FIRST DRIVE
Range Rover PHEV
With electrification of vehicles all the rage, it was only a matter of time until battery packs started showing up in underfloors of bona fide off-road vehicles.
Despite their luxury trappings and matching sticker prices, make no mistake that Range Rovers are off-road SUVs. In fact, there are only a handful of off-the-factory-floor vehicles that can match a Range Rover’s capability once pavement gives way to terra firma.
And like the Land Rover brand has done since its inception, it has set a new high bar when it comes to integrating emerging technologies into all-wheel-drive vehicles.
For 2018, the Range Rover lineup includes two all-new plug-in hybrids, or PHEVs: the Range Rover Autobiography P400e and the Range Rover Sport Autobiography P400e. This isn’t the first time a Range Rover has come with a hybrid system. In 2015, a European-spec model was available with a V-6 diesel hybrid powertrain, but it was sold in just a few markets, ostensibly to meet ever-increasing emission regulations. These 2018 models represent the first global hybrid Range Rover, and also the first time a plug-in hybrid has been produced by the brand. They also herald what promises to be an electrifying future for Jaguar-Land Rover products, as the automaker has committed to offering an electrified powertrain option in all its new vehicles by 2020.
While attending the Los Angeles Auto Show last week, I was given the opportunity to test out the new PHEVs in the traffic of downtown L.A. and also on a short, somewhat demanding off-road circuit in the canyons of Malibu Country.
First, some facts about the new Range Rover PHEVs and their parallel hybrid system: For power, there’s a 2.0-litre fourcylinder engine working with an 85-kilowatt electric motor for an impressive combined output of 398 horsepower and 462 poundfeet of torque. That’s the same 2.0L Ingenium gas engine available in the 2018 Jaguar F-Type. On a full charge, the PHEVs are reported to have an all-electric range of 51 kilometres.
The PHEVs also share all the upgrades and new features found in the gasoline-powered 2018 Range Rovers, from creature comforts to enhanced technologies. The former is found in the way of wider and deeper front seats with an optional 24-way movement and heated arm rests, while in the rear there’s a completely redesigned seating layout that includes big reclining seats and video screens. There are now 17 connection points including domestic plug sockets, USB, HDMI and 12-volt outlets along with an available 4G Wi-Fi hot spot for up to eight devices. Borrowing some tech from BMW, the gesture-control sun blind allows you to open and close the blind with a swipe of your hand in front of the rear-view mirror. Two high-definition 25-centimetre touchscreens on the centre console allow information to be swiped from one screen to the other.
The exterior of the PHEV is very similar to the gas-powered new models, save a slightly different front end — to accommodate the charging port located behind the grille — and some hybrid badging.
Now to the drive. It didn’t take long to realize the Range Rover PHEV was unlike any Range Rover I’d ever driven. With the EV-only mode selected, I silently pulled out of the lobby of the downtown Intercontinental Hotel en route to Santa Monica, a 26-kilometre drive west along Highway 10. With silent and seamless acceleration the luxury SUV zipped off the on-ramp and onto the highway.
Smooth does not do the driving experience justice. Gas-powered Range Rovers are renowned for their comfortable ride and quiet cabin, but the PHEVs take that experience to an almost eerie level. Being L.A. at 9 in the morning, the vehicle never crested 100 kilometres an hour, and by the time of arrival at the beach at Santa Monica, the display read just 19 kilometres of battery power used, indicating the impressive nature of the regenerative braking system.
From there, it was up the coast to Malibu, then up into the canyons in search of the off-road course. By this time the gas engine had kicked in, and as you’d expect from a four-cylinder engine, the sound was not intoxicating — certainly nothing like its gas-powered stablemates, particularly the big supercharged Range Rover. That said, the PHEV’s horsepower output is second only to that engine across the entire Range Rover lineup, so clearly the 2.0-litre engine and electric motor have something going for them.
The off-road section was the one I was really looking forward to. I’ve driven plenty of PHEVs of all shapes and sizes, so while the highway and canyon road sections were impressive enough, they weren’t game-changing to my mind.
Once the pavement gave way to dirt, however, it was apparent Range Rover had once again tapped into a technology that soon will be found in many, if not all, off-road vehicles (Jeep, I’m looking at you).
With just a couple of EV kilometres of range on the battery, I tackled the off-road course in EV-only mode. First and foremost, it was surreal to go up and over some pretty rugged singletrack in silence, save for the crunch of earth beneath the tires. Second, and more important, the big torque number provided by the electric motor proved ideal for the ascents.
Combined with Range Rover’s tried-and-true computer-assisted off-road settings — essentially ranging from do it all yourself to sit back and steer with no pedal inputs — the electric powertrain performed flawlessly. The regen aspect of the hybrid system pulls power from not just the brakes while in off-road mode, but also the gears, and with an enhanced gear ratio in low mode, the regen power went through the roof. During the short drive of less than a kilometre, the battery pack had harvested 13 per cent power from the combined regen effort.
What totally convinced me of the attributes of a hybrid offroader, however, was the veteran off-road expert I was paired with as a guide through the canyon bush. This longtime four-byfour-er with a been-there-donethat checklist of the world’s gnarliest routes and terrain said he was blown away the first time he took the PHEV through the course.
Far from being a greenie gimmick, the 2018 Range Rover PHEV is a bona fide trail master, and one that rightfully belongs in the historic lineage of the iconic vehicles. All that remains to do now is somehow convince the vast majority of the people who buy one to take the world’s lesstravelled paths.