Autoblog

Click above to view hi-res images from our Range Rover test

The market is becoming flooded with high-end luxury (and high-powered) sport-utilities from the likes of Mercedes-Benz and Porsche, but in many books the Range Rover is still tops. The next-generation model is anticipated to head into Bentley territory, but Land Rover's flagship SUV could head up-market even before then.

A test mule of a hot-rodded Range Rover has been spotted undergoing tests, and reports suggest that the vehicle could be hiding a V12 engine underhood. While the vehicle spotted could be an early prototype for the current model's replacement, the possibility remains that the new masters at Tata have already given the green light for a twelve-cylinder version of the existing truck. Either way, the big question is where Land Rover would get a V12. It's doubtful that they'd develop one themselves. BMW designed the current Range Rover to accommodate its V12, but Land Rover stopped using BMW engines a few years ago in favor of Ford-sourced Jaguar units. Jaguar, meanwhile, doesn't make V12s anymore, and even if Ford wanted to kick one in for them, the Blue Oval doesn't have one lying around the parts bin, either. Unless they've been hiding one in the miniscule Nano, the company's new owners at Tata don't have one to offer. The closest relation could be Aston Martin, with which Land Rover used to share space under the Ford PAG umbrella, but that seems a bit of a stretch. With the rumormill churning this fast, who knows, maybe Pontiac will be thrown into the mix?

[Source: PistonHeads]

Click above for more high-res spy shots of the 2009 Range Rover Sport

The 2009 Range Rover Sport looks like it's getting a slightly revised face. After undergoing minor cosmetic surgery, the Sport comes out with grillework that's reminiscent of the Land Rover LR2's as well as a new front bumper. Out back and along the sides, the SUV seems to be unchanged compared to the current model. One of Brenda Priddy's clandestine operatives snagged the freshened Ranger Rover Sport frolicking undisguised somewhere in Europe where it looks cold and snowy. As for when it'll be shown to the public, who knows? Geneva's just around the corner, though, so we'll have our gang keep an eye out for it when they're not eyeballing Renaults or noshing on good chocolate and tasty Lake Geneva perch filets.


[Source: Brenda Priddy & Co.]

Land Rovers have run Jaguar's rorty AJ V8 engine since Ford got tired of sourcing engines from BMW. CAR magazine has dug up information on some mules running around in Finland with a new 4997cc engine underhood. Their photographers also caught the vehicles while they hung out in a parking lot full of tantalizing 2 and 7 series Volvos. While the AJ is a great motor, it's well into its design life. Range Rover's new engine is being developed with Bosch, and sports direct fuel injection to boost efficiency while keeping power up and emissions down. Output is rumored at 350 horsepower in naturally aspirated form and 460 ponies come to the party when a supercharger pressurizes the intake. The new engine will wind up in the engine compartment of Land Rovers, Range Rovers, and Jaguars, and will be part of a freshening of Landies and Rangies expected to drop soon.

[Source: CAR]

The Range Rover has long been known as one of the best off-road vehicles on the planet, and it goes about its dirty business in class and style, if not snobbery. The current Rangey isn't getting any younger, so to keep its top dog fresh, Land Rover is offering North Americans 500 of its new Westminster edition models. Equipped with a 400-horsepower supercharged V8, the usual interior appointments, and ten-spoke 20" rims, the Westminster has the niceties its prospective buyers are looking for. Real wood is prevalent, as Land Rover incorporates a 14-piece lined oak extended wood veneer and a lined oak anthracite gear shift knob. The wood trim is further accentuated by special edition "java black" leather seats with tan inserts and tipping.

Of course, all the luxury and exclusivity that accompanies the Westminster comes at a price so steep you practically need another Land Rover to carry the cash you need to pay for it. If you've got $105,600 burning a hole in your pocket and an off-roading fantasy that will likely never be fulfilled, the Range Rover Westminster is in your price range. Unfortunately, we seem to be a little short on both funds and 60 degree grades here in the Detroit-area suburbs.

[Source: Hispanic PR Wire]

Click above for a high-resolution image

German tuner Arden is best known for giving Jaguars sharper claws, but it occasionally takes on Range Rovers, as well. They recently released their AR7 package that includes an understated body kit, larger wheels and tires, new interior appointments and, of course, a boost in power that comes from an increase in displacement of the supercharged V8 to 4.5-liters. The result is 480 horsepower and 422 lb-ft torque with a 0-62 mph time of 6.5 seconds and a top speed of 149 mph. The OEM-look body kit includes a wider front fascia with a stainless steel grille that fits nicely with the upper grille, as well as wider wheel arches, side skirts, and a rear fascia. The three-piece forged wheels come in either 22" or 23" sizes, and larger brakes with 6-piston calipers up front and 4-pistons on the rear. Finally, the customers have a variety of choices with upgrading the interior, including leather and alcantara seats in any color as well as chrome, carbon fiber, or aluminum accents. Check out the full details in the press release after the jump.

