Adventure and excitement knew no bounds as we drove the new Range Rover in Morocco recently
Morocco has one of the most varied and challenging terrains that one can imagine. And no sane person would attempt what we did on these treacherous paths driving the luxurious new Range Rover, which costs about Rs 1.70 crore! But when you buy a Range Rover, you get a rather reassuring feeling that it can steam-roll over rocky roads, crawl out of ruts and even drive through a river, if need be. After having driven it for a couple of days in Essaouira and Marrakech, I won’t be surprised to see many princes, prime ministers and other such important dignitaries being chauffeured around in the multifaceted new Range Rover.
In terms of luxury and performance, it’s quite a leap from the very first semi-luxurious 4 x 4 model introduced some four decades ago. The lightweight new Range Rover is the first all-aluminium SUV and carries forward the fundamental all-terrain capability, but now the cabin is more spacious, laden with top-class leather and wood, and is exquisitely executed on a par with luxury limousines. The cabin noise reduction and refinement have improved enormously. There is an excellent new Meridian music system and even the dashboard layout is more elegant with 50 per cent fewer switches. You get a new multi-functional steering wheel, while the overall attention to detail is brilliant for an SUV. I especially liked the commanding driving position, which offers good all-round visibility, but the large external rear-view mirrors, adhering to international norms, look obtrusive.
I got to drive both petrol and diesel versions, which included the performance-oriented petrol supercharged 5.0-litre LR-V8 engine, offering a stronger power output of 510 PS. Now in the lighter version it delivers a better 0-100 km/h time of just over five seconds. Replacing the old six-speed auto transmission is a new ZF eight-speed across the model range, which offered smooth shifts and rapid response. When I got on to the motorway towards Marrakech, I stepped on the accelerator and it responded instantly, pinning me back to my seat with an incredible surge. Past the double century mark and it still had enough steam left in it, but I ran out of courage in this foreign land.
The ‘super-diesel’ 4.4-litre SDV8 has been exclusively designed for the Range Rover. This frugal oil-burner faintly mummers on idling and hardly feels like a diesel motor. Employing the 339 PS it offers brisk performance, almost gliding on the road and reaching from 0 to 100 km/h in under seven second. The eight-speed keeps the motor in the desired sweet spot, making the drive very enjoyable. This efficient option is surely going to be more popular in India.
On road it felt a lot more agile and energetic than its forebear and you can feel that it has shed almost 300 kg. The noteworthy Dynamic Response system optimises the on-road handling by controlling the yaw and reducing body-roll. It’s only round very tight corners and while carrying more speed does one feel the weight and some body-roll creeping in. The steering feels light and pretty accurate, while the improved Brembo brakes bite harder. But it was the busy streets of the city where the SUV surprised me with its ease of use, disguising its bulky size.
It’s a brilliant off-roader, to say the least. Using the ‘Terrain Response 2 Auto’ one can select driving modes like General Driving, Grass/Gravel/Snow, Mud/Ruts, Sand and Rock Claw by rotating the switch. The system senses and adjusts the response of the SUV’s gearbox, engine, centre differential and chassis system to match the demands of the terrain. However, it doesn’t offer simple manual selection like ‘Comfort’ or ‘Sport’ driving mode. Then the approach-angle and departure-angle have been improved keeping the model’s off-roading lineage in mind.
Land Rover gave me more than enough opportunity to test the new Range Rover’s dynamic ability over some severe off-roading trails – from the seashore to the sand dunes of Essaouira and even while driving over imaginary path on the foothills of Atlas mountains, wading against the river current, with water up to the waist. Spurting around water, slush and sand it continued to march on.
It just shows the confidence J-LR have in their latest product. The British marque has not changed the legendary Range Rover, but has just made it better.
When I got on to the motorway towards Marrakech, I stepped on the accelerator and it responded instantly, pinning me back to my seat with an incredible surge
Story: Sarmad Kadiri
