2 0 0 7 L a n d R o v
e r R a n g e R o v e r
S u p e r c h a r g e d
Making 400
horsepower feel slow By: Brandon Dye
When the current generation of Range Rover
debuted back in 2002 it was embraced by wealthy
suburbanites and praised by the media as the
greatest luxury vehicle since the S-Class. Ok, maybe
nobody stood in front of a banner declaring such,
but that seemed like the general tone to us. Its
distinctive retroish body shared the same
unimaginative upright greenhouse and short wheelbase
that Range Rovers have always shared. But the only
real important part of the exterior was the large
Range Rover lettering just above the grille that let
everyone know this was an expensive SUV far above
the realm of mere Escalades and Navigators. In our
opinion the contemporary interior was the crowning
achievement, although BMW power and plenty of luxury
features didn’t hurt the vehicle’s prospects for
success. But all that can be gleaned from the glossy
brochure photos and slick television commercials. We
recently spent a week with a nearly six figure fully
loaded Range Rover Supercharged model, and we have
to admit we were disappointed.
Oh sure, the Range Rover drives very nice with a supple
ride for a vehicle that weighs almost three tons and
a glued to the road confidence when cruising that
reminds us of large German luxury cars. You don’t
get so much as a hint of feedback through the
stylish steering wheel. Frost heaves, potholes, road
kill it doesn’t matter because all of it is filtered
out before reaching passengers. The advanced air
suspension with automatic load leveling works
wonders on the ride side of the equation, not so
much on the handling side. The soft suspension lets
the Rover keel over in turns much more than we would
prefer and dive under braking like a nuclear sub.
You wouldn’t know this is the performance
supercharged model from the driver’s seat. Although
I guess enthusiasts who care more about handling
should consider Land Rover’s Range Rover Sport. When
we get behind the wheel of that model, we’ll let you
know if it lives up to its name.
Our Range Rover was shod in 20” aluminum alloy wheels
with low-profile 255/50 tires. These tires, as most
experts will tell you, are not ideal for off-roading.
In fact, they looked ready to deflate at the mere
sight of dirt. Land Rover assures us they are
sturdier than they look and our brief excursions
off-road seemed to back up those assurances. Of
course, Land Rover piles on some serious hardware
(and software) to compensate for the tire situation.
The main weapon in the Rover’s arsenal is the
sophisticated Terrain Response System, which sounds
so cool it just has to work. Basically, a knob on
the center console allows the driver to switch
between general off-roading, snow, mud, sand and
serious rock crawling. Depending upon the selection
the Rover’s various traction control systems,
locking differentials and 2-speed transfer case
adjust for optimal unstopability. We’ll take Land
Rover’s word that it all works in the really
challenging stuff.
So let’s recap. We’re pleading with Land Rover to bring
the top dog Rover into the 21st century by dropping
the retroish body language, and we appreciate the
serious off-roading hardware that next to no one
will ever use, but we’ve got to be head over heels
for that gorgeous interior that caused such a big
stir five years ago, right. Wrong. That interior
that looks like perfection in the glossy brochure
photos turns out to be showing far more gray than a
$100k vehicle should be allowed to. We know Land
Rover ergonomics have never kept Toyota engineers
awake at night, but the nav system controls are
aggravating to put it mildly. We do, however, really
like the useful off-road info screen. Climate
controls have been improved and are easy to operate,
but we didn’t find the interior trimmings
particularly plush. Yes, the leather wrapped dash is
classy, but the door panels and center console just
don’t measure up to other luxury vehicles in this
price range. That impression is even more solid
after looking for a CD changer and realizing the
6-disc magazine is in the glovebox, circa 1994.
Things get even funnier when you want to watch a
movie on the two headrest mounted second row
screens. You’ll have to stop the vehicle and lift
the rear hatch for that task then remove a carpeted
side panel to gain access to the dvd player and
navigation system drive. Of course, Land Rover
doesn’t integrate it for a nicely finished look, no,
you’re stuck with the exposed cables C3PO-style.
Almost everyone said the seats were too stiff and
the fold down armrests on the front seats are too
narrow and hard. The 710-watt 14-speaker harman/kardon
sound system is one of the few standout luxuries on
the vehicle. It’s fair to say we were most
disappointed with the interior. It simply needs
improved.
In our estimation the vehicle’s strongest assets is its
mechanicals and the Jaguar sourced 4.2-liter 400-hp
supercharged V8 is a smooth engine that simply gets
loaded with too much weight (nearly 6,000-pounds) to
move the Range Rover quickly. The 6-speed automatic
was impressive with buttery smooth shifts at any
spot on the tach. The brake pedal was setup too soft
for our liking; probably another concession to
off-road potential, but the Supercharged model wears
beefy Brembo front brake calipers so at least you
can haul down all that weight in a controlled
manner.
The Range Rover’s main problem is it hasn’t improved
much since its debut in 2002 and the competition has
gotten much stronger. Besides the all-around
impressive Escalade there’s the far sportier and
faster Porsche Cayenne, and the more luxurious and
competent in its own right Mercedes GL to contend
with. All of which can be had for less money than
the $95,250 sum our tester commanded. The Range
Rover has its charms; we’re just hoping the next one
has a lot more of them.
Go anywhere, great stereo, cool off-road nav
capability, comfortable and confident on the road.
The
Bad:
Slower than 400 hp should be, handles like you’d
imagine 6,000 pounds does, hard seats and some crazy
British ergonomics.
The
Verdict:
Offers too little and costs too much, the
long-in-the-tooth Range Rover deserves a makeover.
Have a question we didn't answer about the
2007 Land Rover Range Rover Supercharged--or any vehicle for that
matter? Drop us a line at
editor@automotivetrends.com
