Happenings

SVR Range Rover Has Landed

BY Azfar Hashim

A powerful sports car on stilts? Looking at the numbers, it seems so - you can have one now

The first Land Rover to wear the new high- performance SVR badge, the Range Rover Sport SVR is capable of accelerating from 0 to 100km/h in 4.7 seconds and on to an electronically limited top speed of 260km/h. And just how on earth is this possible, you ask? Well, the SVR’s range-topping all aluminium 5.0-litre supercharged V8 engine has been developed to produce 542 bhp and 680 Nm while its ZF 8HP70 8-speed automatic transmission and four-wheel-drive chassis have been optimised to complement the astonishing performance, whatever the weather.

The transmission’s adaptive shift strategy monitors acceleration and brake inputs, lateral cornering forces, kickdown requests and even the severity of gradients, before choosing one of 25 pre-determined programmes to seamlessly adapt to driver behaviour and road conditions. Sportier driving triggers more aggressive gearshifts and defers upshifts until higher revs, for instance.

During initial tests, Land Rover’s most dynamic SUV lapped the Nürburgring Nordschleife racetrack in 8 minutes and 14 seconds, one of the fastest times ever recorded by a standard production SUV.

In two world firsts for Range Rover, an electrically controlled two-stage active exhaust provides a race car-inspired soundtrack at higher engine revs without adversely affecting refinement during steady-state driving. Meanwhile, the optional unique 22-inch alloy wheels with performance-optimised 295/40 R22 Continental SportContact 5 tyres complement the driver-focused chassis.

The Range Rover Sport SVR builds on the success of the new Range Rover Sport, with its all-aluminium monocoque — a world first in the segment — which reduces weight by 39% compared with its predecessor and provides the ideal strong, stiff and lightweight structure on which to create the Range Rover Sport SVR.

Working in conjunction with the vehicle’s uprated air springs and Active Dynamics continuously variable dampers, the two-channel Active-Roll Control (ARC) has been specially tuned to enhance the Range Rover Sport SVR’s high-performance capability. Replacing traditional anti-roll bars, ARC employs actuators powered by a hydraulic pump to keep body roll in check, adapting to body accelerations up to 1,000 times a second. Compared with earlier iterations with a single actuator, ARC uses two actuators to respond independently to lateral roll at each axle, providing even greater precision.

A choice of seven colour palettes is available, including the striking Estoril Blue, exclusive to the Range Rover Sport SVR. A Narvik Black contrast roof is available as standard equipment and combines with body-colour side mouldings to emphasise the SVR’s squat, muscular stance.

Price starts at S$650,000 with COE.

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