Range Rover Sport Kahn Cosworth review

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Land Rover Range Rover Sport Kahn Cosworth Sport RST 300 First Drive

Test date Friday, May 29, 2009 Price as tested £80,000

: Cosworth has got more power and torque from the engine

What is it?

Range Rovers have long been fertile territory for tuning companies, and the latest is this, from Kahn Design: the Cosworth Sport RST 300.

Design specialist Kahn has developed a styling kit for the new range-topping Range Rover Sport HST that includes a carbonfibre bonnet, carbonfibre wheelarch extensions, all-new carbonfibre bumpers front and rear, and twin carbonfibre tail spoilers. It also includes lightweight forged 22in aluminium wheels that, Kahn claims, save 10kg of unsprung mass per corner.

What’s it like?

An acquired taste. Much of this car’s carbonfibre is woven into a distinctive check pattern and left lacquered but unpainted on its panels. The look is expensive and unusual. Like a footballer’s waistcoat, it certainly won’t be to everyone’s taste, but for those who make up the customer base of cars like this, you can imagine that it could be very appealing indeed.

Inside this car Kahn reupholsters the seats, fits new kickplates, new dash materials and new instruments. It’s here that the firm’s affiliation with Northampton-based Cosworth Engineering also comes to the fore; there are Cosworth logos almost everywhere, even on the drilled aluminium pedals.

That’s because Cosworth is responsible for teasing an extra 32bhp and 118 lb ft of torque from Land Rover’s 3.6-litre TDV8 engine for this car. The extra power doesn’t have a transformative effect on the driving experience, but the extra torque’s noticeable. This car’s half a second faster than a standard Range Sport V8 diesel over the 0-60mph dash, 5mph faster at the top end, and pulls much harder between 2500 and 3500rpm.

Those bigger, lighter wheels also improve the precision and response of the car’s steering, even though they also add a harder edge to its secondary ride.

Should I buy one?

Do you like the way it looks? The Kahn Cosworth RST is certainly a niche car, and the near-£20k premium that the Bradford-based company charges for it over a standard Range Sport TDV8 HST narrows its appeal still further. But if you want your Range Sport to stand out, and you think Kahn’s styling modifications are flattering, there’s every reason to indulge.

We’d say the engine and wheel upgrades are worth having, but would willingly forgo the carbonfibre makeover they come with. But then there’s just no accounting for taste when it comes to cars like this, especially given that they’re designed to appeal to cash-rich extroverts with very little taste for accounting