Land Rover Discovery Sport SE (2015-2026)
VerifiedAlso referred to as: Land Rover Discovery Sport SE 2025 and Land Rover Discovery Sport SE 2027.18 reviews
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A practical alternative to the Range Rover Evoque – There have been some serious improvements by Land Rover to step up build quality. It’s never been bad - quite the opposite really. The construction of the exterior just appears to be accurately put together, complementing a premium brand like this. On the interior, I was truly impressed with the fit and finish of the leather trim, metal buttons,… Read more
handles and paddle shifters. From the construction of the leather seats, infotainment, centre console and even through to the third row seats, I was pleasantly surprised with this updated interior.
After options and before on-road costs, this Land Rover was priced from $82,468 for the R-Dynamic SE D200 trim of the Discovery Sport.
Land Rover has upgraded its warranty period to 5 years/unlimited kilometres, with 24/7 roadside assistance.
From personal experience, servicing can be a little on the pricey side, especially when it comes to tires, brakes and rotors on these cars.
Land Rover servicing over 5 years/102,00kms will only set you back $1,950, which is far better than what I used to pay.
The brilliant thing about this mild hybrid system was the ability to reduce the strain a normal turbo diesel engine would endure.
I adored just how quiet this motor was, compared to the old 2.0L turbo diesel we had in our 2015 Range Rover Evoque. It certainly helped refine the sound profile, akin to that of a petrol motor rather than the ‘trucky’ sound of a traditional diesel engine.
The 6-speaker audio system was a treat too. Although it’s not an upgraded system, nor is it all that powerful, it did stand out as a premium listening experience. Maybe it was the extra sound deadening you find in cars like this, but the audio system was clear, precise and free of excess distortion.
In an emergency, there is Autonomous Emergency Braking which is great. However, just in case you fail to stop in time for a pedestrian, the Discovery Sport is fitted with an external airbag to help reduce injury - just don’t drive around as if you think being hit by a car still wouldn’t hurt.
It’s certainly not a powerhouse of a motor, but this 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder mild hybrid (such a mouthful) is more than enough for the daily grind and odd getaway.
Producing 150kW at 3750rpm and 430Nm as low as 1,750rpm, it’s clear to see the advantage of having a mild hybrid system fitted.
The claimed 0-100km/h time is 8.9 seconds. For most, this will be more than enough power, but for others it might not provide enough excitement as a family car.
I found the 9 speed to be far more subtle in its decision making process, deciding which gear to be in with more confidence than its predecessors. On very slight occasions there were some mis-shifts in awkward low speed situations, however this was a rare occurrence, even against gearboxes with less gears to move between.
This particular Discovery Sport I had was riding around on a set of 20-inch wheels, which not only looked the part, but also provided an excellent ride.
It’s a comfortable car; uneven bits of tarmac, speed bumps and potholes don’t phase this SUV. Nor should it, as this Discovery Sport is in every way prepared to go a little further off-road where other European SUV’s would have had to stop.
Surprisingly, the mild hybrid system in the Discovery Sport doesn’t have a dramatic impact on reducing fuel consumption figures.
Claimed fuel economy is 5.7L/100km, which can easily head as high as 10L/100km around town.
In the previous generation Discovery Sport, this was the weakest part of that car. It was ultimately the interior that pushed us from liking the Discovery Sport and liking the Evoque instead.
That’s all changed for 2021, as this Discovery Sport’s interior is one of the best interiors I’ve been in this year.
I adored Land Rover’s commitment to upgrading and improving this car. This interior went from feeling boring and soulless to a wonderfully designed one with some added flair.
The flair comes in the form of the upgraded 10 inch central touch screen, adaptive and capacitive controls for the aircon and terrain response modes, and a 12 inch fully digital drivers display.
I especially loved how every button, dial and material you came in contact with in this cabin felt premium to the touch. Made of soft plastics, rubber, leather or aluminum,there’s been a lot of influence from Range Rover put into this cabin.
With all the seats folded, you get a maximum load space of 1651L. It’s not a large SUV level of storage, but it makes plenty of usable space for a family of four, maybe five, to head away on a long road trip.
Compared to an Evoque, there’s a larger storage area, with a more practical load space. This has a higher roof line and more boxy dimensions to make the most of what you have back here.
