Compare the2023 Ford Bronco SportVS 2023 Land Rover Discovery

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Ford Bronco Sport are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Land Rover Discovery doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Bronco Sport are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Discovery doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Ford Bronco Sport has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Discovery doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Bronco Sport has standard Post Collision Braking, which automatically apply the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Discovery doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

Both the Bronco Sport and the Discovery have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available rear parking sensors.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Bronco Sport its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 112 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Discovery has not been tested, yet.

Ford’s powertrain warranty covers the Bronco Sport 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Land Rover covers the Discovery. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Discovery ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 15 times as many Ford dealers as there are Land Rover dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Bronco Sport’s warranty.

The Bronco Sport has a standard “limp home system” to keep drivers from being stranded if most or all of the engine’s coolant is lost. The engine will run on only half of its cylinders at a time, reduce its power and light a warning lamp on the dashboard so the driver can get to a service station for repairs. The Discovery doesn’t offer a lost coolant limp home mode, so a coolant leak could strand you or seriously damage the truck’s engine.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Bronco Sport third among small SUVs in their 2022 Initial Quality Study. The Discovery isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Ford vehicles are better in initial quality than Land Rover vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Ford above average in initial quality. With 26 more problems per 100 vehicles, Land Rover is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Ford vehicles are more reliable than Land Rover vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Ford above average in long-term dependability. With 4 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Land Rover is rated below average.

As tested in Car and Driver the Bronco Sport Badlands 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Discovery P360 3.0 turbo/supercharged 6-cylinder hybrid:

On the EPA test cycle the Bronco Sport gets better mileage than the Discovery:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Ford Bronco Sport uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended on Bronco Sport Badlands for maximum performance). The Discovery requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Bronco Sport has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Discovery doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

The Bronco Sport stops shorter than the Discovery:

For better maneuverability, the Bronco Sport’s turning circle is 3.3 feet tighter than the Discovery’s (37.4 feet vs. 40.7 feet).

The Ford Bronco Sport may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 1400 to 1450 pounds less than the Land Rover Discovery.

The Bronco Sport is 1 foot, 10.4 inches shorter than the Discovery, making the Bronco Sport easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Bronco Sport is 7.3 inches narrower than the Discovery, making the Bronco Sport easier to handle and maneuver in traffic.

The Bronco Sport has 2.1 inches more front headroom, 3.3 inches more front legroom and 2.7 inches more rear headroom than the Discovery.

The Bronco Sport has a much larger cargo volume than the Discovery with its rear seat up (32.5 vs. 9.1 cubic feet).

An optional locking center console keeps your small valuables safer in the Bronco Sport. The Discovery doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The Bronco Sport’s rear cargo window opens separately from the rest of the liftgate door to allow quicker loading of small packages. The Discovery’s rear cargo window doesn’t open.

If the windows are left open on the Bronco Sport the driver can close them all from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can also lower the windows the same way. The driver of the Discovery can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Bronco Sport’s available exterior PIN entry system. The Discovery doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its InControl can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the Bronco Sport offers optional cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Discovery doesn’t offer cornering lights.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Bronco Sport has standard extendable sun visors. The Discovery doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The Bronco Sport Outer Banks/Badlands/First Edition has a 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Discovery doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

Insurance will cost less for the Bronco Sport owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Bronco Sport will cost $2535 to $6825 less than the Discovery over a five-year period.

The Bronco Sport will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Bronco Sport will retain 59.2% to 61.37% of its original price after five years, while the Discovery only retains 50.7% to 50.86%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Ford Bronco Sport will be $31939 to $39728 less than for the Land Rover Discovery.

Motor Trend performed a comparison test in its December 2021 issue and they ranked the Ford Bronco Sport Outer Banks higher than the Land Rover Discovery R-Dynamic S.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Bronco Sport first among small SUVs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Discovery isn’t in the top three.

The Ford Bronco Sport outsold the Land Rover Discovery by over 73 to one during 2022.