Thoughts on nearly new Range Rover v Range Rover Sport

[SteveM46]

Folks

I haven't been on here a while, so forgive me if this is a well worn topic and I would be happy to be pointed at an older thread although I haven't spotted anything in the last couple of pages.

Having had four happy years with a Range Rover Sport before rashly moving to an E350 Estate, I'm finally getting to the point where I can jump back to an RRS. However, I'm realising that for similar money I could actually get to a similar age Range Rover Vogue, give or take (I'm thinking £40-£45k tops).

Having got the hang of RRS running costs, will I find the jump to a RR still a big leap, or does maintenance come in much higher?

Any general thoughts on the differences? I'm more interested in comfort than sport, and I've got three dogs!

Edited by SteveM46 on Thursday 1st August 15:44

[RS MOJO]

Running costs are very similar between RR and RRS (based on the same platform and share pretty much all the same features/options)
Really comes down to preference on how they drive - Sport as the name suggests is sportier whereas the RR is more "wafty" which sounds like what you are after and it is definitely a nicer place to sit.

If you can live with the styling don't rule out a Discovery 5 - you will get a much newer/lower mileage car for your budget and more boot room for the dogs and all the same features can be had

[FredBrown]

I think choosing based on how they drive is good advice. Bear in mind the full-fat V8 has anti-roll which is not available on the V6. The difference is noticeable.

I agree maIntenance costs will be similar.

A few other things to consider:

Do you prefer the look of the full-fat or RRS? Most people have a preference.

The full-fat is larger inside and the boot a good deal larger because of the squarer shape - could be useful for the dogs.

The older infotainment system in both cars is not a high point - from memory there was a year when they upgraded to a single screen system before moving to the Velar dual screen system. If your budget will manage it the later systems are better than the system fitted at launch.

Great cars - hope you enjoy whatever you choose!

[swisstoni]

When we tried both of the current versions together, Mrs and I both preferred the interior feel of the RR.
Basically a more airy ambience than the slightly enclosed feel of the RRS.

[SteveM46]

Thanks everyone, sensible thoughts. I haven't tried an RR yet so I should do that, but much as I loved the RRS it always felt quite cozy inside without much storage space up front and a boot that was noticeably smaller than my wife has in her Picasso!

FredBrown, good point about the infotainment system so I will look into that. On both my last RRS and the E350 I've got now I've pretty much abandoned using the sat nav as it was/is very poor compared with Google. Trouble is, I end up propping my phone up in front of the infotainment screen with a lead hanging out of it which sort of misses the point (one of the points) of having a luxury car.

I don't suppose you know if the latest infotainment system supports Apple's CarPlay system? I haven't used it, but I presume this would give me what I want...

[swisstoni]

No experience of the later infotainment versions unf. The original was certainly not great.
I wouldn’t get too excited about the boot of the RR either.

[SteveM46]

swisstoni said:

No experience of the later infotainment versions unf. The original was certainly not great.
I wouldn’t get too excited about the boot of the RR either.

Thanks, expectations set!

[swisstoni]

SteveM46 said:

swisstoni said:

No experience of the later infotainment versions unf. The original was certainly not great.
I wouldn’t get too excited about the boot of the RR either.

Thanks, expectations set!

Cavernous with one or more seats down, mind, but not huge with all seats available.

[SteveM46]

swisstoni said:

Cavernous with one or more seats down, mind, but not huge with all seats available.

Is that seven seats available? Or five? I'm not interested in seven seats, and the dogs travel in a basket.

Here's a question for you - is the footwell across the back seats of the RR completely flat like the RRS's used to be? Or is there an axle in the way? I used to find that flat area in front of the back seats really useful for loading/carrying stuff (like a folded dog crate) when you could just slide it in one door and right across the width of the car.

[swisstoni]

Only 5 seats.
There is a slight raised floor bit between the back seats. But only about 2” high and 6” wide so not a tunnel in the old fashioned sense.

[Osinjak]

I've got the InControl Touch Pro, the one between the crap one and the new dual screen and have Apple PlayCar (as my wife calls it, filthy foreigner that she is). They system itself isn't that bad but it's not as good as my old BMW iDrive.