2020 Land Rover Range Rover Sport SVR

"Mechanical alterations from the previous SVR are slight. Like its predecessor, the facelifted model is powered by the long-serving supercharged 5.0-liter V-8 featured in the upper reaches of the company’s portfolio and which has been tweaked to deliver 575 horsepower, a 25-hp improvement. Torque also has risen slightly, from 502 lb-ft to 516 lb-ft. The well-aged engine exhales through an appropriately Jurassic performance exhaust, one that in its louder Sport mode is sure to get your homeowners’ association starting abatement petitions.

The NASCAR soundtrack makes unleashing the SVR a more visceral experience, but ultimate performance is startling in its own right. With a 4.3-second 0 to 60 mph time, a feat we achieved in a 550hp 2015 model year SVR. Stomp on the accelerator and the big Rover responds as if its tail has been set alight, accelerating at a startling rate until well past 100 mph. Given a long enough straight, it will reach a governed top speed of 176 mph. While startling passengers and spilling coffees is a neat trick, the more impressive thing about the SVR is how uncompromised it feels in everyday use. In gentle driving, the engine’s soundtrack fades to a muscular burble, with the air-spring suspension offering a cossetting low-speed ride similar to that of the regular Range Rover Sport. The eight-speed automatic gearbox is capable of lightning-fast upshifts under full throttle but is also impressively refined at a mellower pace."