“Can we keep her?”
I thought the stars had aligned and our family was to take in a special fur baby to replace our much adored and recently passed 15-year-old moggie and Labrador.
We’ve been visiting the Animal Welfare League in recent weeks and getting our pet fix, with the real possibility that a special four-legged friend will choose us to be its family.
But, No. Nup, the attached photograph in the MMS was not of an animal. The only link to an animal was the plush beige leather seats in the Land Cruiser Discovery Sport.
Straight off the bat, there’s a big tick for the stylish Disco Sport… the wife feels as comfy in its presence (well, snuggled back in its spacious plush interior) as she does around a fluffy little kitten or slobbering excitable dog.
I couldn’t disagree with her.
While not as cute as the handsome kelpie I befriended at the recent Pet Expo at Wayville, the new Disco Sport is better mannered.
With the 2.2-litre in-line four-cylinder turbo-diesel pushing out 140kW and 420Nm of torque, the SD4 can sprint to 100km/h in 8.9 seconds. That’s gotta be quicker than any dish-licker, right?
Coupled with the nine-speed ZF auto transmission, the claimed fuel economy is 6.1L/100km and it offers an extensive gearing range for all manner of driving.
And while a pause in proceedings when you put your foot down (not unlike a puppy in training when you command “sit’’) is at first a bit off-putting, you soon get past that when you consider this Land Rover’s great handling and ride comfort.
It behaves well on tarmac – where it is as any “keeper” should be, quiet – and holds its own off-road.
Then there’s the outstanding line up of kit in the HSE model which comes in at a starting price of $63,600 and includes 10-way adjustable electric seats which are also heated and cooled, powered tailgate, leather trim, autonomous emergency braking, front and rear parking sensors and reversing camera, dual-zone climate control, eleven-speaker stereo…. and the list goes on.
Safety is not overlooked either with the inclusion of seven airbags, ABS, stability and traction controls, brake assist, hill descent control, rollover stability, forward collision mitigation and lane departure warning.
The story for the Land Rover Discovery Sport is much the same as that for a new fur friend. It would make a strong play at being a keeper… if we had the space.
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