They say you only get one chance to make a first impression. If that’s the case, Jaguar Land Rover has nailed it with the reveal of the next generation of its flagship SUV.
The Range Rover’s clean-sheet design is defined by three characteristic lines that can be traced back through the previous four generations of the model’s history: a falling roofline, strong waistline, and rising sill line. Those three components produce an SUV that conveys strength and stability through angular geometry, and they distinguish the Range Rover from a slew of other luxury SUVs on the market, many of which feature sweeping, flowing curves from nose to tail that do more to position those vehicles as broader, taller sports cars than as distinctive SUVs.
“It is totally different to what the others do, and that’s deliberate,” Gerry McGovern, chief creative officer at Jaguar Land Rover, says of the new vehicle’s aesthetic. “It’s constantly evolving. Design has become more and more sophisticated as consumers have become more sophisticated. And the world of luxury has changed, as well.”
McGovern acknowledges that the evolution of this new fifth-generation model’s design and its connection to past Range Rover vehicles is more perceptible when looking back at the model’s more recent predecessors. To compare this 2022 model, which starts at $104,000, to the Range Rover that debuted in 1970, on the other hand, is a study in polarity. Not only does the latest iteration bear little resemblance to that original design, but it’s also a vehicle that is rooted strongly in the present day—both for what it offers and also for how it’s constructed.
“Technology has improved massively,” McGovern says. “You could’ve never designed a car like this at that time [50 years ago]. Even if you could have envisioned it, you could’ve never built it like this with this level of precision.”
Built on a new flexible Modular Longitudinal Architecture—an electric platform that the brand calls MLA-Flex—the 2022 Range Rover boasts copious amounts of agility and impressive overall performance. As proof, the SUV’s twin turbo V8 engine churns out 523 horsepower and—when dynamic launch is activated—can propel the vehicle to 60 mph (from a standstill) in less than 4.5 seconds.
The model’s top-shelf variant, the Range Rover SV, which starts at $215,200, is hand-crafted and offers owners the chance to personalize it through numerous design themes, details, and a bevy of unique materials and finishes. Those materials include innovative textiles and tactile Ultrafabrics produced via Jaguar Land Rover’s longstanding relationship with Kvadrat, a leading textile manufacturer in Europe.
“With more choice than ever before, our customers will be able to create a new Range Rover SV that truly reflects their personality, their dreams, their desires,” says Michael van der Sande, managing director of Jaguar Land Rover’s Special Vehicle Operations. “That is how we interpret modern luxury.”
