Land Rover recently announced that its vehicle Discovery Sport has got five-star rating for safety from Euro NCAP.
Discovery Sport features a number of cutting-edge safety features, such as an all-new pedestrian airbag which is a first in the small-SUV segment. This feature deploys from the upper-rear surface of the bonnet within 60 milliseconds upon detection of a pedestrian impact to reduce the risk of serious pedestrian injury.
Another first for Land Rover is the Autonomous Emergency Braking system, which uses a digital stereo camera mounted next to the rear view mirror to detect objects that could pose a collision threat, delivering visual and audible warnings and automatically applying the brakes if a collision is imminent.
In all variants, including 5+2 seat models, all seating positions are assessed to ensure a high standard of occupant protection for people of all ages, including young children. Even in the third row, retractor pretensioners are fitted as standard for enhanced protection.
A new design of multi-link rear axle also ensures the rear suspension turrets make minimal intrusion into the luggage area. This innovation has proved key in allowing Land Rover to offer unique-in-segment 5+2 seating. This provides occasional rear seating that’s not only easy to access and comfortable for third row passengers, but can also be folded away to provide luggage volume equal to that of a five-seat derivative. In fact, both second- and third rows can be folded down using one hand to create an even more spacious load area. The load-space floor has been located as low down as possible, increasing space and ensuring that even large items are easy to load and unload.
Murray Dietsch, Director of Land Rover Programmes, said: “The vehicles' safety team worked tirelessly to ensure that the Discovery Sport delivered levels of safety never before seen in the small SUV segment. We have introduced some cutting edge safety technologies such as the all-new pedestrian airbag and an innovative Autonomous Emergency Braking system, in addition to our tried-and-tested Land Rover safety systems.
“All of our products are tested to stringent in-house safety standards that go significantly beyond the legal and consumer testing standards. As a family vehicle, safety was really a key motivator when designing this car. We are proud to have made no compromises on this.” Added Dietsch.
Commenting on the launch of this distinctive vehicle in the Saudi market, Amr Badghaish, Marketing Director at Mohamed Yousuf Naghi Motors, the authorized dealer for Jaguar Land Rover vehicles in Saudi Arabia, said: "We all enjoyed the launch of Land Rover vehicle "Discovery Sport" in the Saudi market at a ceremony in last February, now we announce the arrival of the new batch of this model with the third seating row. This model meets the requirements of many of our customers, who love adventures, in terms of safety, multiple-use and third seating row that allows all family members enjoy this vehicle and its excellent performance."
The Discovery Sport also features a full suite of active and passive safety systems, including Dynamic Stability Control, Electronic Traction Control, Roll Stability Control, Anti-lock Braking Systems, Reverse Traffic Detection, Emergency Brake Lights, Lane Departure Warning and Seatbelt Reminders. Optional* features also include Blind Spot Monitoring with Closing Vehicle Sensing, Active Speed Limiting, Reverse Traffic Detection and Traffic Sign Recognition.
The new compact SUV features a rigid, high-strength steel and boron body shell, with a roof that will support more than 4.5 times the vehicle weight. Discovery Sport also has a comprehensive occupant safety package including driver and passenger airbags, driver knee airbag, and side curtain and thorax airbags.