[Source: Arden]

Click image for gallery

HAMANN, which has yet to find a car or truck it's not willing to make faster, look wilder, and fit scissor doors to, has turned its attention to the Range Rover Sport. And while Lambo doors are (thankfully) left off here, the rest of the HAMANN formula is applied. The result has been dubbed the Conqueror, and it's ready to lay waste to expensive tires and capture the hearts of lead-footed country club valets.

Power upgrades are made available for all the SUV's engine offerings. The blown unit from the Range Rover Sport Supercharged goes in for a spa treatment and deep tissue massage that leaves it feeling invigorated and renewed to the tune of 475 horsepower and 450 lb-ft of torque. Refreshing, indeed. The added zip underhood is complemented by a new widebody aero kit that emphasizes the "Sport" in the truck's moniker. In the process, the Rover also undergoes bling reduction surgery, sporting a darkened grille, black headlamp bezels, and carbon fiver trim on the side extractor and door handles. 23" EDITION RACE wheels fill out the bulging, flared fenders and also hide upgraded brakes.

Inside, HAMANN will do whatever the customer wants, as evidenced by the snakeskin-covered seats. Unless you're an 80s rocker like Kip Winger or Brett Michaels, we'd advise against ordering those, as they only conquer good taste. The rest of it -- custom leather trim, suede-wrapped dash, etc. -- is fine with us.

Follow the jump for HAMANN's full press release.

[Source: HAMANN]

"You took a $95,000 vehicle off-road?" asked a fellow Autoblogger as we shared some of our latest exploits with media vehicles. His question made it sound like I'd done something impressive with the Range Rover Supercharged, but it wasn't much more than gingerly tiptoeing this big British beast into a field. My little romp was equivalent to testing the water in a wading pool, but I discovered that the Range Rover's ride, no hard-tail chopper on the street, is even better off road.

The Range Rover Supercharged is a dichotomy of brilliant and idiotic, swathed in sumptuousness. The luxury might likely be enough to convince you to forget about some of the less pleasurable aspects of the Range Rover. For us, not blessed with the faculties to swing the monthly payment on such a terrible investment as a $100,000 vehicle, all of the luxury, equipment, and capabilities were largely gimcrackery ladled into a vehicle that will essentially pull station wagon duty.

It doesn't seem that anyone else has shown interest in Jaguar or Land Rover – some rumored suitors have outright denied any interest – but Indian industry giant Ratan Tata is contemplating adding the luxury marques to his Tata Motors unit. Tata has set his advisory bloodhounds after the business case of making Ford an offer for the brands, which could fetch $1.5 billion together.

It seems antithetical considering Tata Motors push to develop the world's cheapest car with a $2,500 price tag. The last Land Rover we drove was thirty-eight times that expensive. It would certainly be a nice property for the conglomerate Tata Sons, parent to the automaking concern, to take on. There are more and more folks worldwide newly flush with cash and looking for cars with some curb appeal. No word has been forthcoming from Tata, rumored to have signed a confidentiality agreement with Ford recently, and Ford also offered no comment.

[Source: Telgraph.co.uk]

Thanks for the tip, Raj!

Last month we told you about Land Rover's disaster marketing campaign. This month the story out of Solihull is instead a bit of a marketing disaster. The company sent "a slim box with a flashing green light," with text that read "it's fully charged" to a list of potential customers, to promote the Range Rover Sport Supercharged. About the time people were receiving the slim, blinky thing -- which was labeled as a marketing tidbit from Land Rover -- the biggest stories on the news were two car bombs being defused in London and an SUV ramming into the Glasgow airport. Land Rover, sensing a bout of bad timing, cut the mailing short and sent letters of apology to those who received the strobing package. There was no harm done, but you have to wonder, after Cartoon Network's Boston Lockdown episode, one would think that any marketing effort involving strange objects with flashing lights would be penciled off the list. For the record, the SUV that slammed into Glasgow airport was a Jeep, not a Rover.

[Source: Just Auto, sub req'd]

Ford has reportedly announced that its current chief designer at Ford of Europe, Phil Simmons, is being moved over to Land Rover. Rather than having a man with such experience oversee the design of the entire Land Rover brand, Simmons will become the studio director for just the Ranger Rover line of premium SUVs. Simmons is actually the one responsible for the Ranger Rover's current design, having spent a decade at Land Rover before being sent to Ford in the U.S., where he also oversaw the Blue Oval's family of midsize sedans, the Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln MKZ. He's been at Ford of Europe since 1999, and thus also must've been partly responsible for the Kinetic design language that debuted on the Iosis concept and matured into the production design of the current Mondeo.

Is it a waste (or a demotion) to shift such talent to a brand that's on the verge of being sold from the corporate fold, and then to only give him control over one vehicle line? The Range Rover is certainly key to the success of Land Rover as a whole, but does it need its own design steward? We're a bit perplexed at the appointment, but the rest of Ford's loss is Range Rover's gain.

[Source: The Car Connection]