Land Rover’s 2003 Range Rover shares a lean and hungry (and somewhat arrogant) look with several second-and-third cousins of the Queen — the ones who buy $3000 bespoke suits and belong to good regiments. It also shares their Bavarian heritage.
Many of the British Range Rover’s most critical mechanicals come from the German BMW X5. You’ll find the same chassis, the same 4.4 liter, 282 hp V8 engine, the same super-sophisticated 4WD system and the same superb brakes as you will in the X5. Which shouldn’t be too surprising since BMW owned Land Rover when the new Range Rover was being designed and engineered. BMW has since sold the company to Ford.
The difference between the Bimmer and the Range Rover seems to be in ride and driving quality. The X5 tends to offer a sportier ride and is reputed to be far more capable on the track. The Range Rover tends to have a softer ride; its adjustable air suspension perhaps more suited to the conservative marketing demographic.
While the X5 may be quicker on a road course than the Range Rover, the Range Rover is much more capable off-road. In fact, it could probably keep up with the real Hummer in a cross country race between Baghdad and Basra; so long as no shots were being fired.
Automobile magazine featured a delightfully amusing little romp in its March '03 issue. Playing on the What would Jesus Drive? thing, the article riffed on what kind of SUV Satan might drive. My guess is the Prince of Darkness' tastes lean towards the Cadillac Escalade. However the 'Slade would have serious competition from both the Infiniti FX45 and the Lincoln Navigator. Although its impact on the environment is not a whole lot less devilish than the others, the Range Rover is probably not the kind of car Beelzebub would choose. Why? Well, for one thing, even at close to three tons curb weight, it’s actually quite understated.