Review of the new Land Rover Range Rover Sport HST

The swelling mass of strings is instantly recognisable. It may be overplayed and rather overblown but the Ride of the Valkyries certainly has presence. Wagner makes good use of the whole orchestra, using it as sections rather than focusing so much on individual instruments. The main theme is anchored by a powerful brass backbone, with harmony provided by wind and strings. It could almost have been written for the Range Rover Sport HST.

Some cars have a noticeable sense of presence. Others don't. It's not always solely down to price either, as some small cars feel genuinely special. They rarely feel like forces of nature, however. For that you need dimensions. You need a huge engine, searing performance and more attitude than a US college football team. In short, you need this top spec Range Rover Sport.

There were many buyers who never overcame their disappointment that the Range Rover Sport never ended up looking like the astonishing three-door Range Stormer concept car shown at the 2004 Detroit Motor Show. If you've never seen that vehicle, don't go Googling for it. It'll spoil you. Nevertheless, the HST is a good deal more extreme than conventional Range Rover Sport models. The styling will probably divide opinion but it's certainly eye-catching and adopts a number of Range Stormer design cues, the work being done by the same team that styled the Stormer.

A flush-fitting front bumper and a gaping grille at the front end will dispatch traffic from their path with devastating alacrity, the HST looking like a looming mako shark in a rear view mirror. A lower air intake may well compromise off-road performance, but let's not kid ourselves. This vehicle is more about creating an impression on the road than playing in the mud. Front fog lamps peer out of the spoiler section, giving the car an aggressive squint.

"If Range Rover spells green wellies and Barbour jackets to you, the Sport HST has the power to change that image very rapidly"

Move round the car and you'll spot colour-keyed lower door sections and sills, giving the HST a ground-hugging appearance. A revised tail spoiler is featured and the rectangular tail pipes again hark back to the Range Stormer concept. The chromed aluminium side vents and body-coloured door mirrors are also HST-specific while the 20-inch 'Stormer' alloy wheels give this Range Rover Sport a real concept car look.

Even if some of the exterior detailing is a little eccentric for your palate, just enjoy the Sport HST for what it is, get inside, savour the smart interior design, switch the thing on and press the throttle pedal. Firmly.

If you can suppress a guilty giggle at the way the supercharged HST accelerates, you've been endowed with admirable self control. The supercharger doesn't need to overcome initial lag in the same way a turbocharger does and the 385bhp soon makes itself apparent. Equipment highlights include a body coloured lower body and tailgate mouldings, an electric sunroof, privacy glass and deep sculptured front and rear bumpers with integrated rectangular exhaust tailpipes. Full leather trim is standard. There's also an electronic active locking rear differential for more tactile handling. If you must insist on taking your HST off-road, you'll be relieved to know that the chin spoiler is removable at the front. Just watch those alloys if you're negotiating ruts. One well embedded stone could prove very costly.

Like all Range Rover Sports, the HST features a steering rack that's a whole lot sharper than the conventional Range Rover item, offering more road feedback and quicker responses. To help cut the pitch and roll that quick changes of direction tend to generate, Land Rover have also upgraded the springs and dampers and lowered the car's roll centre. Perhaps the most innovative feature of the Sport's underpinnings is Dynamic Response, a set of anti roll bars that can be engaged or decoupled according to demand. Standard on the flagship supercharged model and an option on the other models in the range, Dynamic Response also decouples when off roading in order to allow greater wheel articulation.

Under normal conditions, drive is split 50:50 between the front and rear axles although it can instantaneously switch according to demand. The Sport also gets the Terrain Response system first seen in the Discovery3. This is virtually akin to having an expert sitting alongside you, helping to get the best out of the vehicle, on or off-road. The driver chooses one of five terrain setttings via a rotary knob mounted on the centre console. There's a general driving programme plus one for slippery conditions (dubbed 'grass/gravel/snow') and three specialist off road modes (mud/ruts, sand, rock crawl). The system will then automatically select the optimum setup for the electronic controls and the traction aids. This encompasses ride height, torque response, hill descent control, electronic traction control and transmission settings. You probably won't use it but it's good to know it's there.

Of more importance to typical supercharged HST buyers will be the car's ability to bludgeon its way to 60mph in just 7.2 seconds and on to a top speed of 140mph. The 374g/km emissions figure or the 17mpg combined fuel economy figure probably won't cause too much concern if you're a typical target buyer. It's worth remembering that there's also a diesel HST powered by the 3.6-litre TDV8 engine and to be honest, this is the variant that most people will end up buying. With 272bhp, it can't offer the same performance but fuel economy is far more manageable.

Stumping up £60,000 for what is often a third or fourth vehicle means that HST buyers are some of the most well-heeled automotive customers around. Whoever said money couldn't buy happiness had obviously never acquainted the throttle pedal with the carpet in one of these.

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