Range Rover, Range Rover Sport gain a new diesel hybrid option

Land Rover has updated its Range Rover and Range Rover Sport models with a new engine option: an inline-six turbo diesel with three liters of displacement and an electric starter add-on.

The new drivetrain comes to replace the two outdates bi-turbo specs surviving from the Ford era: the V6 3.0 TT and the V8 4.4 TT.

The new engine weighs 80 kilos (176 pounds) less than the old V8. In its base D250 spec, it churns out 249 hp (185 kW) and 600 Nm (443 lb-ft) of torque. The D300 spec takes things further with 300 hp (224 kW) and 650 Nm (480 lb-ft), and the D350 claims the top ranking with 350 hp (261 kW) and 700 Nm (516 lb-ft).

To put things into perspective, the discontinued V6 twin-turbo had between 249 and 306 hp (185 – 228 kW) of power and between 300 and 650 Nm (221 – 480 lb-ft) of torque, depending on the spec. The V8 could deliver 339 hp (253 kW) and 740 Nm (546 lb-ft) in its best implementation.

The new Range Rover D300 gets from zero to 100 km/h (0-62 mph) in 7.4 seconds and consumes 8.6 liters of diesel fuel per 100 kilometers covered on average. This roughly translates to 33 MPG for our British readers and 27.3 MPG for those from the United States. The old V6 spec concluded the sprint in 7.9 seconds and consumed nine liters of fuel. The D350 launches in 7.1 seconds and needs 9.2 liters per 100 km (UK: 30.7 MPG; USA: 25.5 MPG).

Both the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport feature an infotainment system with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay in base spec, as well as an improved air cleansing and ionization system. The Sport version additionally debuts in eight new body colors.