The used Range Rover Sport that's the lesser gamble is a first-generation 3.6 TDV8, which no known engine fault names; avoid any 3.0 TDV6 or SDV6 from 2009 to 2017, whose crankshaft can snap, often with no warning light.
4 known faults, 4 rated high severity in our database; owners report 27.2 mpg, 83% of the official figure. Everything below is built from that data and the archived owner history, not from a press car.
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Paste the Land Rover Range Rover Sport advert and we read it against its known faults, the MOT history and the DVLA record, then tell you what to ask the seller and what to look at on the day. Free, about a minute, no card.
Check a Land Rover Range Rover Sport advert (free) →A first-generation Range Rover Sport (2005 to 2013) with the 3.6 TDV8 is the safer buy, because it's the only diesel here that neither of the big known engine faults covers. That's a thin record rather than a clean one, though: single owners have had both turbos fail at 68,000 miles, a starter that kept refusing to crank and an air suspension warning that wouldn't stay off.
The other first-generation diesels both carry a High known fault. On the 2.7 TDV6 (2005 to 2009) the timing belt tensioner sits on the oil pump casing, which can shear and let the belt come off, wrecking the engine between 60,000 and 88,000 miles. The 3.0 TDV6 that replaced it from 2009 has its own problem: the crankshaft bearing shells can spin, and the crank can then snap, from 19,000 miles upwards.
The second generation (2013 to 2022) has more against it. Every one's a keyless relay theft target, so insurance can be steep or refused outright. The 3.0 diesels up to 2017 fall inside the crankshaft fault's window, with failed engines reported on 2014, 2015 and 2017 cars. The 2.0 SD4 of 2016 to 2019 has a High known fault too: cut-short filter regenerations thin its oil with diesel, wearing the timing chain early. Beyond those, little's on record, and that isn't a clean record.
The 3.6 TDV8 is the diesel to pick, since no known fault in the list names it. One owner's four-year-old TDV8 destroyed its turbos at 68,000 miles, and the suspected cause was coked-up oil feed pipes from switching off straight after long climbs or towing. Let it idle for a while before you switch off after a hard run or a tow, and ask the seller whether that's how it's been driven.
Don't buy a 2.7 TDV6 without invoices for its timing belt. Its tensioner is bolted to the oil pump casing, and when that casing shears the belt comes off and the engine's finished; one 2007 car lost its engine this way at 60,000 miles. The belt's due every 105,000 miles or 7 years, whichever comes first, with the rear fuel pump belt done at the same time, and one owner was told to upgrade the oil pump whenever the belts are changed.
The 3.0 TDV6 and SDV6 from 2009 to 2017 is the engine to avoid. Its bearing shells can move and spin, starving the bearings of oil until the crank snaps, often with a full dealer history and no warning light first. Owners have faced the cost of a whole replacement engine when it goes. Its timing belt is due every 7 years or 112,000 miles, and there's a second belt at the back driving the high-pressure fuel pump, so both should be done together.
The 2.0 SD4 diesel of 2016 to 2019 is no safe alternative: a July 2017 JLR notice listed it among engines getting diesel in their oil from too many filter regenerations, and on this engine thinned oil wears the timing chain early. Nothing on record singles out a gearbox for trouble, which tells you nothing either way about how they last. One owner's warning on brake and clutch parts was to stick with the original-equipment ones, because cheaper pattern parts often turned out poor and failed.
Listen hard to the engine from a cold start. On a 3.0 diesel, a deep knock from low down or a flicker of the oil pressure warning means the crankshaft fault's started, so ask for paperwork showing whether the engine's been replaced. On a 2.7, rumbling from underneath followed by a loss of power points at the timing belt tensioner, so ask for dated belt invoices. On a 2.0 SD4, a chain rattle from cold or an oil service warning thousands of miles early means fuel's thinning the oil.
Get under the car and bounce each corner. One 2009 TDV8 owner had the air suspension compressor and both front height sensors replaced and the warning light still came back, with a leaking air spring suspected. A 2007 TDV8 at 55,000 miles needed both rear trailing arms and was then told the front hydrostatic bushes had to go. On the later generation, one 2015 owner found the rear wheel bearings wearing at 47,000 miles, so listen for a hum from the back.
Try every electrical item, from the heated screen and seats to the lights and washers. On some first-generation cars the security codes were never recorded, so a fuse board fault can wipe the code and force a new ECU and door locks. Ask for proof the door recall was done on cars built between 2012 and 2015, where a door could open on the move and needed a software update or a new module.
