Land Rover’s Discovery Sport Pulls A 100-Tonne Train [w/Video]

If you ever wanted to find out if a Land Rover Discovery Sport is capable of towing a train, well this is your chance.

The British company wanted to showcase the towing capability of the Discovery Sport with the 2.0-litre Ingenium diesel engine and the nine-speed automatic gearbox. That’s why they strapped three train carriages on it for a 10km (6.2-mile) journey in Switzerland.

With the engine producing 177hp and 430Nm (317 lb ft) of torque, the Discovery Sport has a certified towing weight of 2,500kg (5,512 lbs) but in this occasion was able to pull 60 times its own weight.

The model’s drivetrain was factory standard with the only modification being the installation of a set of rail wheels to act as stabilizers. Land Rover’s complete array of electronic towing and traction aids such as Terrain Response, Tow Assist, Tow Hitch Assist and All Terrain Progress Control also played a major role in the Discovery Sport’s success in pulling the 100-tonne train.

“Over the years, we have introduced game-changing towing technologies to take the stress out of towing for our customers,” said Karl Richards, Lead Engineer for Stability Control Systems at JLR. “I’ve spent most of my career travelling to the most punishing parts of the world to test Land Rovers in grueling conditions, yet this is the most extreme towing test I’ve ever done.”

The stunt took place at the Museumsbahn Stein am Rhein in Switzerland and included crossing the River Rhine.