Land Rover Discovery Sport vs BMW X3, Volvo XC60 and Hyundai Santa Fe

Read the full BMW X3 review

The BMW and Volvo, as tested here, knock on the door of £44k and £40k respectively, leaving the £36k Santa Fe as the best value option in terms of toys per pound. Even if you do go box-ticking bonkers, though, you’ll still struggle to match the Discovery Sport’s vast battery of kit.

Perhaps it’s not entirely without merit, then. There’s still much that the Land Rover needs to do, though, in order to overcome its obvious foibles. So to fully establish what it’s really like, we set out from Membury services and dive off into the countryside south of Swindon.

Here, the Discovery quickly transpires to live up to its ‘Sport’ moniker. The suspension is fairly stiff, the steering hefty and the intent clear. It’s by no means a Porsche Macan, but this is an SUV – despite its size and apparent nature – that rewards the keen driver. Even though the roads are slick with a mixture of sleet, rain and mud, it retains an impressive amount of grip and turns in to corners in a precise, poised fashion.

It’ll understeer predictably when pushed but, other than an initial light tip onto its outside wheel, it corners in a flat fashion. Wind it out across some sweeping country roads and it tackles everything you throw at it with aplomb, feeling eager and enjoyable rather than unsettled.

It’s only the powertrain that takes the edge off the experience. The 2.2-litre diesel puts out 188bhp and 310lb ft, enabling 0-62mph in 8.9sec – not earth-shattering but more than enough for its class. Peak torque is generated from a low 1750rpm, so once the Discovery Sport is rolling, it surges along with aplomb. The engine isn’t particularly quiet, though, and its vibrations occasionally intrude into the cabin.

The nine-speed automatic gearbox could be better as well. From a standing start, it’ll hesitate to transmit drive, making it difficult to execute a prompt getaway. Additional throttle application results in nothing more than an even more vigorous take-off when it actually responds.

You soon learn to drive around it, but it’s still a disappointment. The consolation is that gearshifts are otherwise prompt and quick, even when commanded manually via the paddles, and the engine pulls heartily enough through its rev range. Braking power is excellent, too, and easily judged.

Read the full Hyundai Santa Fe review

Once up to cruising speed, the Discovery Sport’s firm ride doesn’t translate into discomfort. It lopes along with ease, in a settled fashion, and the quiet cabin makes longer trips easy to endure. There’s a vast amount of space, too.

The quality of the cabin is acceptable, but there are some easily marked plastics in places. It’s functional and logical, rather than elegant and inspirational. There are issues, though, such as a panoramic roof that doesn’t extend forward far enough to make much difference to front-seat occupants.

Unlike the terrain-following Land Rover, the BMW has much more compliant suspension that allows for a moderate amount of body movement. It feels softer, which, in conjunction with lighter steering, delivers a more cosseting feel. Our car was fitted with £650 worth of variable damper control, which allows for stiffer suspension when desired but still not to the extent of that found in the Discovery Sport.

Regardless, many may find the X3 easier to get along with because of its less sharp nature. This is evident in some of the specifications alone; the BMW’s steering is 3.0 turns from lock to lock, whereas the Land Rover’s is a more hyperactive 2.4. In Sport mode, the X3 will tighten up and corner faster than the Discovery Sport, but not in quite such a rewarding fashion.

The BMW may not be as exciting to drive as the Land Rover, but it does feature a much more competent powertrain. Its 2.0-litre diesel puts out 188bhp and 295lb ft, and although on paper that doesn’t match the Land Rover on torque, it feels more eager at lower revs.

This snappy response is bolstered further by the eight-speed automatic ’box, which rifles through its ratios in a suitably prompt fashion. It doesn’t downshift as unnecessarily often as the Land Rover, but it does intermittently hang on to the gears for a little too long at lower speeds and labour the engine. The BMW’s diesel isn’t a particularly refined one, either, but it is a little less boomy than the Discovery Sport’s powerplant.

