, November was one of their best U.S. sales months ever. Well, now they hope to spread a little of that success to their bestselling model, the Range Rover Sport. So, let’s find out if they can keep the momentum going. 

A big part of the 2014 Range Rover Sport’s appeal is, without a doubt, that “go anywhere in luxury” tradition of the Land Rover brand. But just like many other builders of traditional SUVs, if they want to increase sales numbers, as Land Rover surely does, their utilities will have to become even more refined. 

And, that’s clearly what was intended with the new Sport. Developed alongside the also-new Range Rover that launched just last year, the Sport shares the same all-aluminum architecture and 800-pound weight loss despite growing larger and more functional.

For differentiation, the Sport’s front-end styling is more Evoque than Range Rover, but with the slant-back image of previous generations still intact. It looks slick and rugged; though more than a few of our staffers also pointed out a resemblance to the Ford Explorer. The blacked out pillars and rear glass give it a wraparound visor treatment, with a thick spoiler topping the hatch.

V6 models ride on 19-inch wheels, V8s on 20s. Both V6 and V8 come supercharged, with an incredibly smooth 8-speed automatic transmission and permanent 4-wheel-drive. 

The brute of the two V’s is our tester’s 5.0-liter eight. It cranks out 510-horsepower and 461 lb-ft. of torque, and sounds nastier than any SUV we can remember.

But it’s the interior presents perhaps the biggest visual change where things are simpler, cleaner, more logical, all while becoming roomier. Space was sorely needed in the back seat where the added leg room is appreciated. Still even more is needed for normal adults so those in the front don’t have to move their seats forward.

New this year is an optional child-size third row. There are loads of interior choices for color and wood tones, and just about all the creature comforts you could ask for including a big sunroof and power rear hatch.  Everything works well, and the IP layout is excellent; a beautiful mix of needles and dials with the digital age meeting Land Rover tradition. 

Despite the increasingly refined nature, on the road it still feels like a truck, which is just fine by us. It soaks up road imperfections much better than before, there’s a commanding view from the driver’s seat, and no matter the road surface it feels incredibly composed, smooth, and never harsh. It’s probably the best riding SUV out there, managing to still feel like a Land Rover with that go anywhere sensation, just a super smooth one. 

Even at higher speeds, the Sport feels flat and sporty, making you want to go faster than you should through corners, but don’t worry, electronic nannies have your back. For a vehicle that weighs over 47–hundred pounds it responds very light. The Enhanced Electronic Air suspension’s Auto mode reacts promptly, and Dynamic mode firms things up to sport sedan territory. Land Rover claims it’s their most agile UTE ever, and we can’t help but agree. 

An early winter storm prevented us from really pushing the Sport to its limits at our test track, but did provide us a chance to fully experience Terrain Response 2’s snow setting. While the standard V6 is probably more than up to the task of carpooling and mall running, it’s big V8 power that we crave and the Sport has a huge amount of it, delivering it in a very luxury car-like fashion. 

Acceleration is brisk, hitting 60 in as little as 5.0-seconds. Of course you have to pay on the back end with Government Fuel Economy Ratings of 14-City, 19-Highway, and 16-Combined. We managed 16.6 miles-per-gallon of Premium in mixed driving. That makes for a poor Energy Impact Score, with 20.6-barrels of oil being consumed per year and 9.4-tons of CO2 emitted. 

If we’ve got a nit to pick, it’s the very noticeable stop/start system, though some harshness might be expected when you’re instantly igniting this much engine. But, you really don’t expect any roughness with a vehicle with a base price of $63,495. V8’s begin at $79,995. 

So you’ll need to bring the bucks, but you will be very satisfied; as there’s no denying that the 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Sport is vastly better than before. It’s a lot more refined without losing any of its Land Rover-ness. A formula that many other brands have been unable to duplicate, and a recipe that will keep the momentum going for Land Rover.

Specifications

  • Engine: 5.0-liter
  • Horsepower: 510
  • Torque: 461 lb-ft.
  • 0-60 mph: 5.0 seconds
  • EPA: 14 mpg city/ 19 mpg highway
  • Energy Impact: 20.6 barrels of oil/yr
  • CO2 Emissions: 9.4 tons/yr
2024 Audi RS 7 Performance 1

2024 Audi RS 7 Performance

Up For Grand Touring Around A Racetrack

Episode 4329
Auto Value and Bumper to BumperTire Rack "The Way Tire Buying Should Be"

In recent years, Audi has done an increasingly better job at merging luxury, high tech and sportiness equally into all of their vehicles, but that doesn’t mean they all have the same priorities. So, if you’re wondering what this car is all about… well, it’s right there in the name, the Audi RS 7 Performance!

