“Don’t change it. Just make it better”. This, after many hours in conversation, was apparently the brief from the core customer base for the new Range Rover. Not an easy thing to deliver, but this fourth generation of a British icon would seem to have done it.
We were invited up to Jaguar Land Rover’s base in Gaydon to see the car close up. We knew the broad facts. Like the all-aluminium monocoque body that helps the new car come in a whopping 420kg less than the predecessor (a shell, in fact, that is 23kg lighter than the one found in a 3 Series). The new design and interior that continues the brand’s velocity into the luxury market. And some astonishing sales figures to live up to (last year 279,606 people bought a Range Rover, more than ever before). But there were plenty of details to come: the new Range Rover is lighter, more refined, more capable off-road, and more frugal with fuel…
Well don’t just sit there. Click through to read the story.
When Nissan introduced their Murano Crosscabriolet (convertible) last year, reaction was, dare we say, mixed. But perhaps Nissan was onto something — and perhaps that thing was predicting Range Rover’s next move:
The drop-top Rangie follows last September’s equally stunning Land Rover Defender DC100 Sport concept (an open-topped off-roader), stretching the appeal of Top Gear’s Car Of The Year 2011 to new, fresh air highs.
It’s a concept for now, but as with the Defender models at Frankfurt, Land Rover has built it to see what the public think when it hits the Geneva motor show next month. We’re informed that should reaction prove positive - as it has done for the standard Evoque - you could see this thing within a couple of years.
So… if you could, would you?
TopGear.com have named some of their favorite cars from 2011 including cars like the Lamborghini Aventador and the Porsche 911 Carrera S (see the photoset above for some, click the link for the rest.)
There are some quality picks in there but we wonder what your favorite cars were. What say you?
VICTORIA BECKHAM has been named Top Gear’s Woman Of The Year for her work styling cars as ”creative design executive” of Range Rover.
“Skeptical we may have been, but the artist formerly known as Posh Spice has turned out a rather nifty vehicle,” Top Gear officials said, as reported by the Daily Star. “Kudos, Mrs B. Car design? A piece of cake for the multi-talented Mrs Beckham.”
Beckham oversaw the design of a new motor for a special edition of Range Rover’s Evoque model, which was also named Car Of The Year.
Did we mention that the Range Rover Evoque is Top Gear’s 2011 Car of The Year? Not sure? Well we’re mentioning it now:
BBC TopGear Magazine have named the new Range Rover Evoque as their 2011 Car of the Year. The Evoque came top in the SUV category of the annual awards and was also picked by TopGear TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson as his favourite new car this year.
The Evoque beat stiff competition from the BMW 1 Series M, Mclaren MP4 12c, Ferrari FF, VW Up! and Kia Picanto to scoop the coveted Car of the Year title. The awards are officially announced in the December issue of BBC TopGear Magazine.
The judging panel, headed up by BBC TopGear Magazine Editor-in-Chief, Charlie Turner, comprised members of the magazine’s editorial and road testing team, together with the three TopGear TV presenters, Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond.
Hard to argue with their choice, however the Audi A7 still looks pretty sweet to us. What would you have picked as your Car of the Year?
Last night we saw James driving an Evoque across Death Valley.
Click through for video of James still talking about it.
via BBC Top Gear
From Season 17 Episode 3 airing this Monday at 9/8c on BBC America.
(Source: fuckyeahtopgear)
Get ready for all new episodes of TOP GEAR - with a special sneak peek at Ep 3, premiering MONDAY Sept 5 at 9/8c only on BBC America.
Here, James sets off to cross California’s Death Valley in the new Range Rover Evoque… and runs into some daredevil locals flying across the sand.
Will James make it across the lowest, driest, and hottest location in North America to Las Vegas to rendezvous with a special guest?
