The first new Range Rover in 10 years is simply gorgeous. The 2022 Land Rover has an evolved look, four-wheel steering, and up to seven seats.
“Range Rover is not about radical change for the sake of it,” says Jaguar Land Rover’s chief creative officer, Gerry McGovern. The seven-seat Range Rover uses the long-wheelbase body The wheels are as large as 23 inches.
Some noticable changes include, the molding at the base of the windows has been removed, the door handles are flush-mounted, and there’s flush glazing.
Until illuminated, the taillights present as simple black vertical elements. Those flush elements, along with the new vertical creases at the rear corners, active aero elements, and a suspension that automatically lowers at highway speeds.
The new Range Rover interior features a 13.1-inch central touchscreen which adds haptic feedback and includes Amazon Alexa integration as well as wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
The 1600-watt Meridian sound system, which is exclusive to the Autobiography and First Edition, includes active noise cancellation and boasts 35 speakers—including in the headrests. There’s aslo an optional cabin air purification system that can filter SARS and Covid pathogens.
Come next year, entering and exiting the Range Rover will be made easier by the optional new Power Assisted Doors, which also can be controlled via the touchscreen.
Moving to the back of the Range Rover, the model features an upper liftgate and a drop-down tailgate. The option includes additional lighting and speakers in the liftgate that can play music from your smartphone.
Underneath, the new Rover debuts the brand’s MLA-Flex architecture, which is said to be 76 percent aluminum. Torsional rigidity is up by a claimed 50 percent. Powertrain choices include inline-sixes and a turbocharged V-8. An EV is also promised but won’t arrive until 2024.
The familiar turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six with 48-volt hybrid assistance returns as the base engine in the SE. It delivers 395 horsepower and 406 pound-feet of torque.
Optional on the SE and standard on the Autobiography and First Edition is a new 4.4-liter twin-turbo V-8 making 523 horsepower and 553 pound-feet of torque. With it, the new Rover hustles to 60 mph in a factory-estimated 4.4 seconds.
A plug-in-hybrid six-cylinder arrives a few months later for the 2023 model year and makes 434 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque. Its 38.2-kWh battery (usable capacity 31.8kWh) gives it a projected EV range of 62 miles. A 105kW electric motor integrated into the transmission is brawny enough to propel the Range Rover at speeds up to 87 mph.
The new Range Rover adopts Land Rover’s Clearsight front camera system, which can stitch together a forward-view image as if the front bodywork were see-through. The default ground clearance is 11.6 inches, and the air suspension offers a maximum rise of 5.7 inches.
The 2022 Range Rover is available for order now, with deliveries to commence in spring 2022. Expect the plug-in hybrid powertrain to be available three months later.
Prices start at $105,350 for the SE and $153,350 for the Autobiography, with the First Edition currently the most expensive offering at $159,550 for the standard-wheelbase variant and $164,850 for the long-wheelbase version.