2024 Hyundai Venue vs 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Sport

The 2024 Hyundai Venue was available in SE, SEL, and Limited trims, with prices ranging from $21,275 to $24,525, including a destination charge. The Venue SEL, priced at $23,275, was recommended for its enhanced exterior aesthetics and additional convenience and safety features. The Limited trim test vehicle, painted in Ecotronic Gray and equipped with carpeted floor mats, had an MSRP of $24,735. Despite limited options, the Venue's design was appealing, offering a mature and subdued appearance. Inside, the Venue featured hard plastics but maintained a stylish look with seat stripes, piping, and white trim accents. The digital instrumentation and 8-inch touchscreen infotainment display were highlights, showcasing Hyundai's attention to quality and detail.

The 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Sport emphasized a sportier SUV aesthetic within the Range Rover family. Its taller stance, shorter wheelbase, and chopped top contributed to an athletic appearance, though it appeared narrow from certain angles. The 2025 lineup included SE, Dynamic SE, Autobiography, and SV Edition Two trims, with a Stealth appearance package available for the Dynamic SE. The SV Edition 2 test car, in Marl Grey, featured carbon-fiber wheels and hood, red leather upholstery, and illuminated steering-wheel paddle shifters. The minimalist interior design, with a touchscreen and stubby shifter, created a cockpit-like feel, though the high console and dash made the front seats feel cramped. Material quality was luxurious, but the use of reflective piano black plastic was excessive.

The 2024 Hyundai Venue was powered by a 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine producing 121 horsepower and 113 pound-feet of torque. Weighing 2,612 pounds in base SE trim, the Venue's CVT maximized available power for city and suburban driving. Its small size, nimble handling, and excellent visibility made it ideal for urban environments. However, the suspension struggled on rough surfaces, resulting in a busy ride quality. On highways, the Venue maintained pace with traffic but sounded harsh under acceleration. Lacking AWD, the Venue's front-wheel-drive system and 6.7 inches of ground clearance allowed it to handle snow with winter tires. The Venue achieved an EPA rating of 31 mpg combined, averaging 30.3 mpg during testing.

The 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Sport offered multiple powertrains, all with an eight-speed automatic transmission and standard 4WD. The SE base model featured a 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six with 355 hp and 369 lb-ft of torque. The Dynamic SE offered a higher output of 395 hp and 406 lb-ft, plus a plug-in hybrid powertrain rated at 454 hp and 487 lb-ft. The Autobiography trim increased hybrid output to 543 hp and 590 lb-ft, with an optional BMW-sourced twin-turbo V8 producing 523 hp and 553 lb-ft. The SV Edition Two's V8 delivered 626 hp, achieving 0-60 mph in 3.7 seconds and a top speed of 180 mph. The Range Rover Sport's sport-tuned air suspension, four-wheel steering, and brake-based torque vectoring provided agile handling and a luxurious ride. Off-road capabilities included the Terrain Response system, hill descent control, and up to 11 inches of ground clearance.

The 2024 Hyundai Venue's increased ground clearance facilitated easier entry and exit. Despite its small size, the Venue offered decent comfort, with manual height adjustment for the driver's seat and tilt-and-telescopic steering wheel adjustment. The front seats featured fabric inserts, artificial leather bolsters, and heated cushions. The back seat technically accommodated three people, but two would be more comfortable. Rear-seat passengers had USB ports but limited storage and no air conditioning vents. The Venue's cargo space was comparable to a compact car, with 18.7 cubic feet behind the rear seats and 31.9 cubic feet with them folded.

The 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Sport, positioned between the Velar and full-size Range Rover, offered midsize dimensions with two-row seating for five. Front-seat occupants enjoyed similar headroom to other midsize luxury SUVs, while rear-seat headroom was competitive. The Range Rover Sport provided 31.9 cubic feet of cargo space behind the second row and 53 cubic feet with the seats folded. Power operation and an "access height" setting for the air suspension facilitated loading and unloading. The Range Rover Sport's towing capacity was 7,716 pounds for turbo-six and V8 models, with plug-in hybrids rated at 6,614 pounds.

The 2024 Hyundai Venue featured an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment display with modern graphics and logical menu structures. Standard features included Bluetooth connectivity, wireless Apple CarPlay, wireless Android Auto, Bluelink connected services, and a six-speaker sound system. The Limited trim added a navigation system, SiriusXM satellite radio, a wireless smartphone charger, and Bluelink+. However, the upgraded system required wired connections for Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, reducing the wireless charger's utility. Despite this, the Venue Limited's infotainment system was sophisticated, with impressive voice recognition.

The 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Sport shared its screen setup with the larger Range Rover, featuring a 13.7-inch digital instrument cluster and a 13.1-inch touchscreen for infotainment. Wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and Amazon Alexa integration were standard. The screens offered a clean, minimalist design, but the reliance on touch controls for functions like climate control and drive mode selection was less convenient than physical buttons. Steering-wheel controls provided limited alternatives, but the Pivi Pro infotainment system was responsive, with natural-language voice recognition. The SV Edition 2 test car included "Body and Soul Seats" with embedded transducers for a unique audio experience, though it felt somewhat gimmicky.

The 2024 Hyundai Venue came standard with Hyundai SmartSense, including forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane-departure warning, lane-keep assist, a driver monitoring system, and a rear-seat reminder. The SEL trim added blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert, while the Limited trim included cyclist detection. The Venue lacked adaptive cruise control and lane-centering assist. The IIHS rated the Venue Good in three crash tests, with an Acceptable rating for the Limited trim's LED headlights. The NHTSA gave the Venue an overall four-star rating.

The 2025 Land Rover Range Rover Sport included standard driver-assist features such as automatic emergency braking, forward collision warning, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist, traffic sign recognition, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and a driver attention monitor. A 360-degree camera system and digital rearview mirror aided parking, though parking sensors were overly sensitive. The IIHS and NHTSA had not released safety ratings for the current-generation Range Rover Sport at the time of publication.