It's a rough moment in a rough world. Rough words, rough roads, rough sounds.
Even luxury marques, pursuing high-performance bona fides, are making their vehicles louder, harsher, rougher-riding.
And then, there's Range Rover.
If you have ever wondered why contemporary Range Rovers are so popular, you probably have never driven one. Because if you had, you'd get it right away.
The Range Rover is smooth. No, make that smooooth. Maybe even add a few more "o"s.
Now, anyone can build a sensory deprivation tank on wheels. That describes American luxury cars of the 50s, 60s and 70s. Lexus made it an art form before it, too, decided to F SPORT all the things.
But Range Rovers aren't that. The magic of the Range Rover is that it is a machine with significant power (395 horsepower and 406 lb-ft of torque from a 3.0-liter turbo-and-supercharged six-cylinder engine) and tremendous off-road abilities (thanks to all-wheel drive, all-wheel steering, Terrain Response 2 with selectable driving and off-road modes, hill launch assist and adaptive dynamics) that lets you hear and feel the machinery---but softly.
Fuel economy is surprisingly good given the heft (5,240 pounds) and power---an EPA-estimated 20 mpg combined city/highway.
Our tester was a long-wheelbase seven-seat model. With the third row upright, cargo space is only 8.7 cubic feet. Since ours came with the Premium Interior Protection and Storage Pack (an all-weather cargo mat and soft-sided storage bin) in place and the third row folded, we left it like that. That's 43.1 cubic feet. Fold that second row and it becomes a truly cavernous 92.9 cubic feet.
The third row hides perfectly under that flat cargo liner.
Second-row legroom is a generous 39.2 inches, but if you really don't need the third row, choosing a long-wheelbase five-seat model brings the same 46.8-inches of rear seat leg space we reveled in a couple of years ago in the $255,590 Range Rover SV LWB.
The base price of the 2024 Range Rover SE LWB 7-Seat is $115,025 including destination. Standard equipment at that price includes 21-inch alloy wheels with a tire repair system, premium LED headlights with automatic high beam assist and front fog lights, soft-closing doors, a power tailgate, deployable door handles, a sliding panoramic roof with power sunblind and power rear side window sunblinds, rain sensing wipers, auto-dimming, heated, power-folding door mirrors with approach lights and memory, Windsor leather seats, a four-zone climate control with air quality sensing, a heated leather steering wheel, auto-dimming interior rear view mirror, power heated and ventilated front seats, power heated and ventilated second-row reclining seats and heated third-row seats, keyless entry, pushbutton start, a 13.1-inch touchscreen with a Meridian sound system, SiriusXM three-month trial, wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, wireless device charging and a comprehensive suite of active safety features.
Our test vehicle also had some extra-cost options: Gloss Grand Black veneer interior trim ($1,300), a Meridian 3D surround sound system ($1,200), the Premuium Interior Protection and Storage Pack ($725), an emergency kit ($75), and the Range Rover handover pack (a nice box for the key fobs---$65).
Bottom line on the window sticker: $118,610.
Yeah, that's a lot of money. But every time I get behind the wheel of this generation of Range Rover, I'm reminded of how few vehicles deliver a blend of luxury, performance and capability---very few. And this is the only one that does it smooth.
