2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport vs 2021 Chevrolet Traverse

The 2021 Chevrolet Traverse was a nod to the past, with Chevy using styling details to give each trim level its own identity. The exterior was a typical SUV design with a tall roof, chunky wheel arches, and a big grille, which appealed to many buyers. However, it lacked the personality of the Ford Explorer and Kia Telluride, and the streamlined appearance of the Mazda CX-9. The Traverse's restrained styling highlighted the cosmetic elements of different trims, such as blacked-out trim on the RS model and chrome on the High Country. The base model had 18-inch wheels, while higher trims offered 20-inch wheels. The Traverse shared a platform with the Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia, and Cadillac XT6 but aimed for a more blue-collar feel. It was smaller than the Chevy Tahoe and featured car-like unibody construction.

Inside, the Traverse had a similarly restrained design, with the standout feature being an optional Dual SkyScape two-panel sunroof. The materials in the higher-level RS model were decent but not quite up to the $50,000 price tag. This was a common issue among midsize three-row crossovers, which tend to get expensive with options.

The 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport, launched in 2005 and in its second generation since 2014, received an interior and exterior refresh in 2018, which carried over into 2021. This refresh introduced the dual-screen center console that became a hallmark of Land Rover interiors. A plug-in hybrid variant was added in 2020, along with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The Range Rover Sport offered several trims: SE, HSE Silver, HST, HSE Dynamic, Autobiography, SVR, and SVR Carbon Edition. The base SE trim included leather upholstery, dual-zone climate control, an eight-speaker Meridian sound system, a WiFi hotspot, and the dual-screen infotainment system.

The HSE Silver trim added quad-zone climate control, a panoramic sunroof, heated and ventilated front seats, a heated steering wheel, and a 19-speaker Meridian sound system. The HST trim had a similar feature set but upgraded the powertrain and swapped quad-zone for tri-zone climate control. The HSE Dynamic featured a supercharged V8 engine, a limited-slip differential, and a two-speed transfer case. The Autobiography trim offered 22-way power-adjustable front seats and power soft-close doors. The SVR model had a more powerful V8 engine, sport seats, and a stiffer suspension, with the SVR Carbon Edition adding carbon fiber accents and 22-inch alloy wheels.

The 2021 Chevrolet Traverse was powered by a 3.6-liter V6 engine producing 310 horsepower and 266 pound-feet of torque, paired with a nine-speed automatic transmission. Although the V6 didn't feel particularly strong off the line, it provided sufficient power for highway merging and overtaking. The nine-speed automatic generally performed well but occasionally had rough shifts. The Traverse excelled in highway road manners, offering a quiet cabin, bump-absorbing suspension, and precise steering. However, it lacked agility on twisty roads, partly due to its AWD system, which required manual activation and could send up to 50% of torque to either front wheel or 85% to either rear wheel. Despite this, the system's torque vectoring capabilities were not very noticeable.

The Traverse had off-road and tow/haul drive modes, with a maximum towing capacity of 5,000 pounds, which was average for the segment. In comparison, the Nissan Pathfinder could tow up to 6,000 pounds, and the Ford Explorer up to 5,600 pounds with its optional 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 engine.

The 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport offered various powertrain options. The base P360 mild-hybrid powertrain, available in the SE and SE Silver Edition, combined a 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six with a 48-volt electrical system, producing 355 horsepower and 365 pound-feet of torque. The HST model featured a more potent P400 version, rated at 395 horsepower and 406 pound-feet of torque. The HSE Silver Edition also offered plug-in hybrid and diesel powertrains. The P400e plug-in hybrid combined a 2.0-liter turbo-four engine with electric assist for 398 horsepower and 472 pound-feet of torque, while the 3.0-liter turbodiesel V6 produced 254 horsepower and 443 pound-feet of torque.

The HSE Dynamic and Autobiography trims featured a supercharged 5.0-liter V8 engine with 518 horsepower and 461 pound-feet of torque. The SVR and SVR Carbon Edition trims had a more powerful version of this engine, producing 575 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque. All models had an eight-speed automatic transmission and full-time four-wheel drive. The Range Rover Sport also featured height-adjustable air suspension and a Terrain Response system with multiple modes for various terrains. It excelled off-road and offered impressive cornering abilities on paved surfaces. The Range Rover Sport could tow up to 7,716 pounds, except for the SVR, which had a towing capacity of 6,613 pounds.

The 2021 Chevrolet Traverse offered seating for seven or eight, depending on whether you chose a second-row bench seat or captain’s chairs. Headroom and legroom in all three rows were above average but not segment-leading. Heated front seats were standard on the RS model, while ventilated front seats and heated outboard rear seats were available on higher trims. The Traverse excelled in cargo space, offering 23.0 cubic feet with all three rows in place, 57.8 cubic feet with the third row stowed, and 98.2 cubic feet with all rear seats folded. A power liftgate was optional on the LT Cloth trim and standard on higher trims, with the Premier and High Country models featuring a gesture-activated liftgate. A power 60/40 split-folding third row was standard on RS and higher trims. However, the Traverse was somewhat lacking in interior storage options, a common issue among midsize three-row crossovers.

The 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport provided a maximum of 63.7 cubic feet of cargo space with the rear seats folded and 31.7 cubic feet with the second row in use. An optional third row increased seating capacity from five to seven, but with the third row in use, cargo space was limited to 10.8 cubic feet. Both the first and second rows offered ample headroom and legroom, with luxurious appointments. However, the optional third row was tight and best suited for children.

The 2021 Chevrolet Traverse came with a standard 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, and Bluetooth. Higher trims offered an 8-inch touchscreen, navigation, a 4G-LTE WiFi hotspot, and a Bose 10-speaker audio system. While Ford and Toyota offered larger screens, the 8-inch screen in the Traverse RS was user-friendly, with large smartphone-like icons. Chevy retained analog controls for audio volume and climate control, which were appreciated. The Traverse also featured a rearview camera mirror, which eliminated blind spots and improved rear visibility. An optional HD surround-view camera system made parking easier. Chevy provided two USB ports for each row as standard, but wireless phone charging was only standard on the Premier and High Country models.

The 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport's interior was dominated by a dual-screen center console. The lower screen controlled climate and vehicle settings, while the upper screen housed the infotainment system. Although the system was not always intuitive and had bugs in earlier models, the lower screen's dials could switch between multiple functions, controlling everything from fan speed to off-road settings. The upper touchscreen had reasonably sized icons for easy navigation between menus and smartphone integration. The Range Rover Sport also had a real volume button, though it was somewhat hidden. Overall, the infotainment system had a learning curve but was functional.

The 2021 Chevrolet Traverse received top "Good" scores in all crash tests from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and a "Superior" rating for front-crash prevention tech. However, it received "Acceptable" and "Poor" headlight ratings, depending on the trim level, and an "Acceptable" rating for LATCH child-seat anchor ease of use. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) gave the Traverse a five-star overall safety rating, with four stars in frontal and rollover crash tests and five stars in side-impact crash tests. Chevy offered less standard driver-assist tech than competitors, with features like adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, and lane-keep assist being optional extras.

The 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport came with a decent list of standard driver assistance features, including forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, and front-and-rear parking sensors. However, adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, and rear cross-traffic alert were optional. Other available features included a surround-view parking camera, traffic sign recognition, driver drowsiness monitoring, and parallel and perpendicular park assist. A head-up display was also available.