2018 Land Rover Discovery Sport Review

The Discovery Sport's powertrain also includes Land Rover's All-Terrain Progress Control (a low-speed off-road cruise control), hill descent control and the driver-adjustable Terrain Response system. The latter technology has four settings (General, Grass/Gravel/Snow, Mud/Ruts and Sand) that adapt accelerator and steering response, gear selection, center differential engagement, and braking and stability control systems to optimize performance in a variety of difficult driving scenarios. Unlike with other Land Rovers, there are no locking differentials, low-range gearing or adjustable suspension height.

The base engine is a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder that makes 237 horsepower and 251 pound-feet of torque. A more powerful version of this engine is available for the HSE and HSE Luxury trims and makes 286 hp and 295 lb-ft of torque. A nine-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive are standard.

Standard equipment on the SE includes automatic headlamps and wipers, power-folding and heated mirrors, a rearview camera, cruise control, dual-zone automatic climate control, rear parking sensors, rear privacy glass, 18-inch wheels, and the Land Rover Terrain Response system, which changes vehicle settings to match various surfaces. Also standard are 10-way power front seats, partial leather upholstery, a 60/40-split rear seat (folding, reclining, sliding), an 8-inch touchscreen interface, four USB charging ports (two front, two rear) and a 10-speaker sound system with a CD player, an auxiliary audio jack and a USB media player interface.

Some options are unique to the SE: The Convenience package adds proximity entry, a hands-free liftgate and an auto-dimming rearview mirror. The SE Vision Assist package adds foglights and xenon headlights with LED daytime running lights. Twelve-way power-adjustable front seats and navigation are available as stand-alone options.

The HSE includes the contents of the Convenience and SE Vision packages and adds a fixed panoramic roof, front parking sensors, full leather upholstery, and 12-way power front seats with memory functions.

Both the SE and HSE can be upgraded with the Audio Upgrade package, which adds an 11-speaker Meridian stereo and satellite radio. Smartphone-connection apps and satellite radio are available for both as stand-alone options.

The HSE Luxury adds the Audio Upgrade package, 19-inch wheels, fancier exterior trim, multicolor interior ambient lighting, upgraded leather upholstery and navigation functionality.

The HSE trims are available with a number of option packages. The Vision Assist package includes blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert systems, adaptive headlights, automatic high beams and a surround-view camera system. The Driver Assist Plus package adds the navigation functionality, lane departure warning and automatic emergency braking. The HUD & Park Assist package brings a head-up display and an automatic parking system that can handle perpendicular and parallel parking duties. The Intelligent Dynamics Pack adds an active all-wheel-drive system, which switches between front- and all-wheel drive based on conditions to save fuel, and an adaptive magnetic suspension. The Entertainment Pack adds a 17-speaker Meridian sound system and the upgraded 10-inch InControl Touch Pro touchscreen interface that includes onboard Wi-Fi and its own upgraded navigation system. Finally, the Dynamic Design package adds a variety of special exterior and trim pieces, including gloss-black 20-inch wheels.

All trims can be equipped with the Climate Comfort package, which includes a variety of heated items: windshield, steering wheel, and front and rear seats. Also available as stand-alone options are different wheels (19- or 20-inch), contrasting roof color choices, the head-up display, automatic high beams, a cargo cover and onboard Wi-Fi. For 2018, blind-spot monitoring and adaptive cruise control have both been made available as stand-alone options.