2015 Range Rover Sport Supercharged Review

That's all thanks to the new aluminum structure that brings a massive diet of around 800 lbs (360 kg), while boosting structural rigidity by a whopping 39 percent. When it comes to the Supercharged model, that difference falls to north of 200 kg (440 lbs).

As for the connection to the road, the Adaptive Dynamics active shock absorbers come to complement the air springs, while the Dynamic Response active stabilizer bar does wonders, both on and off the road.

On the high-tier models such as the Supercharged, the center diff is not alone in its lockable adventure. The rear one can also be locked, reacting 70 ms quicker than in the old model.

Just like in the Porsche Cayenne, you get a Torque Vectoring braking-based function, where the inside rear wheels are braked through the bends in order to keep the car on track.

Given all the technology and the stiffer chassis, the Supercharged model has everything it needs to offer superb ride comfort, since there's no need for the suspension to become too firm at any time.

You can throw any kind of road at the Range Rover Sport and it will make sure that the comfort sensors within your body won't make any difference. The early model years Range Rovers, such as the one we drove, had an issue with the suspension - whenever you hit a large bump, it sent a shock throughout the body, something that wasn't there in the old model.

Land Rover explained it was all a design problem, linked to the stabilizer bars and that it was fixed. The Range Rover Sport Supercharged drive did reveal that the issue was addressed, but not fixed entirely.

You'll feel this especially when getting all serious about the offroading part of the driving.

Speaking of offroading, I had the chance to test this Supercharged Brit on the same Dubai dunes that saw me putting the just-as-Supercharged Range Rover to work.

The more accurate steering and the livelier exhaust make the experience even more intense - hearing that charger whine while the sand is being thrown into the air at just 2,000 rpm made this drive a memorable one.

You should mind the Terrain Response system's programs though. Under usual driving conditions, whether you're on or off the road, you can just leave the massive dial on "Auto" and everything will be just fine. Once you get down to more serious business like I did in the desert though, engaging the dedicated modes makes quite a difference.

For instance, I played things in "Sand" and once I put the pedal to the metal, the central and the rear diffs were fully locked. I felt a noticeable rerouting of the five-liter V8's raw force, since the car was going mainly straight, with much less energy being wasted on the sideways movement that the partially or fully unlocked diffs brought in the Auto mode.

Alas, the ABS doesn't seem to be all that good with rugged terrain tasks. For instance, a Toyota Land Cruiser knows how to build little sand dunes in front of the wheels, thus reducing stopping distances and while I was expecting the same kind of artificial intelligence here, this was not the case.

Back onto the road, it was time to see what happens when you're in a hurry. Not much has changed with the five-liter supercharged V8. There's a new Bosch engine management system, while a start-stop system was added.

This has reduced fuel consumption by 14 percent according to the official figures. In the real world, our mpg sat at 19/14.2/15.4 l/100 km or 12.3/16.5/15.2 mpg (city/urban/combined).

The supercharger makes sure the 503 hp (510 PS) and 421 lb-ft (625 Nm) are literally on tap. Working with the ZF eight-speed automatic, the vee eight manages to send the car past the 60 mph (97 km/h) in less than five seconds, which makes it almost a second quicker than the old model.

The trick here is that, even when you're flooring it, the Range Rover Sport Supercharged doesn't feel like it's under any kind of pressure. You get the desired increase in speed (it's hard to perceive the actual velocity) in a linear, fully trustful way. You are treated in the same manner whether your sprint starts from 70 or 125 mph (110 or 200 km/h).

In case you're looking for even more muscle, Land Rover is happy to gift you with the Range Rover Sport SVR. With 542 hp (550 PS) and 502 lb-ft (680 Nm) of twist, this is the Sport's way of looking at the Range Rover, with its exclusive long wheelbase version and singing "Can't touch this". Predictably, it's also the fastest Range Rover ever, but I can't draw the line between upgrade and exaggeration since I haven't driven it yet.

You may remember that back in the summer of 2013, a Range Rover Sport Supercharged set the Pikes Peak record for the quickest hill climb in a production SUV. Well, Paul Dallenbach, the American driver that danced his way up in this behemoth definitely knew how to keep a balance between the grip and working with the weight transfer to wrestle the car into cornering submission.

Returning to the Terrain Response program, there's a "Dynamic" mode for the well-specced models and you'll feel the difference through the bends.

You just have to watch the body roll, as there's still enough of it to offset the car.

In the end, the dynamic behavior of the Range Rover Sport Supercharged inspires a safe drive. Speaking of which, no official safety body has put the Sport to the test, which means we still have to rely on the Range Rover's ratings.

The Euro NCAP crash test results look brilliant before zooming in on the details - there's a 91 percent rating for adult occupant protection, 84 percent for child occupant protection, 63 percent for pedestrians and 86 percent for the safety assist.

Unfortunately, the extra-serious side pole impact test showed the chest area only received "marginal" protection - the rest of the body areas showed "good" protection levels.

The rear impact test once again brought the "marginal" rating on the table, this time for the whiplash injury protection. However, this kind of protection usually depends on the seat and headrest and the new design of the Sport could show different behavior.

The arrival of the new Range Rover Sport has an effect that goes far beyond this model, also allowing the Range Rover to make more sense - the detached, wafting driving experience in the RR only differentiates the two, so there's nothing to complain about.

Interestingly enough, while Land Rover implies that you should see the Range Rover as the ultimate model, this is not exactly true. In reality, it all depends on what you want.

Yes, the Range Rover adds a touch of extra comfort at the top end, but aiming for that is like trying to find an adjective that beats "excellent". In fact, it feels like you gain more in terms of feel than what you loose in terms of coziness if you opt for the Range Rover Sport.

For this reason, the RRS gets an 8 in the value for money department. In the US, the Range Rover Sport Supercharged comes with a MSRP of $79,995, while the all-so-plush Autobiography trim raises that to $92,495, with both prices excluding a $925 destination charge.

Over in Europe, it all depends on the market and obviously on each country’s VAT level, but the SUV starts at about EUR100,000, including 19 percent VAT.

Forget the BMW X5/X6 or the Mercedes ML. If you want the best SUV on the market, you'll have to choose between the Range Rover (Sport) and the Porsche Cayenne, depending on which of the comfort/driving dynamics sides you want to be the primary mission of the vehicle.

With this choice in mind, there's really not much you could dislike about the Range Rover Sport. That's not to say it's perfect though. The cabin could mirror the Range Rover's cavernous stowage compartments, while the less potent, passive suspension models handle awfully at high speeds.

And since a well-gifted Range Rover Sport manages such a good balance between the two attributes described above, especially given its refinement-obsessed badge, it's a pity not to order it in Supercharged guise. If you can afford it, acquiring this car in any other form is like getting a Labrador Retriever and not training it properly.