The new seven-seat Range Rover luxury SUV gets two new PHEV drivetrains which are available to order now in Australia.
Range Rover has fully opened the order books for the new Range Rover with the arrival of plug-in hybrid options and new well-appointed SV models. The British marque has also announced the final specifications for the battery-assisted versions of its new flagship model.
This new Range Rover with a choice of Extended-Range Plug-in Hybrid powertrains is available to order now in Australia from $229,200 before on-road costs. The New Range Rover SV is available in SWB from $341,300, with P530 LWB models from $391,800.
Two plug-in hybrid models of the new Range Rover are available – the P440e and the more powerful P510e model.
Land Rover confirmed plans for two plug-in hybrid versions of the new L460 generation Range Rover last year, when the car was revealed. Both models use a 3.0-litre straight-six turbocharged petrol engine in tandem with a 105kW electric motor and a 38kWh battery (with a usable capacity of 31kWh), though the P440e’s petrol engine is detuned slightly in comparison to the more powerful P510e variant.
As such, total system power for the P440e stands at 320kW with 620Nm of torque. The P510e steps things up to 370kW and 700Nm. Both variants will offer up to 110km of range on electric power only, while delivering CO2 emissions from as little as 18g/km in hybrid drive mode. 50kW DC rapid charging enables a 0-80 per cent recharge of the battery in under an hour.
With the introduction of the plug-in hybrid models, Land Rover has also introduced SV versions of the new Range Rover, with the new range-topping specification priced from $341,300 in short-wheelbase guise and stretching up to $391,800 for the 4.4-litre V8 petrol powered P530 version in long-wheelbase form. The P510e plug-in hybrid will be available as part of this line-up in the short-wheelbase body length only.
Alongside fully electric EV mode, there’s a choice of Hybrid mode – the default setting, which combines both power sources and uses predictive energy optimisation tech, as well as geofencing to ensure electric propulsion is available in low emissions zones, for example – and Save mode. This latter setting retains a programmable state of charge for deployment later in the driver’s journey.
All powertrains are mated to an eight-speed automatic gearbox with low-range capability and Land Rover’s four-wheel drive system with Terrain Response 2 tech that tailors the drivetrain to different surfaces, while the new Intelligent All-Wheel Drive system can decouple the front axle on-road between 34km/h and 160km/h to improve efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions by up to 4g/km.
This fifth-generation Range Rover will be the first that offers seating for seven. The new car comes in five-seat standard wheelbase form, while if you opt for the long wheelbase variant you can specify a third row of seats.
The LWB model adds an extra 200mm between the car’s axles, facilitating the new seating configuration. We tried the third row at the car’s unveiling and, while there’s not as much room as in the brand’s larger Discovery, there’s still enough space for children and adults on shorter journeys.
Improved torsional rigidity (up to 50 per cent) from the new aluminium-intensive platform means Land Rover’s engineers have been able to increase the door aperture size to improve access, which is reasonable.
SWB models can be had with five seats, while if you go for the Executive Class Seating pack, this comes with four seats. The individual chairs in the rear are available on SWB and LWB cars, improving kneeroom by 44mm; there’s up to one metre of legroom on four-seat LWB models.
The new Range Rover adopts Land Rover’s latest Pivi Pro infotainment system with a gently curved 13.1-inch touchscreen on the dash. The brand says 90 per cent of tasks are accessible in just two steps from the home screen, while there’s also more connectivity than ever before, with over-the-air software update capability, Amazon Alexa integration, Spotify and, of course, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto with wireless connections for both programmes.