2014 Land Rover Range Rover Long-Term Arrival
The Preferred Ride of British Royalty, This is the Only True Luxury SUV. The Others are Merely Expensive
Jeep might have invented the upscale off-roader with the Grand Wagoneer, but Land Rover turned it into an art form. Literally. An example of the original Range Rover was once exhibited in the famous Musée de Louvre in Paris. Range Rover remains the benchmark vehicle in the luxury SUV segment, offering a combination of on-road comfort and off-road capability Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi, and Porsche luxury SUVs can't match.
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Our new long-term Range Rover is the entry-level car in a six-model lineup that starts at $83,545 and stretches to $142,995. Like the $88,545 HSE that will likely be the volume-seller here in the U.S., the base Range Rover is powered by JLR's 3.0-liter supercharged V-6, which develops 340 hp and 332 lb-ft of torque. It's five grand cheaper than the HSE because it's fitted with 19-inch wheels instead of 20s, has a different grade of interior trim, and doesn't get the panoramic sunroof. Not having all that hefty glass up top will help the handling.
What we saved was spent on three practical options: Adaptive Cruise Control with Queue Assist ($1295 and essential for stop-start L.A. freeway traffic); the $2160 Vision Assist Pack, which bundles useful technology such as the surround camera to help with placing the vehicle in technical off-road driving situations, and a traffic detection system that warns of cars approaching when reversing out of a parking spot; and the $900 Tow Pack, which provides all the hardware needed to make use of the V-6's 7716-pound towing capacity and a full-size spare wheel and tire. We also ordered one pure indulgence: the $1850, 19-speaker, 825-watt Meridian Premium Audio system.
In L.A., where glittering black-on-black 2014 Range Rovers on 21- or 22-inch wheels are the hottest new ride in town, my Scotia Grey Rangie looks decidedly low-key. I wasn't sure about the small wheels at first, but I'm getting used to the look of them, and on a practical level I know the lower unsprung mass of the rims and taller sidewalls of the tires improve the already excellent ride on the road, and will work better off it. After all, what's the point of luxury if you can't use it?
I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t fascinated by cars. My father was a mechanic, and some of my earliest memories are of handing him wrenches as he worked to turn a succession of down-at-heel secondhand cars into reliable family transportation. Later, when I was about 12, I’d be allowed to back the Valiant station wagon out onto the street and drive it around to the front of the house to wash it. We had the cleanest Valiant in the world.
I got my driver’s license exactly three months after my 16th birthday in a Series II Land Rover, ex-Australian Army with no synchro on first or second and about a million miles on the clock. “Pass your test in that,” said Dad, “and you’ll be able to drive anything.” He was right. Nearly four decades later I’ve driven everything from a Bugatti Veyron to a Volvo 18-wheeler, on roads and tracks all over the world. Very few people get the opportunity to parlay their passion into a career. I’m one of those fortunate few.
I started editing my local car club magazine, partly because no-one else would do it, and partly because I’d sold my rally car to get the deposit for my first house, and wanted to stay involved in the sport. Then one day someone handed me a free local sports paper and said they might want car stuff in it. I rang the editor and to my surprise she said yes. There was no pay, but I did get press passes, which meant I got into the races for free. And meet real automotive journalists in the pressroom. And watch and learn.
It’s been a helluva ride ever since. I’ve written about everything from Formula 1 to Sprint Car racing; from new cars and trucks to wild street machines and multi-million dollar classics; from global industry trends to secondhand car dealers. I’ve done automotive TV shows and radio shows, and helped create automotive websites, iMags and mobile apps. I’ve been the editor-in-chief of leading automotive media brands in Australia, Great Britain, and the United States. And I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. The longer I’m in this business the more astonished I am these fiendishly complicated devices we call automobiles get made at all, and how accomplished they have become at doing what they’re designed to do. I believe all new cars should be great, and I’m disappointed when they’re not. Over the years I’ve come to realize cars are the result of a complex interaction of people, politics and process, which is why they’re all different. And why they continue to fascinate me.Read More