The second row folds in a 40:20:40 split, allowing four people to travel with even more luggage pushed through the middle, without having to be squished together. Additionally, there was a ‘clear sight’ camera fitted to this Discovery Sport, which allows the driver to see a camera feed out of the back of the car via the rear view mirror.
If you’re looking for a motor to pair with the Discovery Sport, look no further than the D200, as this mild hybrid system certainly brings the diesel engine into 2021 with added power and responsiveness.
It’s comfortable, it’s certainly luxurious, and I felt like it’d make a great companion for long trips if you feel like exploring a little further beyond your own suburb.
Buying used and out of warranty? Make sure you get a thorough mechanical inspection to attempt to avoid any rude surprises.
*Disclaimer - I work for ProductReview as their independent car and motorbike expert. I borrow new cars and motorbikes from manufacturers and owners to review. I am not paid or incentivised by these brands to post reviews. I write and create content to provide insight and information about any new or used vehicle I can get my hands on.
Most Unreliable car I've ever owned – The car looks great, is comfortable to drive and handles well. The main issue is that I keep getting a "Insufficient Diesel Exhaust Fluid Quality" error, "No more restarts after 800km" countdown. This has happened every 5 months since the car was new. Land Rover claim I over fill or use the wrong Ad Blue but the error happens even with Land Rover… Read more
supplied AdBlue. Land Rover have not been able to fix the issue and it's happened at least five times. I'm now too scared to drive it far from home. The other issue is that the Infotainment System randomly crashes and reboots. Sometime it crashes and just stops working completely. The only way to fix it is to park the car and leave it locked up for 15min so it resets itself. Most unreliable car I've ever owned.
Absolutly appalling quality – had to have towed 4 times in 2.5 years for DPF. Total lemon - customer service at Land Rover head office is more than terrible. Don't waste your money. Show details
Have fallen in love with this car – We have had this car since new and have now done over 110,000 km. There has not been any mechanical problems to date and a few structural teething problems early on were fixed by the dealer Exceptional mileage on long trips and low cost to maintain. We love our car and kayak hike and travel lots. Show details
I must have got a good one! – I purchased my disco sport new in late 2015 (MY16) and still have it. Done 150,000kms and use it as a family car everyday and been off road a handful of times. I absolutely LOVE this car. There must be a lot of lemons out there but mine has been a dream. I service only at the dealer in Canberra (which I cant complain about). I'm keeping this car long term. To all the sceptics, there are good ones out there! Show details
A quiet achiever – This is my day use car and after some hesitancy I have grown to love it. It's got all the gismos one needs and it's versatility is delighful. It can transport wine, big dog, shopping and suitcases for a week away, as well as be a 7 seater, a easy to use town car and when called upon something that manages flooded streets. If you need it can also… Read more
get a move on and while not the fastest it can still over take a road train going uphill and outpace anyone you need to. So far (one year from new) not a single fault. I'm beginning to love it.
Lemon - Currently at QCAT to have it refunded - it's that bad – We're now nearly a year down the track of trying to return a new Disco Sport after 9 faults in 6000kms. Faults range from gearbox failure and intermittent electronic brake failure to more minor faults such as dropping all of its washer fluid on the ground in our garage. The JLR do not deny any of the faults exist and have not provided any argument… Read more
against the various legal precedents that confirm the threshold of "Major Failure" under ACL are reached. The faults reach this threshold individually, as an aggregation and via the clause "would a reasonable consumer purchase the vehicle knowing the nature and extent of the faults". The dealer (JLR Springwood, QLD) has repeatedly set out to gain advantage in QCAT by breaking the rules. Attempting to have legal representation without applying to do so, and despite having an application to have JLR added as a joinder denied, having an employee of JLR represent them during a hearing again without applying to do so. In mediation (8 months after rejecting the vehicle), they agreed to an undertaking to review the car at our premises to ensure it had not been damaged/modified etc (to value it for internal processes), and assuming all was well (faults aside) they would then provide a letter confirming the process for refund. Whilst they sent the staff member out and the car was as expected, they failed to follow through with the agreed process. JLR have a willingness to use the arduous nature of the process to pursue your rights under ACL (QCAT) to deny customers their right, hoping instead that it is too hard or not financially viable to fight. The protections for consumers needs to change to ensure companies such as JLR are held to account when they deny consumer their rights.
