It’s not everyday that we can say that an SUV has managed to beat a supercar, but that’s what just happened. Land Rover recently took the 2018 Range Rover Sport SVR to the famous Tianmen Road in China where it beat a record set by the a Ferrari 458 Italia.
The mountain road has no less than 99 corners, but that didn’t matter, since the Range Rover Sport SVR set a new unofficial record of 9 minutes 51 seconds for the 11.3km ascent, beating the 10 minutes 31 seconds – set by a Ferrari 458 Italia in 2016. The standard spec Range Rover Sport SVR was driven by Panasonic Jaguar Racing driver Ho-Pin Tung. This isn’t the only stunt that Land Rover did in China, since the Range Rover Sport Plug-in Hybrid recently climbed the 999 steps leading to China’s Heaven’s Gate.
“I am used to the high speeds of racing but this was even more demanding. Maintaining concentration was the biggest challenge as the road twists and turns constantly, with huge drop-offs to the side. The consequences of getting it wrong would have been really serious so I focused on establishing a rhythm and the Range Rover Sport SVR made this easy – it may be an SUV but it has the performance and agility of a supercar and can take you to places a supercar can only dream of.”
The Range Rover Sport SVR is powered by a 5.0L supercharged V8 with 567 horsepower. It’s the fastest ever Land Rover and can accelerate 60 mph in only 4.3 seconds with a top speed of 174mph.
Source: Land Rover
