That center stack looks like I'm staring down a mission control panel from the Apollo era. Too bad the monitors didn't work, they do look nifty sitting in those headrests.

$95,000?
 
I'm torn between:
If you got it flaunt it;
 
A fool and his money are soon parted.

Lucas Electrical strikes again!

All that money and it's still using LAST GENERATION BMW 7 series switchgear- pathetic. Plus, The RR Sport looks much better than this Lego block on wheels.

While the Range Rover is considered a luxury vehicle everywhere, other Land Rovers are not considered luxury vehicles in other parts of the world! When I was in South Africa, Discovery and Freelander were considered in the same league as other equivalent SUVs by Toyota and Nissan (the Land Cruiser, Prado and Patrol). And, of course, no one would call the Defender a luxury vehicle. I've always found that interesting that Land Rovers are considered "premium vehicles" here in America!
 
Karl, when it comes to luxury vehicles, it's not about value. It's about prestige and "snob appeal". No SUV or four-wheel-drive vehicle offers as much prestige as a Range Rover. Besides, I doubt any SUV has the kind of innovative off-road technology the Range Rover has!.....and apart from the Geleandwagen, Hummer and Land Cruiser, no other vehicles can even compete with the Range Rover. While I doubt it's worth $95k (no luxury vehicle is worth its price), if I had that amount of money to waste on an SUV I'd choose the Range Rover. Easy decision! Especially now that they've improved the reliability.....
 
I think the Range Rover Sport is a joke......just a dilution of the real Range Rover. Sure, the Range Rover is not as fast as the Cayenne Turbo, but if I want a fast car I'd get a BMW 3-series, Mercedes AMG, RS4, Porsche 911 or an Evo! SUVs are not about speed.

It's hard to imagine this kind of money - and I've always liked the Range Rover. I remember when the first SUVs (as we know them) were coming out, 4 door Cherokees, the first generation Explorers and S-10 Blazers etc. And then there was the Range Rover ..... the real and ultimate "SUV". I think it was priced around 36K and if you got my favorite, the ultimate "County" model I think it was 42K. I know this current one is on a whole nother level but at two or three times the price of what they used to be!?!
 
Blackadder - I agree with you on the RR Sport, I don't get it. I have a little seat time in an 06 and for me it was a bit odd. Despite what the performance numbers might say, It felt very heavy and lethargic to me as well as a seat / driving position that didn't seem right. Although........maybe I'd get used it after a while.......and I probably wouldn't throw it out of my driveway if someone happened to send one my way either. ;-)

Range Rover criticism doesn't stir vitriol and venom like criticism of a Hybrid Saturn Aura.
 
Must be the refinement

That, or the bulk of Range Rover advocates know (and accept) these criticisms.

In Spain they used to be known as the car to buy if you wanted to risk getting blown up by Basque separatists (the Civil Guard used Land Rovers). Respected, at least. When I was little (here in the US) my dad saw one and told me that - but mentioned it because it was extremely rare to see one here. I think it had UK plates.
 
So I was surprised that when they made the jump here (logical, given the luxury SUV craze), they established that cachet right away. How did people find out about them? Were they actually here already and I just never saw them?

IYou're right, Karl. :) The Range Rover is all about the prestige/snob appeal and the off-road prowess, none of which are debatable. Reliability aside, Range Rover advocates like me accept the other criticisms and they're not a big deal to me! As far as I'm concerned it's fast enough and handles well enough. Like I said before, if I had $95k to spend/waste on an SUV, the Range Rover would easily be the one.

Oh come on is Karl just lazy or is he really that biased against Land Rovers?
 
I remember the last Range Rover he reviewed and how he complained that the buttons were all pictographs with little English characters on them. Well guess what the Range Rover is sold in close to 190 countries many of which don't even use western style characters. What should Land Rover do make 150 different labeled buttons for a low production, somewhere around 50,000 units worldwide a year, vehicle?
 
How could he have trouble releasing the parking brake? The message center in the instrument cluster tells you how to release the brake. It comes up with a message that says, "Push down paddle and hold foot brake to release parking brake." If you put the car in drive or reverse and touch the gas then the park brake releases automatically.
 
Then the DVD player I mean come on how could you not figure that out. With the entertainment screen up, you get it up by pressing the music note button pretty intuitive really, you hit the button marked DVD to play the movie on the front screen while in park only. You have the screen up in the second picture of the blog.
 