Don't do it!
Material Quality Poor – I'm currently own Land rover Discovery sport 2016 year model with less than 70000km on odometer. And very disappointed with the quality of the parts its made. I would like to let people know as the quality is no longer of the premium cars as "Land Rover" presenting themselves. This also can be applicable to Jaguar that is also using exactly the… Read more
same parts and made of the same material. As well as the parts quality is poor, the customer relationship team responses not applicable and this matter case raised should not be responded the way it does. Car recently have 3 years warranty expired, however when I purchased it from Land Rover dealer it came with complementary 1 year extended warranty. Car always serviced at Land rover dealership and very good looked after. Few weeks ago I found as on the steering wheel cruise control switch "-" button has peeled off. And i really would like to stress you as this button have no sign of wear ant tear, it clearly sign of poor quality of paint or part or material. I've visited Land rover service centre where part was replaced, however I has been charged for part and labour $313. I'm happy to have a new part installed, however I'm disappointed as the premium car have poor quality parts installed and warranty does not cover it. I've been explained as my warranty does not cover this type of scenarios, but it's not explaining bad quality part installed on the premium car and not replacing it as complimentary or cover by extended warranty for the car which is less than a year out of warranty. Response from the Customer relationship stated as your part is functioning and falls under category wear and tear. This in NOT WEAR and TEAR this is BAD quality part of the premium car.
What a Lemon of a Car – We bought ours brand new back in 2018 with the new Ingenium 2.0L Diesel engine, and dealer failed to mention that this car needs to be driven once a week on the hwy for the DPF to regenerate properly due to bad engineering design. DPF too far from the engine to heat up on short drives. After 10,000kms service light came on and had to be taken to… Read more
the dealer for a service well below their recommended 25,000km service intervals. Front tyres showed significant wear at the same time but dealer shrugged it off as a wheel alignment issue which they assured me it was fixed. At 15,000 tyre wear at the front was getting worse, dealer blamed it on driving style and round abouts. At 19,000 engine rattle noticed and needed new timing chain at the same time they also replaced front drive shaft bearing. Fuel Economy is also bad, no were near the advertised consumption values.
Positive - prestige and good looking car
Major oil leak from transfer case found at 4th service. Dealer and Manufacturer refused to repair! – Had lots of problems with this car. Worst problem was a major oil leak from the transfer case that was found at the 4th service at 104000km. Was originally told not to worry and that Purnell Land Rover would not leave me out in the cold over the extra 4000 km but was then refused any repairs from both the dealer and manufacturer. Show details
Worst car ever!! – terrible product. Just 2 years old, done only 26000 kms, already engine replaced, leaking roof, never ending exhaust problems and to top it all, the display constantly asks us to take car for service even within 1 week after service is done!! really regret I have bought this piece of S**t! Show details
Brilliant car when it works- sadly it doesn't work often enough – not sure I have enough room in the text box- car has upgraded sound system+ TV output rear DVD players for the kids, Tow Bar and Ambient Lighting. Car is 2 years old, done 40K and has visited the dealer at least once every 3rd Month. Problems encountered 1. Ambient internal lighting- not consistent light transmission (problem still… Read more
outstanding JLR acknowledge that there it is not illuminating correctly but says it is consistent with other cars so not a problem in their eyes)
2. Dash screen replaced x2
3. Forward Collision Alert (JLR version) not working correctly
4. Automatic Hi Beams coming on when they are not supposed to and turning off when they are not supposed to (ie trees/road signs etc)
5. auto stop/start technology not operational repaired x6 still doesn't function
6. B Pillar rattles repaired x7 but still rattle post fix
7. numerous console creaks/rattles
8. battery replaced as was faulty and not holding charge
9. battery charge system replaced as found to be faulty
10. ABS system found to be faulty
11. numerous hesitations on acceleration (throttle lag) not repaired considered normal- except for when you think you have enough time to make a turn press the gas and nothing happens, but when it does, oncoming traffic is now too close but your moving and aren't travelling fast enough due to turbo lag to out-run the traffic but also can't stop in time...
