When they say ‘leave it to the experts’, Land Rover means it. The new Range Rover proves its superiority in the SUV world.
By: Somnath Chatterjee
Posted on: September 7, 2022
The Range Rover has always been the crown jewel of the Land Rover range along with the immense brand loyalty that this car enjoys amongst the jet set. Every generation has successfully combined luxury along with off-road ability while dripping with an assertive persona which endears with its owners.
The new Range Rover, however, comes at a time when the super luxury SUV sector is swarmed with high-end SUVs from car-makers who never used to do them in the first place. Aston Martin, Lamborghini, Rolls-Royce, and Bentley have all made SUVs that have been successful. That leaves a bigger challenge for the new Range Rover, but a first look reveals that the fifth-generation model has got them covered.
The design is clean and simple along with looking radical also. It is a design that will not age quickly.
A new architecture enables more flexibility, technology, and electrification along with a bigger leap towards pared back luxury.
However, we must first notice the design, and here Land Rover has somewhat managed to find a delicate balance between pleasing the traditional Range Rover clientele while also attracting new buyers. In long wheelbase form, the new Range Rover is an imposing automobile and embraces the design attributes of its predecessors albeit within a more modern form. The authoritative shoulder line to the short overhangs is very much there. However, the design is clean and simple along with looking radical also. It is a design that will not age quickly. There are hardly any panel gaps visible and the shut lines are merged with the body. The biggest change with the new Range Rover is the rear styling with its 'hidden-until-lit' LED tail-lamps being smeared over a gloss black panel. It remains hidden when not in use and is indeed a very cool feature in the rulebook of modern-day design aesthetics.
The same ethos is carried over on the inside with flush door handles greeting you as the car lowers itself for easy ingress and egress. The dashboard highlight includes a giant curved touchscreen with haptic feedback and it acts as a nerve-centre for all the functions. There are separate climate controls below which are easy to fathom without being too complicated.
However, most owners would prefer to sit at the back and this time, Land Rover has embraced that even more. The executive rear seat pampers the rear seat passenger with a central touchscreen which controls everything, including all the ones available to the driver. Nothing requires manual intervention with the blinds, massage seats, panoramic glass roof to the audio system being at the fingertips of the rear seat occupants.
I could go on and on about the equipment list, but the 35-speaker, 1,600W Meridian Signature Sound System with its noise-cancelling technology stood out. The audio system takes outside noise and muffles it while even the headrests get their own speakers, thus acting as noise-cancelling headphones.
Space inside is humongous and you can further stretch out like on a private jet with the touch of a button. The seats themselves are extremely comfortable.
Nothing requires manual intervention with the blinds, massage seats, panoramic glass roof to the audio system being at the fingertips of the rear seat occupants.
Should you fancy being at the driver's seat of the new Range Rover, the 3.0-litre diesel/petrol powertrains have enough oomph to whisk this luxury SUV to brisk speeds without a fuss. Anti-roll bars and mild-hybrid technology has also been grafted in along with the latest Land Rover off-road system. Hence, unlike some of its peers, the new Range Rover continues to be handy off the road and not just waft on it.
Prices start at Rs. 2.3 cr in India, and with customizations, that figure could easily go up. But in the rarefied world of luxury SUVs, the new Range Rover seems better value than rivals on the promise of being a proper off-roader and a luxury limousine. We look forward to find out more about the new Range Rover in our drive soon.
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