Range Rover Sport First Edition (L320) | Spotted

Just in case you were over 2005 being 20 years ago, here’s something else to really hammer the point home. Sorry, not sorry, and all that. The Range Rover Sport is now 20, launched to much fanfare in 2005 and, well, laying a track for the success story that would follow. If cars like the BMW X5 and Porsche Cayenne had stolen a march on Land Rover creating something beneath a full-fat Range, the constant evolution of the Sport has ensured lost time was heartily made up for. More than 400,000 of the original L320s were made from ‘05 to 2013, and before production of the L494 successor was wrapped up in 2022 the million milestone had been passed. Even with the current L461 a more expensive Sport prospect than ever, they proliferate on UK roads. 

So like it or loathe it, the Sport is a hugely significant SUV. Without its enormous success, it’s hard to imagine the Range Rover badge being applied to smaller models like the Velar or Evoque, or even sportier stuff like the SVR. The decision to broaden the Range Rover portfolio – to the extent that it would become a brand in its own right – was emphatically vindicated a long time ago. 

But with so many of them sold over the years, there are plenty of Range Rover Sports to wade through to find decent ones. A bit like the cheap Bentley Continental GT featured last week, the L320 Sport is one of those cars that has acquired over time a – how to be delicate – less than desirable image, and yet remains quite a handsome beast in the right spec. Take this First Edition, for example. Inspired by the incredible Stormer concept of 2004, there were just 85 produced for the UK in the first year. Information on them is pretty scarce, though the ad suggests that Vesuvius Orange like the concept was the only colour available and they came loaded with standard kit. 

Plus there was the V8, of course. Maybe other engines were offered with First Ed spec (answers welcome, as ever), though it’s with the supercharged 4.2 that you’d be getting the full hit of the fruit. This one has it, all 390hp of it, and with a full service history speaking to its upkeep. And while there are one or two improvements another owner might wish to undertake – throwing the side steps in a skip, for example – the overall condition looks smart. Certainly a car that seemed so aggressive once upon a time has mellowed. 

The interior is a true button fest, though again has stood up well to 100,000 miles of use – just the three owners may well have helped that. And usability will surely go through the roof with an infotainment upgrade to hook up your phone properly. The current MOT was passed first time, without advisory, just this month.

Now, clearly, a Range Rover Sport of any stripe is going to cost a heck of a lot to run, let alone a 20-year-old V8 one. But the same is true for all of the super SUVs, and in its favour this one has the slightly more affordable tax band and a sub-£10k asking price. £9,990 isn’t the cheapest Sport out there – they’re down at Shed money for the truly courageous – but you won’t pay much less for an L320 you’ll actually want. And all the money spent will feel very well invested when thundering along in a Vesuvius Orange Range Rover feeling like a boss – or a BO55, rather. 

Engine: 4,196cc, supercharged V8
Transmission: 6-speed automatic, four-wheel drive
Power (hp): 390@5,750rpm
Torque (lb ft): 405@3,500rpm
MPG: 17.8
CO2: 374g/km
Year registered: 2005
Recorded mileage: 103,000
Price new: c. £60,000
Yours for: £9,990