12. Turbo not opening correctly- causing engine grind and additional hesitation during acceleration
13. Failed Transfer Case
14. Fuel economy deteriorated by 150% city driving and 100% country within first 12 months of car- considered normal by JLR
15 multiple speaker failures.
Short of it, is that the car looks really nice and would be a great car if it worn't for the constant problems....JLR have no capacity to explain or repair vehicle in a satisfactory manner.
I sourced a licensed independent JLR authorised repairer- We re-tuned the car, eliminated all of the turbo lag and restored fuel economy to within range as prescribed by JLR, boosted the power output and torque which helped. Also eliminated turbo related engine grind. Installed throttle control module to eliminate throttle lag, undertook a soot clean removed the gunk building up in the car- cost 5.5K of my hard earned money.
I have given up on repairing B pillar rattles and auto stop/start-
If there were lemon laws in Australia- I would have driven the car to the dealer given them the keys and asked for my money back!
Great car when running, So many small issues – Very practical design, comfortable to drive. Only if we didn't have all these issues this would have been a great car. We use it on a daily basis, 28K KM's in just under 2 years. Though Discovery Sport claims service every 34K KMS or 2 years whichever is first the information display keeps popping up as Service required. I did do a service… Read more
after 1 year (Which is not covered in the service plan). Just 28,000 KMS and the brake pads are worn out, $1200 to fix them, I have not had this problem in any of my previous cars (Not Land Rover). Initially we were thinking that our next upgrade will be a Discovery, but I am not so sure anymore.
Added: 07 Jan 2019, took my car for a wheel rotation last week (Every 10K). All 4 tires which came by default were chipped and I had to change tires (All of 30,000 Kms). Very rare off-road trips, mainly to scout camp sites. Car was driven mainly in Sydney streets.
Find out how Land Rover Discovery Sport SE compares to other Midsize / Medium SUVs
Know better, choose better.
Diesel engine proving to be a problem – These Landrover diesels need to come with a buyer beware warning on the diesel engines, which suffer badly from oil dilution and need many more services than advertised. JLR continue to promote fictional service interval despite issuing a notice to dealers that the extra servicing requirements is a known problem. Google oil dilution Landrover… Read more
diesel and see a long list of very unhappy customers who have been mislead by JLR marketing both here and overseas.
Great family SUV – Got a great deal on our "Disco" Sport, that included 3 years free servicing, in addition to the discounted sale price plus our modern l was packed with features including 7 seat option. Interior has ample storage, heaps of USB ports so family is happy on long trips. Vehicle is quiet, refined on long trips and not too big in the city. Fuel economy is Ok for this type of car and power of turbo petrol excellent. Love it! Show details
beautifully designed, functional and goes everywhere – didnt break the bank as we thought it would. With the features loaded in this car, it matches up well with the luxury suvs and the price is close to the lower end suvs. relatively econmical on fuel considering its size and did i mention it has seven seats and does off roading very well. I would not be surprised if this becomes the best selling car this year Show details
One epic car! – We did a lot of research and compared this car to 13 other diesel cars some 4wd and some suv's. This car turned out to be the number one from our research and has not disappointed us since. The leather interior is functional and easy to clean with kids in the back! It has a beautiful and smooth ride with a great turning circle. We drive on eco… Read more
mode and the car still has enough kick and grunt to it, and we can get approx 2 weeks to a tank of fuel. Easy to drive to park with the camera and several sensors. Epic car were really happy with it.
Land Rover Discovery Sport Turbo diesel Td4 150 – Recently purchased this vehicle after extensive research in the mid range SUV category. The vehicle performance is excellent with great road manners and stance. Great amount of room for 5 adults and plenty of cargo space. Definitely worthy of consideration for towing with 2.2 tonne braked tow capacity. I am very pleased to have selected vehicle.… Read more
A really great product!
2 years since purchasing and there have been some small issues with the tailgate opening when not activated- luckily only while in the garage. The dealer knew of the issue and addressed it quickly and effectively.
The diesel exhaust fluid required more topping up than anticipated but still not an issue whilst under warranty.
I attended an off road course by an approved training provider and realised a significant short coming with ground clearance resulting in the loss of a plastic panel below the passenger side doors.
It’s a great soft roader and great for a fire trail in Oz, but not for any serious, crazy off road stuff. It has its limits if you don’t have air adjustable suspension.
CB
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