Inside the BMW, there’s masses of space, too, although it’s purely a five-seater. The interior isn’t as cohesive as the Land Rover’s – it looks like a scaled-up 3 Series and doesn’t quite fit the car correctly – but the quality of the materials is generally very good. Its switchgear, particularly, feels delightfully well damped and securely fixed.

Read the full Volvo XC60 review

The XC60 outdoes both on the comfort and refinement front. It also has the most aurally gratifying diesel of the lot. The 178bhp, 295lb ft 2.0-litre motor delivers prompt, lively-feeling performance, too, unburdened by the frictional and weight penalties incurred by a four-wheel drive system.

However, the Volvo falls down in two places. Firstly, although the cabin is easily the most visually appealing of the cars here and front space is excellent, the rear is quite cramped. Secondly, there’s not much to reward the driver.

Although it damps out the bumps well and tolerates the curves adequately enough, there’s little in the way of feedback – and the harder you push, the more notably the flaws in its chassis become apparent. Unsettlingly, there’s sometimes pronounced steering kickback in long, sweeping high-speed turns.

Its lack of four-wheel drive, in this specification at least, stunts its overall rating slightly, too. Accelerate with anything resembling vigour out of a vaguely damp junction and it’ll easily overpower the front wheels. You’ll also notice some torque-induced pull if you’re driving at speed through corners as well. That said, the eight-speed Geartronic automatic works well, although shifts aren’t executed as quickly as in the BMW or Land Rover.

So what of the Santa Fe, the last in the line? Well, truth be told, it does a very competent job. It rides in a pliant, supple fashion and exhibits no unpleasant tendencies when pushed. The steering is devoid of feedback, admittedly, but its light weight makes manoeuvring easy.

The Hyundai is the slowest car here, on paper, but it doesn’t feel like it gives up much to the others in the real world – in part, thanks to a substantial 322lb ft at low revs from its 2.2-litre diesel. Its 194bhp diesel is a pleasantly quiet affair, too, and ideal for simply cruising around. Similarly, the six-speed automatic transmission operates in an unobtrusive fashion and, unlike the Discovery Sport, the Santa Fe will happily trundle away from junctions without hesitation.

Its interior isn’t exciting or as well finished as the others here, but it feels durable. It’s a shame the seats lack lower back support, though, because they can become tiring to sit in on longer trips. Outside of that, then, the Hyundai majors on everyday usability. It’s spacious, well equipped and immensely easy to drive. But although it has its strong points, it’s the most amorphous car within this group and it doesn’t leave much of a lasting impression.

It’s worth making a note that the Discovery Sport is not a particularly efficient mode of transport, averaging 33mpg during our test against a claimed 44.8mpg. Its rivals, which are claimed to average between 52.3 and 60.1mpg, returned closer to 40mpg without effort.

The verdict

We pitch back onto the motorway, heading towards the centre of Weston-super-Mare before hitting its fine beaches to conclude our test. It’s at this point that, despite my initial reservations and after having spent some four hours behind the wheel of the Discovery Sport, I realise I’m enjoying driving it.

Compared with the other cars here, it’s more exciting, interesting and desirable, and by such an extent that its imperfections eventually pale into comparative insignificance. Furthermore, it’s the Land Rover that feels like it could conquer a mountain, and that’s what many look for in an SUV, regardless of whether they’ll ever venture off the beaten path.

The BMW is unquestionably an impressive piece of machinery, but it lacks the Discovery Sport’s on-road verve and practical edge, landing it in second place. It does offer a more relaxed, rounded performance, but the Land Rover transpires to be the kind of car that you step out of and, with a glance backwards, quietly wish you could continue driving onwards in. For a four-cylinder diesel SUV, that’s an impressive feat. 

In third place is the Volvo. It has its charms, such as its quiet cabin, but its chassis leaves it trailing in the wake of the Discovery Sport and X3. Similarly, the Santa Fe is not devoid of appeal, but it lacks the desirability and luxury feel necessary to come out on top here. Consequently, it finishes last, but even to be in competition with such strong rivals shows how commendable a car it is.