Land Rover Discovery Sport (2015-2019) Review

The Land Rover Discovery Sport is a comfortable car to travel in, especially with only five seats in use. Passengers jammed in the two tiny rear-most seats on seven-seater models, however, won’t be so pleased – they’re best left for small children. You’ll need to squeeze yourself into the sixth and seventh seats too, but you can free up a little extra legroom by sliding the middle row forwards.

Front-seat passengers have lots of headroom and it’s easy to get a comfortable driving position thanks to a fully adjustable steering wheel and a standard-fit armrest that’s perfectly placed for your elbow. It’s worth noting that part-leather seats are standard on all versions of the Land Rover Discovery Sport, and HSE versions and above get full leather.

Passengers in the middle row of seats can slide backwards and forwards to improve either their legroom or that of the people in the very back row. You can also recline the middle seats for more comfort and can comfortably carry three people side-by-side because there’s not much of a hump in the floor, permitting enough room for everyone’s feet – although the five-seat-only Ford Edge is roomier if you regularly carry three in the back.

Fitting a child seat is easy thanks to wide-opening rear doors and the fact you don’t have to stoop to fit the seat, unlike lower hatchbacks or saloons. There’s a clearly marked tether on each of the outer-middle-row seats, but it’s easy to lose the removable plastic covers that hide the Isofix child-seat anchor points.

There’s a vast door bin in each of the Land Rover Discovery Sport‘s four doors, and each is big enough to fit a two-litre bottle of water. There’s also a sizeable glovebox and even a handy storage shelf above it.

Each passenger gets their own cupholder and you can remove the one in the centre armrest to create even more storage space. There’s even enough room for a few snacks in a tray built into the rear centre armrest, and all three rows of seats feature an array of 12-volt sockets and USB outputs so your passengers can charge their mobile devices instead of talking to each other – heaven forbid!

In seven-seat models with all seats up, the Land Rover Discovery Sport‘s 194-litre boot is only big enough to carry a modest weekly shop. Fold the two rear seats down and the 981-litre space (measured to the roof – most other car manufacturers measure to the parcel shelf) is big enough to fit several large suitcases. If you fold the middle row of seats down, you’re left with a 1,698-litre space that’s easily big enough to fit a bicycle without removing any wheels.

The boot also has some tethering points to tie down loads and it’s a nice square shape with a low loading lip, so it’s easy to lift luggage into – or for dogs to jump into the back of.

Be aware that five-seat versions of the Land Rover Discovery Sport offer a little extra underfloor storage in the boot. Seven-seat models use this space to house the sixth and seventh seats when folded but still offer plenty of storage room. Folding the seats is manual, unlike the electrically powered system in the larger Discovery, but the simple pull straps behind the seats are fairly easy to operate.

In terms of engines, the Land Rover Discovery Sport comes with two options – a 2.0-litre diesel with 150hp, or the same engine but with 180hp. Both versions get four-wheel drive as standard and use either a six-speed manual or nine-speed automatic gearbox – though you need the 180hp version if you want seven seats.

Both versions of the 2.0-litre diesel engine are relatively quiet on the move, but the 2.0-litre diesel in an Audi Q5 is still a more hushed and pleasing engine to use.

The entry-level 150hp diesel engine is only offered with the firm’s notchy six-speed manual gearbox and a five-seat layout exclusively. The more powerful 180hp version gets the option of the much better nine-speed automatic gearbox, which changes gears smoothly and takes the stress out of driving.

Fuel economy is decent too, considering it’s quite a heavy car with a fuel-sapping four-wheel-drive system. The 150hp model claims to return 58mpg while 180hp Land Rover Discovery Sports return 53mpg. In comparison, a 190hp Audi Q5 returns 55mpg, a 170hp Mercedes GLC gets 57mpg and a 190hp BMW X3 averages 54mpg. The 180hp version is the best bet because it feels more relaxed during overtakes, is the only version offered with seven seats and can be fitted with the optional automatic gearbox.

The Land Rover Discovery Sport is a comfortable car to drive. There’s not much wind noise in the cabin and the car’s suspension soaks up the worst of bumps on the motorway. Things aren’t as smooth around town, however, because the suspension doesn’t iron out potholes and rough surfaces so well at slower speeds.

Despite its size and height, the Discovery Sport is quite easy to drive in town thanks to a seating position that’s a little higher than the Mercedes GLC and Audi Q5. This means you have a good view over other cars and get a clearer idea of where the car’s corners are. The view out the back, however, isn’t brilliant so you’ll need to use the rear parking sensors – standard on SE models and up – for tight manoeuvres. All models come with automatic emergency braking, so the chances of having a low-speed collision should be almost nil. The Land Rover Discovery Sport got a five-star Euro NCAP safety rating when it was tested in 2014, although the test is more stringent today.

Off-road performance is incredibly impressive with good ground clearance, a grippy four-wheel-drive system and clever electronics that keep you moving. The firm’s All Terrain Response Control acts as a low-speed cruise control pulling you up hills, down slopes and even crawling over rocks without you having to touch the pedals. The Discovery Sport can also drive through water up to 60cm deep and there’s an optional wade sensor that can tell you how deep the water around your car is – but it’s probably best left on the options list unless you often have to cross a river to get to the shops.