Ask when the brake pipes were last renewed: one owner was told they're due at the 6 year or 100,000 mile service. Check the fuel gauge works, since one owner's failed through corroded contacts on top of the tank and paid £400 because the tank had to come out. If a first-generation car wears 20-inch wheels, make sure it's got the damped steering rack those wheels need.
Paste the advert into the free check and it runs these against the listing, the MOT history and the DVLA record before you travel.
Only buy one once you've got an insurance quote you can live with, because every car from this generation is a target for keyless relay theft and some insurers refuse to cover it at all. Ask whether the latest security update's been applied by a main dealer. The 3.0 diesels built up to 2017 fall inside the crankshaft fault's window, and the 2.0 SD4 of 2016 to 2019 carries the oil dilution fault, so both engines need paperwork, not trust.
Engine failures turn up across the owners' reports. A 2014 3.0 diesel seized at 63,000 miles when its crankshaft snapped, and a 2017 3.0 diesel's engine failed at 32,750 miles, and the maker offered to pay most of the cost of a replacement. Another owner's 2015 car lost its engine after being bought from a dealer with full service history, and a 2014 car's turbo failed after 20,000 miles.
Electrical faults show up too. One 2013 car at 17,000 miles threw a charging warning that triggered a stop fault, had its alternator changed, and its steering wheel buttons started working backwards. A 2015 car was stranded again and again by ignition module software, and a 2016 car kept cutting out, spending 20 weeks at dealers. One used 2016 car caught fire while being parked and its engine bay burnt out.
Look underneath and around the tailgate. A 2015 car had a leaking rear differential pinion seal, another 2015 car had a tailgate fault, and one owner of a 2013 or 2014 car found the tailgate seal had shrunk away from the bumper, leaving a gap of up to 10mm. One 2019 Autobiography's roof spoiler, brake light and all, tore off on a windy day, so check it's firmly bolted down.
Real-world economy on this generation: Land Rover Range Rover Sport 33.0 mpg.
Sellers rarely admit these faults outright
Paste any Land Rover Range Rover Sport advert and we check it against the faults, the MOT record and these figures in seconds.
Check an advert now (free) →Owners report 27.2 mpg across the Land Rover Range Rover Sport engines with data, about 83% of the official figure, from 523 submissions.
Land Rover Range Rover Sport Real MPG by engine →It steers and corners with a precision you don't expect from something this big and heavy, especially on 19-inch Pirelli Scorpion tyres. It's a big 4x4 you can actually enjoy on a twisty road, and it doesn't feel clumsy or slow to respond when you turn the wheel into a bend.
Off the tarmac, it's properly capable, so rough tracks, fields and muddy lanes are well within what it'll do. On a 3.6 TDV8 built before 2010 there's no diesel particulate filter either, so there isn't a filter to clog up if most of your driving is short hops around town rather than long motorway runs.
The used Range Rover Sport that's the lesser gamble is a first-generation 3.6 TDV8, which no known engine fault names; avoid any 3.0 TDV6 or SDV6 from 2009 to 2017, whose crankshaft can snap, often with no warning light. Our database holds 4 known Land Rover Range Rover Sport faults, 4 rated high severity, and the sections above say which generation and engine carry them.
Listen hard to the engine from a cold start. Read the MOT history for repeat advisories and ask for invoices for any work the seller mentions. Then paste the advert into the free check, which reads it against every known Land Rover Range Rover Sport fault before you travel.
Owners report 27.2 mpg on average, about 83% of the official figure, from 523 submissions. Belt (3.0 TDV6, 3.0 SDV6, SDV6, 3.0 V6 DIESEL): 112,000 miles or 7 years, whichever comes first, so budget for it if the history does not show it done. The known faults page lists a rough repair cost against each fault. Land Rover Range Rover Sport Real MPG by engine.
If you used the Honest John car-by-car reviews before the site closed in 2026, this is where the Land Rover Range Rover Sport buying advice now lives. It is written from the archived owner reports and model notes (archived page, 41 items read for this model), our own known-faults database, the confirmed service intervals and the Real MPG figures. Every number on the page comes from that data, not from the text. The same data feeds our free advert check.
CarAdCheck is not affiliated with Honest John or Volkswagen Financial Services. What happened to Honest John, and where each feature lives now.
The Land Rover Range Rover Sport is one decision. Reading the advert, the history and the seller are the rest, and these cover them.
Looking at a Land Rover Range Rover Sport right now? Check the advert before you go and see it.