To turn on the rear screens you hit the button to the right of the DVD button the one that looks like a seat with someone sitting behind it and a music note again. At that point you can select what audio and video sources go to the rear screens. You can plug in a gaming system to RCA ports located in the center console. Someone can watch a movie on one screen while another person plays a video game and listens to the satellite radio.
 
Finally you have the price and yes 95,000 dollars is a lot of money but it is the price of exclusivity. Approximately 12,500 Range Rovers are imported each year to the US. Less then 2,000 of those will be supercharged Range Rovers. You could probably get a Cayenne Turbo for about the same price as a supercharged Range Rover but it wouldn't have any options. Porsche makes EVERYTHING optional so in order to get similar equipment to the Range Rover the MSRP on the Cayenne would be about 116,000 dollars. There are a lot more cayennes on the road then Range Rovers as well.
 
Next time you need any feature explained on a Land Rover, or any other high end automobile actually, just send me an email it is in my profile.

"What should Land Rover do make 150 different labeled buttons for a low production, somewhere around 50,000 units worldwide a year, vehicle?"
 
Not necessarily...but Land Rover isn't the only car company selling cars in more than one country, and the other guys manage to create intuitive controls for each market.
 
"How could he have trouble releasing the parking brake? The message center in the instrument cluster tells you how to release the brake. It comes up with a message that says, "Push down paddle and hold foot brake to release parking brake." If you put the car in drive or reverse and touch the gas then the park brake releases automatically"
 
I didn't have trouble RELEASING the parking brake, I had trouble FINDING the parking brake release lever. It's tucked down in a recessed alcove in the center console, which isn't the most intuitive place to look for a parking release. Yes, parking brake HANDLES, the big, long kind with buttons on the end, are commonly in the center console area, but this was a small lever and not instantly visible without looking down into the recessed area. I'm not saying it's a terrible design, just not intuitive (which is essentially how I'd describe most Land Rover controls).
 
"Then the DVD player I mean come on how could you not figure that out. With the entertainment screen up, you get it up by pressing the music note button pretty intuitive really, you hit the button marked DVD to play the movie on the front screen while in park only."
 
Did that -- didn't work. I could hear the audio, but no video. I even maximized the video portion of the control screen thinking that would make it obvious I wanted to watch video, but still got only sound. Part of me wondered if the the DVD format was somehow wrong for the system to play it. But, since it was the LAND ROVER DVD I figured it probably should be playable by the Range Rover's DVD system.
 
"Finally you have the price and yes 95,000 dollars is a lot of money but it is the price of exclusivity. Approximately 12,500 Range Rovers are imported each year to the US."
 
I've always admired it when a brand, that doesn't sell particularly well, is able to spin poor sales performance into "exclusivity." But looking at Edmunds TMV versus MSRP on the Range Rover SC suggests you can still get a discount on "exclusivity":
"http://www.edmunds.com/new/2007/landrover/rangerover/100825804/optionsresults.html?action=2"
 
"There are a lot more cayennes on the road then Range Rovers as well."
 
Yes, despite a much longer history of Range Rover availability in this country. It's like the Cayenne came in and sales exploded where the Range Rover hadn't ever made much headway...
 
BTW, there are also a lot more 3 Series on the road than X-Types. But I guess that means the X-Type is more "exclusive" too...

Oh Jeez...........yet another dust up brewin' here?
 
"BTW, there are also a lot more 3 Series on the road than X-Types. But I guess that means the X-Type is more "exclusive" too..."
 
Ouch!

My Mercury Sable is pretty exclusive sedan. And thats why I bought it. But it does not approach $95,000, not even close, even with all options included. Well it does not cost as much as Rover but at least it is much more dependable than anything from England.

Savetheland and Rick, I think you're confusing "rarity" with "exclusivity". The difference is that "exclusivity" comprises both rarity and prestige or snob appeal. Your Mercury Sable is rare, but not exclusive! The X-type is also nowhere near as exclusive asa Range Rover. It might be more reliable, but reliability is not a huge priority with elite vehicles.
 
The Range Rover is simply the most prestigious SUV. It is also probably the most advanced, especially off-road. Based on features and technology alone, it's not worth it $95k price. (No luxury car is worth its price when value alone is considered.) But considering its prestige (and I guess it amazing off-road prowess), it is definitely worth its $95k price.
 