First and foremost, the 2024 Audi RS 7 Performance is absolutely fantastic looking. A gorgeous car from all angles. But this posh performer is a lot more than just a visual treat. Under its silky skin lies a menacing sounding V8 that delivers insane amounts of power and, as we discovered, a gloriously intoxicating driving experience.

RS elements added to Audi’s S7 five-door coupe include new aero treatments with a matte gray finish and silver 21-inch Audi Sport wheels. Those silver wheels are wrapped with 275 Continental summer performance tires and allow for seeing plenty of the enormous brake rotors with black-painted calipers. Up front, there’s a wide grille inhaling all kinds of air and headlights with uniqueness that’s pure Audi. This five-door coupe with frameless door windows speaks a true hardtop design.

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Now that we’ve gotten that out of our system, time to hit the corners of Savannah’s Roebling Road Raceway, and it’s been quite some time since we’ve had anything here or on any road course that exhibited this much body roll. It didn’t matter what drive mode we had dialed in, it just liked to roll. You could sense that soft suspension in our acceleration runs too. Bystanders got a clear view of a lot of its hardware, thanks to major rear-end squatting as it exploded off the line. Those explosions resulted in a quick 3.7-second trip to 60 miles-per-hour and full quarter-mile runs of 11.9 seconds at 118 miles-per-hour. Fast indeed, though we’re sure both times would improve in warmer temps than our 40-degree test day.

Drive modes have been recalibrated and shifts by the eight-speed Tiptronic in Dynamic Mode are quick. Indeed, noticeably quicker and firmer than in the RS6 wagon we tested just a few months ago without the “performance” treatment. Quattro all-wheel drive is standard.

We’ve never experienced a car that can feel this soft yet was absolutely point-and-shoot through corners.

The driving force for that acceleration is a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 cranking out an additional 30 horsepower from the standard RS 7 thanks to installing bigger turbos. That makes for a 621-horsepower rating, with an even more impressive boost in torque from 590 to 627 lb-ft. And Audi was kind enough to remove a little sound deadening material so we can appreciate it even more through the optional RS sport exhaust system.

For what is really a Grand Tourer built for blasting you away on luxurious adventures, the RS 7 performance is amazingly track capable. Steering is very direct with great feel, and all four wheels are engaged in the process. They’re connected to a new mechanical self-locking center differential that is not only capable of handling the additional power but is lighter and quicker to respond. Chassis software has been recalibrated to make it all work together seamlessly. There must be some serious engineering wizardry happening in the RS-tuned air suspension as we’ve never experienced a car that can feel this soft yet was absolutely point-and-shoot through corners. Brakes were truly phenomenal too; there was some significant nosedive happening, but no wandering or fading no matter how hard we worked them.

And yes, it’s hard to call this actual work, considering this work environment is far from hostile. Absolutely nothing has been compromised when it comes to delivering the luxury car experience you expect from a six-figure Audi. Whether it’s the fabulous real metal, leather, and detailed woven carbon-fiber materials or the fine stitch-work and the always impressive comprehensive digital gauge display, the RS 7 performance feels truly special inside.

2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Dash
2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Shifter
2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Seat
2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Trunk
2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Engine
2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Dash2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Shifter2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Seat2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Trunk2024 Audi RS 7 Performance Engine

The front seats were supremely comfortable and were only mildly bolstered yet held us in place just fine out on the track. Plenty of room for rear seat passengers too, and there’s even a great 24.6 cubic-feet of cargo space with hatchback versatility. Less practical is all touchscreen all the time for just about every cockpit control.

Government Fuel Economy Ratings are 14 City, 22 Highway, and 17 Combined. That’s a below average Energy Impact Score of 17.5 barrels of yearly oil use with 8.8 tons of CO2 emissions.

Pricing starts at $129,490, and Audi knows they have a good thing going with the RS 7 performance; so much so, it’s now the only RS 7.

So, could they have just made the RS 7 better instead of tacking “performance” onto the name? Sure, but there’s just something about adding performance to a car name that draws people in. And when it backs it up by delivering more actual performance, well, that’s what we call a win-win. We’d be happy to run some victory laps in the 2024 Audi RS 7 Performance anytime.

Specifications

  • Engine: 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8
  • Horsepower: 621
  • 0-60 mph: 3.7 seconds
  • EPA: 14 City | 22 Highway | 17 Combined
  • Transmission: 8-speed automatic
  • Torque: 627 lb-ft.
  • 1/4 Mile: 11.9 seconds at 118 mph
  • Starting Price: $129,490