RANGE ROVER SPORT / EQUIPMENT
Range Rover Sport’s May update: colours, cabin trim and US equipment
The first-generation Sport received another equipment revision before its successor arrived.
Land Rover’s US Range Rover Sport information dated 15 May 2012 set out changes for the next model year. Contemporary European reporting followed on 17 May, describing new exterior colours, wheel designs and cabin finishes. This was an update to the L320, not the introduction of a new-generation Sport.
At a glance
- US media information dated 15 May 2012.
- European reporting listed five additional exterior colours.
- Supercharged brake-caliper colours and cabin finishes changed.
- Engine and equipment specifications differed by market.
Five additions to the colour palette
The exterior additions reported in Europe were Barossa, Barolo, Havana, Mariana and Causeway. New wheel choices and further light/dark upholstery combinations extended the personalisation options. A carbon-fibre interior trim package was also described as an option.
These details identify an equipment update. They do not imply that an earlier example with the same body has the later trim, nor that every colour or option was offered in every market.
Supercharged details in the US release
The US material listed red Brembo brake calipers as standard on Supercharged, with black available as a no-cost alternative. A new five-spoke Sparkle Silver wheel design and two interior combinations were also part of the update.
The US towing package grouped a hitch receiver and electrical equipment with a variable locking rear differential. The useful distinction is between the contents of this particular market package and a generic claim that every Range Rover Sport had the same towing or differential specification.
Engines remained a regional matter
The US document retained the 375hp naturally aspirated and 510hp supercharged 5.0-litre V8 options. Spanish coverage instead described the 211CV TDV6 and 255CV SDV6 diesels with eight-speed automatics, alongside the 510CV petrol Supercharged.
Those outputs and gearbox combinations should remain attached to their markets. A European diesel specification cannot be used as the description of the American petrol range.
Audio equipment was part of the wider specification
US information described 380W and 825W systems with 11 and 17 speakers respectively. The figures belong to the particular installation and equipment level. They are not interchangeable with the speaker counts of similarly rated Jaguar systems.
The update also sat alongside separately announced limited editions. The April Limited Edition is covered in its own journal article; this May equipment revision is a different announcement, rather than another copy of that launch.
Illustrations recomposed from period press imagery. Image licence.