After a little bit of very rough Photoshop’ing – here’s a little inspiration for Land Rover. The current ad is a waste – is Terrain Response 2 really going to sell a new Range Rover. It’s an awesome feature but GET CLEVER; you can do so much better!!
Just going to open with this statement and then get on with the show!
Loved it but I’m still not sold on buying one when I’m due again around February 2014. That is completely due to the way Land Rover USA treats this very, very loyal customer. After six Range Rovers, never without one since 1998 when I was just twenty years old, after restoring a 1971 Land Rover Series IIA and then creating this site, they are turning me off to the brand. And I get they market on a macro level and I’m just one single buyer, but I’m also an influential buyer.
It’s a shame, it really is.
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So after many months of hearing about others getting first hand experience with the new 4th-gen Range Rover, my dealer – Long Island Land Rover in Huntington, NY had their event, and I got my turn.
There is so much coverage on this that I don’t feel like repeating so I’ll just bullet point the things I found interesting. Go read articles by actual writers for the full story.
The good:
It’s still very much a Range Rover. The presence is still there. Lines are great. I’m usually not a fan of the glossy black trim but I think it really works on the roof pillars.
From the inside the A-pillars are thinner and to me the front windshield seemed almost more expansive. I felt like I could sense the increased rake but it did not change that Range Rover greenhouse feel.
They only had an HSE available to drive, the Supercharged model was left inside. I still can’t get over how fast the normally aspirated 375HP engine felt in the new Range Rover. The Supercharged model has to be almost scary to drive.
It’s quieter but really that’s all relative. The L322 was super quiet too, so it’s hard to really judge.
Finally, the issues I’ve ranted about for years have been addressed. That big 12.3” TFT display actually does something with all those pixels, what a disappointing waste of a technology it was pre-2013. But here it is!!
It also displayed information from the audio system. The actual GPS info was only displayed for upcoming instructions, and would switch back to the audio display between those times. I really liked the way the “dials” overlapped the map.
I like the overall reduction of buttons and controls but the trade off is moving commands to the touchscreen. So if you want to control your climatic seat you have to hit a button which brings it up on the touchscreen and then tap the appropriate commands. Muscle memory will not be as good. Something’s are worth trading and some aren’t. Look back at how BMW has evolved the iDrive.
Massage seats were neat, as were door closers.
The bad (not really bad, just the less than good)
One thing I loved in the 2010+ L322 was how expansive the lights that are broadcast from the side views at night are. With the new Evoque over-styling, we get a smaller round spotlight on the ground with “RANGE ROVER” shown. Neat gimmick but still prefer more light.
In person the hood (bonnet) was a little too smoothed out for my tastes. It looks like a Range Rover that’s had a bit too much Botox <—biggest complaint I have.
And that’s it, I drove it. It’s still a Range Rover. Any questions?
Tomorrow should be a deluge of actual 2013 Range Rover information, more than just the three page press release and five pictures.
Here’s some of the stuff we know so far, most of it culled from the Car Magazine article(Thanks Ian!!), nothing secret or all that new, just all the points that seemed important to me.
Three roof color choices – Black, silver or body color(i.e. traditional floating roof)
Three vents pieces in front doors are a purely visual element and can be either body color or Silver, matching the horizontal trim piece. Gerry McGovern calls them a tribute to the DNA, which actually makes some sense. If you think about it, all of the cues that make a Range Rover a Range Rover are the ones from the earliest designs. This allows the L322 to contribute some traits to the new Range Rover.
It’s the most aerodynamic Range Rover ever.
Expect trim tweaks with every new model year.
50% reduction in switch gear.
Massage seats as an option
8-speed automatic & start/stop will be standard on all models
Naturally aspirated petrol V8 will be phased out for the new Supercharged V6 used in the XJ in the near future
MacPherson front struts will be replaced with aluminum double wishbones all around.
Overall the message is that we’re going to see customization options never seen before in a Range Rover.
McGovern quoted as saying, “give people the ability to personalize their vehicles, but in a way that protects the integrity. We know tuners take our cars and quite frankly, they erode their image”
I can’t agree more with this, I feel the actual designers have the best eye for what should and shouldn’t go on a Range Rover. Hopefully the new options will make people think twice before ruining theirs.
It’s refreshing to hear Gerry McGovern talk about real Range Rovers and not have to convince people that the Evoque is one too.
Can’t wait for tomorrow, we’ll meet again at 3:45PM EST.
Hopefully there will be a new deluge of information after the reveal tomorrow. Before that here’s a last “little things”, before we start posting all the big things.
Starting with the 2010 Range Rover refresh, the Land Rover badge, was removed from the rear of the vehicle, but remained in the front grill. Starting for the 2012MY, the badges on the wheel centers switched from Land Rover to the new Range Rover logo that the Evoque received.
In those first five official pictures we saw of the next Range Rover, the rear Land Rover badge has returned and the wheels centers are Land Rover in some pictures and Range Rover in others.
I think this return to Land Rover badging could be a fluke or could be something more in line with their new advertising campaign, where they back to reminding us where they came from. I like it.
Yes, those are 22” wheels, an option for the new Range Rover.
And the rear badging:
Finally, there were questions from the various spy shots about whether or not we’d see the armrests like the previous Range Rovers, in the new Range Rover. While we won’t actually know until we get more details, this shot is encouraging.
