New Range Rover to start $7000 higher

Land Rover has announced Australian pricing for its first all-new Range Rover in a decade. And it's a case of good news and bad news. The bad: the entry level price has gone up; but good – so has performance and equipment...

The fourth-generation Range Rover will make its local debut at the Australian International Motor Show in Sydney next month but was revealed at a gala media event in London overnight. Official world debut is at the Paris Motor Show on September 27.

It will be available with three engines and in four equipment grades when Australia becomes one of the first countries in the world to take delivery in January.

At least 25 Australians have already placed orders for the revolutionary new Land Rover flagship that is expected to be more popular than its predecessor (which attracts about 20 buyers a month - 85 per cent of which are diesels).

Opening the new Range Rover line-up will be the 3.0L V6 Diesel at $168,900 plus on-road costs, representing a $6900 increase on the $162,000 TDV8 HSE it replaces. The same 3.0-litre V6 turbodiesel will also be available in Vogue specification, priced at $178,900.

Matching the performance of the outgoing TDV8, the first V6 diesel-powered Range Rover delivers 190kW at 4000rpm and 600Nm at 2000rpm and sprints to 100km/h in 7.9 seconds. However, thanks to a massive 420kg kerb weight reduction (now 2160kg), lower-friction internal components and the fitment of an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission with fuel-saving idle-stop function, efficiency increases by 22 per cent to 7.5L/100km and 196g/km of CO2 (58g/km less than the old TDV8). An 85-litre fuel tank provides a theoretical driving range of 1149km.

The new Range Rover TDV8 comes with a similar price increase, opening at $195,100 in Vogue trim level (it is no longer available in base HSE guise) and costing $217,100 in Vogue SE trim and $232,800 in top-shelf Autobiography specification.

Now fitted with twin air intakes, idle-stop and cast alloy engine mounts and a redesigned oil sump saving 10kg, the TDV8’s 4.4-litre turbocharged eight-cylinder diesel engine offers 250kW at 3500rpm (up nine per cent) and 700Nm between 1750-3000rpm. It too is matched to an eight-speed auto.

Thus the TDV8 sprints to 100km/h in 6.9 seconds – a full second sooner than the model it replaces – while offering combined fuel consumption of just 8.7L/100km and CO2 emissions of 229g/km. Combined with a larger 105-litre fuel tank, the TDV8 can in theory travel 1215km before refuelling.

Jaguar Land Rover’s 5.0-litre supercharged petrol V8 remains the top-shelf engine in the new Rangie line-up, and costs from $224,400 in Vogue SE spec.

Also rounding out the 13MY Range Rover model family in Autobiography form (priced at $240,100), the upgraded engine features a new Bosch engine management system, sixth-generation twin-vortex supercharger, high-pressure direct -njection and dual independent variable camshaft timing.

The result is 375kW at 6000-6500rpm, 625Nm between 2500-5500rpm and 0-100km/h acceleration in 5.4 seconds (0.8 seconds quicker than before), while consuming 13.8L/100km and emitting 322g/km –  seven per cent less than the outgoing model.

The 5.0-litre Rangie eclipses the top speeds of both the TDV6 (210km/h) and TDV8 (215km/h) by offering a v-max of 225km/h, or an electronically speed-limited top speed of 250km/h with optional 22-inch wheels.

13MY Range Rover pricing (plus on-road costs):
3.0L V6 Diesel HSE - $168,900
3.0L V6 Diesel Vogue - $178,900
4.4L V8 Diesel Vogue - $195,100
4.4L V8 Diesel Vogue SE - $217,100
4.4L V8 Diesel Autobiography - $232,800
5.0L V8 Petrol Supercharged Vogue SE - $224,400
5.0L V8 Petrol Supercharged Autobiography - $$240,100

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