Nearly new buying guide: Land Rover Discovery Sport

We’d go for the nine-speed automatic gearbox over the six-speed manual, too, because it suits the Discovery Sport’s character and will make the car easier to sell on. Still, it isn’t all bad. With direct steering and plentiful grip, the Discovery Sport feels secure and connected to the road all the time.

As for the interior, there’s a true sense of quality to all the fixtures and fittings. Especially pleasing is the way all the major controls are clearly and logically laid out. The infotainment system can be a bit of a fiddle to use, though.

In terms of passenger accommodation, ‘cram’ is the operative word where the rearmost seats are concerned. They aren’t as spacious as you’ll find in a similarly sized MPV. In fact, the third row is only really suitable for short stints, unless those in the second row slide their seats forward to share their generous amount of leg room.

The boot’s a decent size, though, especially when the third-row seats are folded into the floor. Front-seat occupants will find little to complain about because there’s loads of room.

Higher-mileage examples can be bought quite cheaply, but we’d suggest you spend between £14,000 and £16,000 for a 2015 Disco Sport with average mileage. Increase your budget to £20,000 or more for a 2017 car, or around £26,000 if you want to shun diesel and get a petrol.

BUYER BEWARE

Reliability Many reported issues only touched on here so go over your intended purchase very carefully.

Interior Be sure you can tolerate the much-reported squeaks and rattles, some from the B-pillar a known source and for which there is a fix. Check for warning lights and that all the features of the infotainment system work. Make sure the climate control system works. Check the second-row seats don't creak.

Body Given the model's off-road attributes check the underside for grounding and the lower body for scrapes and cracks.

Engine Low-mileage diesels susceptible to oil-dilution and DPF problems. By extension, if you're a low-mileage driver, avoid the diesel engines.

Towing Some owners have reported instability issues with their Discovert Sports when towing.

Need to know

4x4 blunts fuel economy, so if that is a priority go for a front0drive manual, which has an NEDC combined 49.6mpg. There’s not much difference between the 148bhp and 178bhp TD4 AWD.

Petrol models aren’t as efficient: the 237bhp model gets 29.1mpg and the 287bhp one just 26.8mpg.

There have been five recalls for the Disco Sport. Check with your local Land Rover dealer to see if any recall work is still outstanding.

The Disco Sport is more likely than most to have been taken off road, so inspect underneath for caked-on mud, dented panels and broken plastic trim that all indicate past abuse.

Our top spec

Ignoring the ‘sportier’ Dynamic, HSE Luxury is great for summer heat due to cooled front seats, and the winter freeze because of bum friers all round plus a warmed wheel.