2003 Land Rover Range Rover

The British have a strong grip on style and tradition, so it's no surprise that Land Rover's stylish new Range Rover HSE sport-utility vehicle has gotten its first total redesign since introduced in England in 1970.

The all-wheel-drive Range Rover is considerably larger, more powerful and more technically advanced than its predecessor, although it retains a pronounced Range Rover look. It's the first Range Rover to have a modern V-8, unibody construction and a fully independent air suspension.

The Range Rover was updated several times since its introduction, but continued to use a modified old Buick V-8 and was being outdone by rivals by the late 1990s. That was a sad situation for this vehicle, which invented the world luxury sport-utility vehicle market approximately 32 years ago. (It was introduced to America in 1987.)

Nobody argued with the Range Rover's goat-like off-road prowess, which it retains to a remarkable degree despite very civilized on-road behavior. And nobody expected this patrician vehicle to exhibit a lot of flash. But it had just gotten too old and tired.

Germany's BMW briefly owned the British Land Rover outfit from 1994 to 2000, leading to the development of the new model. That ownership allowed the Range Rover to get a smooth 4.4-liter, 282-horsepower BMW V-8 and modern five-speed automatic transmission.

In all, BMW spent approximately $1 billion to create and produce this new, world-class Range Rover. However, in one of those unusual auto industry twists, BMW lost a small fortune on Rover's passenger car operation and thus spun it off and sold Land Rover to Ford in 2000 for about $3 billion. Ford got the all-new Range Rover as part of the deal.

Land Rover now is part of Ford's Premier Auto Group, which also includes the equally venerable British Aston Martin and Jaguar nameplates. Ford spent time giving the Range Rover new engineering and manufacturing processes to improve quality.

The new Range Rover comes only as the $71,200 HSE model, which gets free scheduled maintenance for four years or 40,000 miles. It's loaded with so much comfort and convenience equipment that a $1,300 Heated Accessories package is the only factory option. It contains a heated steering wheel, heated front and rear seats and rear-seat ski hatch and ski bag. Powerful Bi-Xenon headlights are standard.

A range of dealer-installed accessories includes roof rack carrying systems and running boards.

The new Range Rover retains the classic shape of the old model and has retro items such as hood bulges. But it looks smoother and more modern, although the body generates noticeable wind noise at highway speeds.

The well-mannered BMW V-8 has been modified for application in the Range Rover and loafs at 2,400 rpm at 70 mph. It works with a responsive automatic transmission, which allows manual sequential shifting. The Ranger Rover is quick off the line, and merging into fast traffic and passing maneuvers on highways are a breeze.

This sport-ute has a manageable size, but weighs a hefty 5,379 pounds, despite weight-saving aluminum components. Fuel economy thus isn't a strong point: an estimated 12 mpg in the city and 17 on highways. But a big 26.4-gallon fuel tank allows what Range Rover describes as a 384-mile range. Premium fuel is required for the dual-overhead-camshaft engine, which is pretty quiet even during hard acceleration.

Getting in and out calls for extra effort because the Ranger Rover stands tall, and rear door openings should be wider. Once inside, occupants sit high and thus enjoy a good view of surroundings, although a driver might find it a bit hard to see out the rear window.

Four hefty 6-footers easily fit, and the comfortable front seats are especially supportive. The wood-and-leather interior is definitely upscale; its variety of styling and texture cues were "studied from a diverse range of influences,'' including high-priced Riva speedboats and precision running gear from ocean racing yachts.

Gauges should be a bit larger, and it takes time to learn to use the vast array of switches, buttons, knobs and handles. There's a convenient dashboard pop-out cupholder for the front passenger, but the pop-out console cupholder almost seems like an afterthought. However, sturdy rear cupholders conveniently pop out of the rear center fold-down armrest and there are a fair amount of passenger-compartment storage areas.

The power window switches on the side of the driver's door require a fairly long reach if the driver's seat is moved back for a 6-footer. But most controls are nicely sized for easy operation. The ignition switch is on the center console; the Range Rover and Saab are the only vehicles I've seen with a console switch, which eliminates groping for a steering-column-mounted switch.

There's a two-piece tailgate with a convenient upper glass area, but the load floor is moderately high. Cargo room is pretty good with the rear seat in its normal position, and that seat folds entirely forward to allow a giant cargo area.

The new monocoque body with its integrated chassis is very stiff. It makes the Range Rover feel rock-solid and helps allow the independent front and rear height-adjustable air suspension to provide a firm-but-supple ride; it only became a bit jittery on tollway pavement undulations.

The steering is precise, and handling is generally quite good. There's some body lean when zipping through curves, but it's not unsettling. Helping keep things stable are a variety of sophisticated traction control systems.

The brake pedal feels rather soft, but has the progressive action especially needed for serious off-road motoring with the anti-lock brakes. A Hill-Descent Control system makes demanding off-road driving easier by limiting downhill speed.

Safety items include side air bags up front and front and rear head protection air bags.

A Range Rover was the only choice of its mostly wealthy buyers even when other sport-utility vehicles outdid it in key areas. The new model should be irresistible to those folks.


RANGE ROVER HSE
Price:
$71,200

Likes:
Major redesign. Roomy. Fast. Good handling. Upper-crust image. Off-road mountain goat.

Dislikes:
Small gauges. Narrow rear door openings. Low fuel economy.