Range Rover Sport SV vs Rolls-Royce Cullinan drag race

You could view this as two premium British auto brands going head-to-head or, technically speaking, you could view it as a BMW drag race!

That’s because Rolls-Royce is owned by BMW and its Cullinan SUV employs a BMW-sourced V12 engine, while the new Range Rover Sport SV is also powered by a twin-turbocharged BMW engine – this time a V8.

That might be a little confusing, but what isn’t confusing is the task at hand. We put the all-new Range Rover Sport SV up against the Mansory Rolls-Royce Cullinan to find out which is fastest. And to mix things up the Range Rover is fitted with lightweight wheels from Geelong company Carbon Revolution.

We need to give a massive shoutout to our mates at Caltex for helping us cover the cost of putting this event on. It’s an incredibly expensive undertaking and none of this would be possible without their support.

The cars we are running are powered by Premium 98 Caltex with Techron. Caltex with Techron has been scientifically proven to help clean and protect engines. A clean engine helps maximise power and acceleration, while also delivering better fuel economy, reliable performance and a smooth drive. Head to Caltex.com/au for more information.

The cars

Rolls-Royce Cullinan

‘Man, I’m Sorry’ – that’s what it sounds like when you say Mansory 10 times fast… It’s also what a lot of people say when they see a Mansory-fettled car. This time the kit is fitted to a Rolls-Royce Cullinan, the last car on earth you’d think would need some Mansory work done to it.

This particular car has a full Mansory body kit (along with interior enhancements), as well as an upgraded exhaust system designed to help the V12 breathe better and, of course, it sits lower on 24-inch alloy wheels.

It uses a 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged petrol V12 that produces 420kW of power and 850Nm of torque. It also has eight on the tree – an eight-speed automatic transmission with column shifter – and boasts an official 0-100km/h acceleration time of 5.2 seconds.

Range Rover Sport SV

Unlike previous generations of the sportier Range Rover, the top of the tree now uses a BMW drivetrain to help it get moving. The 4.4-litre twin-turbocharged V8 produces 467kW of power and 750Nm of torque – just shy of the Cullinan’s torque output.

Comically, the SV wears a price tag of $360,000 before on-road costs, making it over $150,000 more expensive than the entry-level Range Rover Sport.

But it’s still more affordable than the Cullinan, which is priced closer to $1 million before on-road costs.

The results

We thought this would be way closer than it was, but the Range Rover absolutely destroyed the Rolls-Royce Cullinan. In fact, it wasn’t really even close.

It goes to show just how much BMW has been able to extract out of the fire-breathing twin-turbo V8 that sits under the bonnet of the Range Rover Sport SV.

MORE: Everything Range Rover Sport
MORE: Everything Rolls-Royce Cullinan