2020 Range Rover Sport HSE Review: 4 Things You Need To Know

With the Land Rover Defender definitively hogging the spotlight for the past few months, you’d be completely forgiven for missing all of the improvements throughout the entire Jaguar Land Rover lineup. One of the most noteworthy updates going into 2020 is the addition of a hybrid engine to the Range Rover family which just might be the engine of choice when it comes to the Range Rover Sport HSE. 

New Hybrid Drivetrain

Land Rover is offering a host of new powerplants for the 2020 model year ranging from a 2.0-liter diesel all the way up to a 575 horsepower supercharged 5.0-liter V8. Of the six total options available, the goldilocks engine choice is the 3.0-liter inline-six with a partial hybrid assist. There’s plenty of torque throughout the rev range and it’s incredibly responsive. The transmission can be slightly clunky at slower speeds while changing down through the gears but works smoothly otherwise. 

Instantly Recognizable Design

It’s no secret that the SUV segment is more crowded than ever in 2020. Deciding between choices from the U.S and the big three over in Germany comes down to splitting hairs on design details and trim package options. The Range Rover Sport, on the other hand, skillfully makes use of Range Rover’s design language which relies heavily on heritage without being too heavy-handed. Minimalist and almost slab-sided body panels are uncluttered by character lines and, along with the tightly organized and relatively understated grille, is a breath of fresh air. 

A Dash of Oldschool 

The familiar Range Rover aesthetic continues on the inside which balances out the modern technology like the touch screens and LCD gauges ahead of the steering wheel. Despite being an upmarket SUV destined for suburban streets and mall parking lots, the interior still gives the sense it’s entirely capable of going off-road. There’s a certain utilitarian feel to all of the contact points — the seats, steering wheel, center armrest and storage bin — that you’ll find in almost every Range Rover dating back to the ‘80s.

Intuitive Interior

Across the market, luxury car brands are obsessed with the idea of oversimplifying interiors and user interfaces at the expense of practicality. Thankfully, Land Rover uses a fairly universal center console derived from the Jaguar I-Pace for most of its lineup. While it does have a relatively minimalist design, it’s also straight forward and easy to use. The two 10-inch touch screens make it supremely easy to navigate through the more common features like media, Apple Carplay (or Android Auto) with the climate control living exclusively on the bottom of the two screens.

For nitty-gritty settings like interior lighting or the sound equalizer, it becomes a little tedious. Every time I wanted to make minor adjustments I had to meander through layers of screens and layouts.

Verdict

My biggest gripe with SUVs in 2020 is that most manufacturers feel the need to make each one “sporty”. It’s been like this for a few years now and Range Rover is one of the biggest offenders on the market with the needlessly track-savvy SVR models. It’s also at the point where “sport” badges no longer mean anything; that’s just what base-level trims are being called now. Case and point: the 2020 Range Rover Sport HSE PHEV. 

However, the Range Rover Sport HSE doesn’t paint itself as an apex-hunting track weapon like its SVR sibling. If anything, the Sport HSE is the definition of what a standard SUV should be in 2020 and it’s totally unapologetic about it.

Yes, it has multi-terrain drive modes, differential locks, hill descent control for off-road driving and boasts nearly 400 horsepower and a 0-60 mph sprint time of just over five seconds. But not once did the Range Rover Sport ever feel like it wanted to prove it was a dirt pounding overlander or that it could clock a quick lap around the Nürburgring. While it might be capable of both of those tasks to some degree, the Sport HSE felt most in its element while running errands around town and taking a quick trip upstate. 

Every SUV doesn’t need to be a superlative vehicle. Sometimes having a regular SUV is okay. And that’s what the 2020 Range Rover Sport is: a regular SUV. It’s just really good at being a regular SUV but also looks miles better than every other SUV on the road.

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