Remember that Karl's post above considered some aspects of it's ability and made no consideration of the prestige. If prestige had been included in the argument, the conclusion drawn would have been different. The Cayenne Turbo simply does not have the "presence" of the Range Rover and neither does it have the phenominal off-road abilities. Being ultra-fast is not a primary attribute of an SUV.

Who defines which car is prestigious and which not? I am totally lost. Is Honda Accord prestigious? If not why residual value is so high. It seems everybody aspire to own one, even very old classic Accord for collection.
 
In other words why Land Rover is more prestigious than Accord? Facts tell us just opposite - nobody wants Land Rover but everybody is dying to own Accord.

Well, Range Rovers are thought to be the Rolls-Royce of SUVs, so that's where the astronomical price tag comes in. But I do agree that even then $95k is a lot to ask. The Cayenne Turbo is more but at least its crazy fast.
 
I've never been a fan of the Range Rover's boxy styling either, and where I live in the Middle East these things are outrageously popular. The Range Rover Sport pulls the styling off better, IMO, and it looks great in orange.

Gotcha Blackadder..........I was just quoting Karl's tongue in cheek rebuttal to British Rover's comments - I thought it was funny (shades of the recent Aura battles).
 
Savetheland - The Accord is a well respected car but I wouldn't call it prestigious. I think when you talk about value retention and demand for used ones it's just that, demand for a good, popular, dependable (and attainable) used vehicle. A used Range Rover is likely to be sought and bought for different reasons.

LOL, Rick, LOL!
And thanks for explaining the difference between prestige and popularity to Savetheland! :)
 
Savetheland, although the Accord is popular, why do you think rich folks prefer Mercedes, BMWs, Audi, Range Rover, Bentley, Rolls Royce and all the other luxury marques I won't name for the sake of brevity? Because these brands are prestigeous but Honda is not. That's why Honda created the more prestigeous Acura brand! I hope this further illustrates the difference between prestige and popularity. (Although sometimes, prestigeous vehicles are also popular among folk who can afford them.....eg, the 3-series...)
 
As for what defines a prestigeous car (or any prestigeous item for that matter), I think it's a combination of price, abilities, extreme features and psychology. Let's compare Lexus and Toyota. The far more prestigeous Lexus cars are more expensive (price), are faster and more comfortable/refined (abilities) and have a lot of features that only rich folk would consider as "necessary" or worth spending money on (examples of such extreme features include parallel-park-myself, top quality leather, etc.) There's also a bit of psychology involved: I'm sure most rich people would rather buy Lexus than Toyota even if they feel they don't really need to pay extra for the Lexus, because the Lexus fits their status more.
The higher price of luxury items is mostly because of the psychology of the brand name and the extreme features, although the abilities also play a role. Higher price also guarantees exclusivity. As an example, although an Evo is about as fast as an E46 BMW M3 (and can be easily upgraded to be much faster), most rich folk woud pay $20k more for the M3 primarily because of the psychology and exclusivity of the BMW name (and, perhaps less importantly, because the M3 has more features that typical car enthusiasts don't care about and is more refined).
 
Although rich folk also desire reliability and good resale value, these are not top priorities for them because they usually have several cars and maintain/grow their wealth via property, investments, and other means. Normal folk care more about reliability and resale value because they usually can't afford more than one car and don't have millions in the bank. Hence, most normal people would rather buy an Accord even if they had enough money for an entry-level Mercedes. Rich folk would make the opposite decision.
 
Happy 4th, y'all!!!

Okay I got it. Slap extra high price on the average car and it becomes "preitigious". As an example - Acura is the same car as Honda (Accord) but costs much more. Therefore it is more "pretigious".
 
VW costs more than Skoda and therefore is more prestigious even though it is exactly the same care.
 
About so called BMW "exclusivity". In fact it is the car for masses. There is no exclusivity about BMWs. On our parking lot there are more BMWs than Fords, Mercurys, Lincolns, Jaguars, LRs combined. In other words BMW is more mass market that any Ford manufactured car or SUV regardless of price even though those are 7 Ford brands. Hell - there are more Porches than Fords! Now do not tell me that BMW or Porche are "exclusive" - I am not gonna to believe it. Almost everyone owns one.

savetheland, is your parking lot for a country club? BMW dealership? I was in a parking lot once that was almost all Kias. I guess that means that Kia is the best selling brand in the United States. Wait, it was a big parking lot... make that the world! :-)

Savetheland, you probably live in a wealthy neighbourhood! I am yet to see a single Porsche where I live and there are not many BMWs! Most people in my neighbourhood own full-size pickups!
 
