Range Rover Plug-In Hybrid 2019 Review

This Range Rover Vogue P400e is the luxury British off-road brand's first plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) and seeks to sidestep criticisms of the big 4x4 for being a gas guzzling planet wrecker.

Drawing on the technology and lessons learnt during the recent electrification of its associated Jaguar passenger car range, Land Rover has transplanted the idea of an efficient plug-in hybrid electric system into its most luxurious model with impressive results.

High-riding ‘Rangies’ have been wafting across the world’s paddocks and highways for nearly half a century now, but the vehicle’s size and typically V8 powertrains have made it a soft target for critics.

Not anymore, because although while this PHEV version is no smaller than its V8-powered stablemates, it sips far more frugally than any previous Rangie.

As Land Rover has sought to extend the reach of the hallowed Range Rover badge, adding new models like the Evoque and Sport, it’s become hard to sort a pukka Range Rover from the Johnny Cum Lately.

You can’t really blame Land Rover for trying to make a quid, but it does run the risk that these new additions detract from the original flagship model.

While these other models are more affordable, the starting point for a ‘proper’ Range Rover remains extravagant at $190k and steps up steeply through 13-variants to the SVA Autobiography LWB at $398,900.

Within this lineup this Range Rover Vogue P400e, costs a middling $210k.

The Range Rover P400e PHEV isn’t an electric car in the same way a Tesla or a Hyundai Kona Electric is, but lands somewhere between these ‘true’ EVs and hybrid-electrics like the Toyota Prius. The key difference being that it can be plugged in, charged, and driven for an extended period on electric-only power.

The clever drivetrain, which can be had in either this Range Rover Vogue or a Range Rover Sport, can run in pure-electric mode or parallel hybrid mode, the latter being where petrol and electric motors work together for enhanced efficiency and power.

The system combines a 221kW 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine, with an 85kW electric motor and a 13.1kWh lithium-ion battery pack. Together, the combo delivers outputs of 297kW and 640Nm, which is plenty powerful and in the ballpark of Audi’s hybridized Q7 e-tron (330kW/664Nm).

Power is channeled through a ZF-sourced eight-speed automatic transmission and permanent all-wheel drive system, with the 2500kg Rangie accelerating to 100km/h in a brisk 6.8sec. That’s quicker than every other Range Rover model, except for the supercharged 5.0-litre V8 models.

The Range Rover PHEV was released in the UK in April last year as a part of a broader MY18 mid-life update to both the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport.

It arrived here as the P400e in October 2018 as a MY2019 model, replacing the unloved SDV6 diesel-hybrid, which Land Rover Australia struggled to make a compelling case for against its other TDV6 and SDV6 diesel models.

The new petrol-based P400e is significantly better to drive than the model it replaces and features a raft of upgrades that can be found in other 2018/19 MY Range Rover variants.

In addition to some subtle exterior styling enhancements, the changes include the latest 10-inch touchscreen infotainment system; wider and softer front seats; thicker acoustic glass to reduce cabin noise; larger 10-inch rear-seat entertainment screens; and no less than 17 USB and conventional power sockets into the cabin.

Range Rovers have long been pitched at the well-heeled buyer who wants a luxury vehicle with ground clearance, the necessary grunt for towing, and all-terrain capability.

But even for someone well-heeled enough to spend $200k on a 4x4, conspicuous consumption of earth’s finite assets is becoming decidedly uncool these days, so this PHEV model effectively allows one to have one’s cake and scoff it too.

You get all the luxury, brand cachet and off-road ability of a ‘proper’ gas guzzling Rangie, but you can piously point to the PHEV’s remarkable 2.8L/100km combined-cycle fuel economy and tut-tut about the supercharged petrol V8 version’s thirsty 12.8L/100km.

The plug-in hybrid system gives an optimal electric-only range of 51km, meaning some owners will be able to complete their commute to and from work each day without using any fossil fuel (assuming you’re charging with green electricity). For most others, varying terrain and utilising the car’s myriad cooling and other electrical systems will reduce that by a bit.

Charging the battery takes roughly three hours using a 32-amp wall box, or around eight hours using the more common 10-amp home charger.

Remarkably, exactly where Range Rovers have always sat, meaning at the upper echelons of the premium SUV Class.

We say remarkably because one might imagine that slotting a turbo four-cylinder engine into a car this big, albeit one assisted by an electric motor, might impact adversely on performance; but it doesn’t.

Or all that electric technology beneath the floor might render the Rangie’s famed off-road ability redundant; but it hasn’t. Or that the complex interplay between petrol and electric motors might impact on refinement; but again, it doesn’t.

There are compromises versus the pure petrol models, of course – including the lack of a spare wheel, 100 litres less luggage space and a reduced 2500kg towing limit – but none are deal breakers.

Identifying rivals to shop the P400e against isn’t easy, with the closest thing conceptually being Audi’s hybridised Q7 e-tron, which is a good $70k less expensive. Similarly, Volvo’s hybrid XC90 T8 R-Design is $15k less expensive again, while even the conventionally powered twin turbo diesel BMW X5M50d is ‘only’ $150k. Heading the other way, it’s a big leap to the Bentley Bentayga at $335k.

The Range Rover P400e offers guilt-free luxury SUV driving, even if you will find it hard to match the optimal conditions required to extract its claimed electric-only range and frugal fuel consumption.

The P400e introduces clever fuel-saving tech to an established luxury SUV model, and does so without compromising comfort, refinement or performance on and off-road.

We’d call that a win-win.

How much does the 2019 Range Rover P400e cost?
Price: $210,000 (plus ORCs); $232,155 (as tested, plus ORCs)
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol and electric motor
Output: 297kW/640Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 2.8L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 64g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: N/A

*Autobiography model shown