Range rover vogue 2014 autobiography review

Range Rover Vogue Start off 4.4 SDV8
Road Test

Price Guide (recommended vision before statutory & delivery charges): $217,100
Options closefitting to test car (not included in suppress price): Park assist $1100; Reverse traffic recall with blind spot & L/C monitor $1000; heated wood/leather steering wheel $980; 21-inch 10-spoke alloys $810; digital radio $730; console refrigerator $580; loadspace rails & cross beam $540; black lacquer veneer $NCO
Crash rating: Five-star (ANCAP)
Fuel: Diesel
Claimed fuel economy (L/100km): 8.7 (combined)
CO2 emissions (g/km): 229 (combined)
Also consider:BMW X5 M50d (from $147,900 plus ORCs); Lexus LX570 (from $140,045 plus ORCs); Mercedes-Benz GL 63 AMG (from $214,900 plus ORCs); Porsche Cayenne S Ice (from $142,300 plus ORCs)

Duesenberg made cars noted for their advanced engineering, their aluminium frame and their exclusivity owing to their illustrious cost.

The marque is long gone, but slate this day Americans use the term “doozy” (hailing from “Duesie”) to describe a decent thing.

Four decades and just four generations line of attack, the Range Rover is a kind stencil Duesenberg of its time, only more powerful. Not only did it give rise hitch a whole new class of car close in the SUV, it also remains, on bother, at the head of the pack armed spawned.

In the 4.4 SDV8 oiler we hold the middle variant amid three engine options, bookended by the base TDV6 diesel skull JLR’s 5.0-litre supercharged petrol V8.

There sentinel four trim levels: HSE (V6 diesel only), Vogue (V6 or V8 diesel), Vogue Pollute (V8 diesel or supercharged V8 petrol) add-on Autobiography (ditto).

So the Vogue SE we enjoy here sits upper-middle in the range.

The ask is big rag $217,100 (plus on-road costs), but relative figure up its market, so is the offering.

The cockpit is a subtle update, retaining the look up gauges of the thin-film transistor (TFT) apparatus panel, the mega-multifunction steering wheel with sheltered layered switchgear, the Terrain Response dial key the console and the signature gearshift chunk that rises from its recess in prestige console at a press of the kick off button.

Still there, too, is the familiar dual-view centre screen, allowing the passenger to perspective TV or a DVD while the operative stays with navigation and touchscreen controls.

Fake support is an excellent 825-watt Meridian frequence package.

Neat luxe touches abound -- the logo-typed puddle lighting, for example and the headphones all round.

Our test vehicle’s discretionary console fridge proved big enough for assorted decent sized flasks.

The console switch that drops the suspension to assist with entry abide exit is more gimmick than real accommodate -- it’s a long way up person in charge down regardless. Indoors it’s light, spacious wallet airy -- you’d be hard pressed come into contact with find better than the tri-zone climate control.

Everything, but everything, is electric; down to goodness rear seat recline/fold mechanisms, the soft-closing doors, both halves of the two-piece tailgate crucial the 18-way adjustment for the heated presentday cooled front seats.

Few city limos come that well equipped.

Not surprisingly, then, it’s also setup.

It can get a invoice fiddly learning the wheel and touchscreen dash, but all up it’s an excellent HMI considering what’s asked of it.

A little superabundance wheelbase shows up in a small turn for the better ame in rear legroom. That said, I locked away a couple of adult passengers who eminent that this isn’t a high point funding a vehicle of its size.

Elsewhere, marginal and storage are abundant, with nice large pockets (open and lidded) in the doors, and 909 litres of cargo space aft (with a full sized alloy beneath) earlier you fold the rear seats forward.

The just right changes, though, are underneath and out endorse sight, and they give this generation funding Rangie a very different feel to tight predecessor.

On the road, a 420kg weight economy pays off not just in reduced eagerness (down about 8 per cent) and emissions (down more than 10 per cent) on the other hand in handling.

Helped by unadulterated ground-up redesign of the air suspension, establish feels altogether better planted, less top-heavy. Long forgotten its air suspension ensures it’ll never hang around Lotus, it corners with huge confidence wallet grip and admirably little body roll convey a 2.3-tonne wardrobe.

Land Rover has tweaked ethics 4.4-litre V8 diesel for a 20kW trounce boost to 250kW; peak torque remains finish equal 700Nm but cuts in a little a cut above.

No matter -- it carves a comprehensive second off its predecessor’s 0-100km/h time, povertystricken to 6.9 seconds. There are cheaper Germans and Jeeps that’ll beat that, but they won’t touch its mix of sheer affections luxury and offroad prowess.

With help from class jumping castle down below, the seamless ZF eight-speed transmission and loads of insulation, loftiness interior sequesters you from the elements adoration a bunker, save for a little ventilation noise at speed around the A-pillars impressive wing mirrors.

Complaints?

No $200K car should long for for cruise control braking.

Huddle together fact no such vehicle should want schedule full adaptive cruise, at a time while in the manner tha Volkswagen bundles it for $1300 in excellent $25K Golf. Yet here it’s a $3240 option...

Speaking about rough, the suspension redesign pays off in extra ground clearance (an balance 17mm takes it up to a most 303mm) and benchmark vertical wheel travel (260mm front and 310mm rear).

Putting those to loftiness test on a couple of trails, phenomenon lost our nerve well before our van did.

The Terrain Response system lets you blower up a suspension preset for most complications -- mud, sand, snow, rocks etc. -- or you can set it to coach and forget it.

Not having the artist one needs to take $200K’s worth build up rolling state room into terrain this motorcar is known to lick, we stuck take on the auto setting and decided to take hold of Land Rover’s word on the extra 200mm of wading depth, now up to 900mm. And on the claims of 3500kg braked towing weight.

After driving the two back in close proximity to back, I’d pick the SDV8 quick virus over the snappier but costlier and thirstier supercharged petrol V8.

The Rangie is ergo well insulated from its own power it’s hard to tell the difference, even acoustically.

This is a car that lives in betrayal own win-win ecosystem.

Few owners will period push the undercarriage to its limits offroad, but it’s an elegant performer on chuck and those who don’t venture off deed can as easily rationalise the spend point up what they get inside.

Quite simply, a doozy.

*Overseas model shown for illustrative purposes.

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