By Moses Akaigwe
The Discovery Sport is again awarded a five-star Euro NCAP safety rating – meaning all Range Rover, Discovery and Defender models now have a maximum rating for safety.
Discovery Sport launched in 2014 with a five-star score. Tested again in 2022 to even more stringent standards, the versatile family SUV secured another five-star rating, with improved scores of 89 per cent score for Child Occupant Protection, 71 per cent for Vulnerable Road Users and 85 per cent for Safety Assist. Adult Occupant Protection scored 84 per cent.
Discovery Sport joins Discovery, Defender, Range Rover Evoque, Range Rover Velar, Range Rover Sport and Range Rover models in achieving a five-star rating, drawing on decades of experience in active and passive safety systems.
Thomas Mueller, Executive Director Product Engineering, Jaguar Land Rover, said: “It’s our ambition to design and build the safest vehicles for our clients. Digital innovations and the introduction of new ADAS technologies have allowed us to maintain safety standards at the highest level while preserving the versatility and capability associated with vehicles that wear the Discovery badge.”
Discovery Sport led the way in the compact SUV segment when it launched in 2014. It introduced Land Rover’s cutting-edge Pedestrian Airbag and Autonomous Emergency Braking, which has since been improved with new radar technology and updated algorithms to expand its capability. Other enhancements include redesigned head restraints and seat belts in the second row, and the addition of Multi Collision Braking technology.
A raft of digital innovations, including embedded Alexa and native voice commands are available across all models, providing the ability to control various settings and features using natural and intuitive voice commands – without the need to take hands off the wheel or eyes off the road.
Advanced Driver Assistance Systems offered on the Land Rover Discovery Sport include:
•Lane Keep Assist – monitors road lane markings to detect unintentional lane departure. If the vehicle is about to cross a lane boundary, a rotational force is applied to the steering wheel to counter the boundary-crossing movement.
•Emergency Lane Keep Assist – helps to provide corrective steering inputs if it determines the vehicle is getting too close to road edges and is drifting towards an adjacent lane where oncoming vehicles are detected.
•3D Surround Camera and ClearSight Ground View – surround camera system provides a 3D, 360-degree view around the vehicle and can display several views simultaneously on the touchscreen display when manoeuvring – giving the driver detailed information about their surroundings. ClearSight Ground View allows drivers to see the hidden area directly ahead of, and beneath, the bonnet on the central touchscreen display.
•Adaptive Cruise Control – Adaptive Cruise Control maintains a set cruising speed for the vehicle. The vehicle’s speed automatically reduces if a slower-moving vehicle is detected in the lane ahead.
Discovery Sport remains the most capable and versatile compact SUV, with 5+2 seating and the availability of a plug-in hybrid electric P300e model, offering up to 60km all electric range and CO2 emissions of 34g/km. Rapid DC charging is also available as standard, offering up to 80 percent charge in 30 minutes.
All Range Rover, Discovery and Defender, as well as Jaguar models are provided in the Nigerian market by Coscharis Motors Plc.