BMW is perhaps a bit too common to be exclusive, but it is certainly prestigeous. How many people can afford a BMW? Is BMW in the top 20 brands in terms of car sales?

It is Bay area man. Everyone here seems to own BMW, Mercedes or Porche. Of course if you are poor and young you buy Acura. If you are poor and old you buy Lexus. Needless to say 1000 sqft house built in 50s from earthquake resistant cardboard with one compact car garage and no backyard costs more than half million.

That explains it! The Bay Area is an upper-middle class area! :)
 
Here in West Texas, all you see are full-size SUVs or pickups.....and Fords, Chevys, Chryslers, Toyotas and Hondas. I've never seen a Porsche here! You do see Mercedes and BMWs but not many! Audi's are rare! The most common luxury vehicles and Cadillacs and Lincoln......and these are not common either, compared to non-luxury brands.

We have a guy from Israeli branch who was invited to join our headquarters for a year or two and he bought Porsche. When I asked him why waste money he told me it is one in life opportunity because Porsches (as well as other German luxury cars) are so dirt cheap in USA that he could not resist temptation. In all other countries cars are much more expensive than in USA. E.g. in late 90s in Russia ovaloid Taurus used to cost around $35,000 new and it been considered as a business class what in plain English means executive or prestigious - only rich people could afford Taurus. In 2000 Ford stopped importing Taurus to Europe.
 
Off-road vehicle or luxury sedan made from real stuff may be expensive. But exclusive or prestigious – I do not believe in that crap. Even though I am not rich by any means I still can easily buy Mercedes E-class, for me it is not something out of reach. I am just not stupid enough to waste so much money for illusions.

"I do not believe in that crap.....I am just not stupid enough to waste so much money for illusions."
You're right to a large extent. Although luxury cars are usually better than non-luxury ones in several ways, a lot of the higher price is due to the psychology and prestige behind the brand name! People are willing (when they can afford it) to pay more for a Lexus than a Toyota largely because the Lexus name somehow evokes more prestige....we can call this a psychological illusion.
 
Besides, you're probably one of relatively few people who view a car solely as a tool to serve their needs and not also a way of making a social statement. Most buyers, however, see their car as a way of defining them and are willing to pay for brands that offer more prestige....even if these brands do not necessarily offer a lot of value! (That is why some people buy cars they can really not afford.)
 
Exclusivity and prestige are relative. I'm pretty sure that in the Bay Area, only Bentley, Rolls Royce, Ferrari, Maybach, Lamborghini and Bugatti would be considered exclusive. But there is no denying that Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Lexus, Acura, Infiniti, Porsche and the likes offer prestige.......if they didn't, most Bay Area folk would choose Ford, Toyota, Mazda, etc because they offer more value-for-money. But they don't want these value-for-money brands (partly) because even students and poorer people can afford them....making them less prestigious!
  
I believe that in Beverly Hills, Bentley, Rolls Royce, Ferrari, Maybach, Lamborghini and Bugatti would NOT be considered exclusive....and Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Lexus, Acura, Infiniti, Porsche and the likes would not be seen as prestigious at all.....since Bay Area folk can afford them. Exclusivity and prestige are relative.
 
So there is no doubt that certain brands are considered more prestigious than others, and prestige commands a higher price. These prestigious vehicles CANNOT justify their high prices based on value and performance alone.
When the prestige is also considered, the Range Rover is worth its ridiculous $95k price. No SUV offers more prestige.

Prestige is all in the eye of the beholder.
 
When I see a Range Rover, my reaction (if I have one at all), is the owner must beholdin' a lot of repair bills.

I work in a construction company in the Bay Area, and apart from the superintendents' work trucks, our parking has a lot of 3-series as well. More than Accords, which are probably the 2nd most common car in our lot. After that there's a surprisingly rich mix of cars and SUVs (quite a few stickshifts too), though the only well represented domestic brand is Jeep.
 
I don't think it's that big a deal that 3-series are so common. The key thing is that $30k seems like a normal amount of money to spend on a vehicle, only that no one notices if that money goes towards a minivan or SUV. But buy a small car for the same price and everyone thinks you're rich.
 
It's not uncommon for us to spend 10% of our waking lives in our cars... might as well spend commensurately.

Smart poseurs buy used luxury cars because luxury cars depreciate a lot.