Range Rover D350 Autobiography

overall levels of refinement; sense of occasion; o -road ability

massive footprint; pricey

“From the farmhouse to the opera house,” the mandate of a Range Rover has always been to o er owners a best-of-all-worlds motoring experience. Bigger and bolder than ever, does the fifth generation still tick all the boxes?

Words: Ian McLaren IanMcLaren76

Unveiled in June 1970, the first products to roll o a newly established Range Rover production line in Solihull, England, weren’t, in fact, particularly plush. With the success of rivals like the US-based Jeep Wagoneer in mind, the thinking behind this new nameplate was to realise the o -roading potential of the Land Rover brand into a package aimed at a broader lifestyle- and adventure-focused audience. Available exclusively as a three-door SUV, the original’s plastic dashboard and vinyl-covered seats were designed to be watereddown after each muddy excursion.

A little more than five decades later, while it’s not inconceivable that there exists a section within the press material for the fifth-generation Range Rover dedicated to how easy the interior is to clean, you’d be reluctant to point a hosepipe towards it. From relatively humble beginnings, this model has established itself as a pinnacle player in the all-important luxury-SUV segment.

Built on the brand’s modern MLA-Flex architecture, the flagship derivative within a steadily expanded Range Rover portfolio certainly o ers a sense of presence on the road. And yet, standing more than five metres bow to stern and two metres in width – with 22-inch alloy wheels a default inclusion – the considered integration of slim LED lighting technology throughout, together with flush door handles, fuss-free contours and the brand’s iconic floating roofline, it’s an exterior profile that manages to look sleek and uncluttered. A claimed drag coe cient of just 0.30 Cd is a testament to the attention paid to the new design.

An optional long-wheelbase version (seen here) adds 200 mm of overall length and can be ordered with a third row of seats. In standard form, its makers claim 1 050 litres of luggage space. One particularly opulent touch is the ability of the Meridian sound system to focus its performance onto the speakers mounted above those sitting on the split tailgate.

With more than 120 new patents introduced throughout the planning stages, two key technologies included in the latest Range Rover package are tasked with managing this derivative’s massive footprint and (not insignificant) mass. While a standard dual-valve air suspension continuously modulates the ride height, bump absorption and all-round poise of this 2.5-tonne SUV, the adoption of rear-wheel steering a ords this towering

DEEP DATA

RANGE ROVER D350 AUTOBIOGRAPHY

Price: R3 424 332 Engine: 3.0-litre, 6-cyl, turbodiesel Transmission: 8-spd AT Driven wheels: 4

Power: 258 kW @ 4 000 r/min Torque: 700 N.m @ 1 500–3 000 r/min 0-100 km/h: 6.1 seconds Top speed: 234 km/h Fuel consumption: 7.4 L/100 km CO2: 196 g/km

Length: 5 052 mm Height: 1 870 mm Width: 2 047 mm Wheelbase: 2 997 mm Weight: 2 430 kg Luggage capacity: 1 050-2 335 L Fuel tank: 80 L Warranty: 5 years/100 000 km Maintenance plan: 5 years / 100 000 km

FROM RELATIVELY HUMBLE BEGINNINGS, THIS MODEL HAS ESTABLISHED ITSELF AS A PINNACLE PLAYER IN THE ALL-IMPORTANT LUXURY-SUV SEGMENT.

Above: Two-spoke multifunction tiller sited in front of configurable digital instrument binnacle. Below: Crisp 13.1-inch touchscreen incorporates intuitive Pivo Pro software. Pressing the driving-mode selector down activates Auto mode. tourer newfound levels of manoeuvrability. Able to swivel up to 7.3 degrees, the ability of this set-up to e ectively shorten the car’s wheelbase at low speeds not only lends this generation Range Rover the equivalent turning circle of a modern hatchback, but also adds even more prowess to this vehicle’s legendary o -roading ability.

From the comfort of a comprehensively appointed and impressively insulated cabin, it’s easy to forget just how capable a modern Range Rover is when it comes to getting dirty. Even the control switch associated with this brand’s fabled Terrain Response II all-road technologies places seamlessly within a minimalistic centre console when pushed into its Auto mode, a position most owners will likely keep it in if we’re being honest. Able to raise to a maximum ground clearance of 295 mm (4 mm more than a current Defender), the pinnacle Land Rover o ers a wading depth of up to 900 mm.

Suitably plush and comfortable throughout, the crisp workings of the 13.1-inch Pivi Pro infotainment screen and larger-still instrument cluster welcome the newest Range Rover into its most modern form. It’s as opulent as modern luxury SUVs come.

The Range Rover is available with a P530-badged twin-turbocharged V8 petrol, a P510e petrol-electric hybrid or a D350 six-cylinder turbodiesel motor. The latter option impressed us most during our local test route. Mated exclusively with a ZF-sourced eight-speed automatic transmission, the overwhelming levels of refinement and all-round performance o ered by this 257 kW/700 N.m 3.0-litre diesel powertrain neatly complement what Land Rover was looking to achieve with its flagship o ering. A claimed fuel consumption of below 8.0 L/100 km adds to the appeal. While the new Range Rover Sport will undoubtedly introduce a touch more dynamic prowess to this platform, the flagship model’s ability to e ortlessly absorb openroad distances – including on gravel – stands out.

With almost every new Range Rover order placed featuring some level of customisation of the more than 450 deposits already secured for South Africabound fifth-generation examples, the most popular broad specification to date is Autobiography. A

THE VERDICT

4½ 5

While both more dynamically inclined and purportedly more opulent modern rivals exist, the vehicle that invented the luxury SUV segment continues to lead the way – even before you add its inherent o -road ability.