Well, Land Rover has a reason. That is, an estimated 50 per cent of the customers own or regularly travel with a dog, hence the company put its canine capability to the test by transporting a team of sled dogs to Vesileppis Ski Tunnel in Finland for a unique training challenge.
Besides showcasing how the Terrain Response system excels in slippery Arctic conditions, the other reason is that the Discovery Sport is now Land Rover’s best-selling model, with 75,000 customers taking delivery so far in 2017.
Land Rover took a team of husky dogs for a training ahead of winter championships to the Vesileppis Ski Tunnel in Finland, for a much-needed sprint around a snow track.
The 290 PS SUV provided stiff competition for Finnish middle distance champion, Laura Kääriäinen and her team of six sled dogs. They went head-to-head in Vesileppis Ski Tunnel, Finland, in a unique 1 km sprint around the dedicated underground tunnel.
The undulating tunnel is carved into the bedrock 35 m below ground level and kept at constant -2°C to maintain a blanket of snow 20 mm deep throughout the summer, making it the perfect place to put the Discovery Sport’s all-terrain capability to the test.
Setting off in opposite directions, the dogs had a straightforward task. Once they had negotiated the first incline they were able to pick up and maintain speed – typically around 35 km/h. In contrast, the Discovery Sport’s path was blocked by a set of ice blocks, which put its wheel articulation and traction control systems to the test, on one of its laps.
Over two laps of the tunnel, the sled team and Discovery Sport were closely matched but the Land Rover, which was forced to negotiate a set of unique ice obstacles along the way, won the unique challenge by a dog’s hair.
Karl Richards, Lead Engineer for Stability Control Systems at Jaguar Land Rover, said: “Snow is one of the most demanding surfaces drivers will encounter during winter around the world and Discovery Sport proved to be as comfortable in these conditions as the dogs. Land Rover’s advanced Terrain Response technology and intelligent four-wheel drive system ensure our premium compact SUV is in a class of its own when it comes to off-road driving – whether you’ve got two legs or four.”
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