2015 Land Rover Discovery Sport 2.2 SD4 Diesel HSE Manual first drive

It's hard to believe it's been more than a quarter of a century since Land Rover launched the Discovery as a halfway model between the bare-bones Defender and deluxe Range Rover.

With the recent launch of the smaller, sportier Discovery Sport, the company again seeks to bridge a gap. The moribund Freelander will soon be gone and the style-focused Range Rover Evoque isn’t practical enough to take up the slack.

There’s no denying the Discovery Sport’s practicality, with its seven seats, huge boot and off-road credentials; its wading depth is actually 100mm more than a Defender's. 

But how is does this manual version rate against rivals like the BMW X3 and does it stack up as a package costing the thick end of £40,000?

It’s been well publicised that this car isn’t quite the finished article. Jaguar Land Rover’s new Ingenium 2.0-litre diesel engine - meant to be quieter and more efficient than the old 2.2-litre diesel - wasn’t available for launch in the Discovery Sport, which will have to wait until mid-2015 for the upgrade.

There’s no hiding the fact that the current engine has fallen behind in terms of emissions. For a start, it’s only Euro 5 compliant and the 162g/km of CO2 from the tailpipes is way off the class best.

Similarly, despite the JLR engineers’ efforts to improve refinement, there’s still a noticeable amount of vibration through the controls at idle and coarseness at higher revs. However, use it where its torque is most abundant - between 2000 and 3000rpm - and things are much more tolerable.

It also feels flat below this rev range, but again, work the engine in that performance window and the Discovery Sport will make relaxed, leisurely progress.

However, it’s a far cry from the automatic version, which feels far more urgent. A quick glance at the spec sheet confirms this. With just six gears, as opposed to the nine the auto ’box can choose from, the manual’s 0-60mph time of 9.8sec is a full 1.4sec slower.

That doesn’t help to build a case for the manual, and neither does the gearchange or clutch action. The lever has a long throw and a viscous feel, with the occasional graunch through the gate. Meanwhile, the clutch has an imprecision that makes the Discovery Sport more difficult to drive smoothly than it should be. 

Around town, the steering is lethargic, too. Rather than having weight, it would be more accurate to say it has resistance and, when pulling out of side turnings, at times a reluctance to self-centre.

The low-speed ride isn’t perfect, either. The suspension copes well with low-frequency undulations like speed bumps, but high-frequency ripples and sharp ridges thump through the cabin more than expected.

However, these challenges fade once the Discovery Sport is released onto an open road. As the speed builds, the ride settles down,while the engine finds its sweet spot and its note morphs into a background thrum. The steering feels sharper, too, allowing you to float the Disco Sport from apex to apex with ease.