Range Rover Evoque

I'm interested in one as well. I wouldn't count on LR quality, but with component sharing it's not exactly a brand new vehicle under the skin so should be somewhat proven.

I'm going to give it a year...

 

The Evoque is based on the LR2 which is based on the Ford EUCD platform and shares nothing with the horrible past Rover/BMW models.

I'm an ex LR tech and the best advice I can give anyone about them is stay away from the BMW years 94 - 04 (Fords designs didn't come online until 05 even though they owned them from 2000). The ford designs and engines are super reliable plus Ford electronics are miles better then what they had before.

Anything prior to the BMW years are easy to work on and cheap to fix now or are collectable enough as to not worry about reliability (Defenders here in the States).

 

I own a 2010 RR sport........great daily driver with no problems.

I bought an Evoque for my wife, should receive it in about 4 weeks. The car is stunning.

 

has kool looks, doesn't have hardcore bits (no low range, no ladder frame, etc) but seems like it'll be competent enough for the mostly urban use

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6miuU8G7ufw[/ame]

 

I have an '08 RR Sport bought new, getting close to 50k miles ... changed tires, did brakes and replaced alternator recently (alternator no cost-under warranty). I'm going to get a '12 RR Sport next year. Great car!

 

http://www.motortrend.com/oftheyear/suv/1112_2012_suv_of_the_year_land_rover_range_rover_evoque/

 

Congrats.

Very interesting review....looking forward to more pics.

I was surprised to read this:

 

Nice color choice - I'd probably go the same.

Not having sat in or driven one, the blind spot issues seem like they would be a problem, for lane changes in particular. I suppose backing up you would have the cameras.

I'm assuming the gearbox is an automatic with torque converter, so as you say they would just be for show.

 

I like the Evoque and I think it is the sort of car that Land Rover should be making but I wish they would stop plastering the Range Rover badges all over cars that are not Range Rovers.

Why doesn't the company just change their name to Range Rover?

Hopefully the three door version will come stateside.

 

I thought it was available here already (?)

 

For some reason I thought we weren't getting the 3 door but according to the LR website we are.

 

Amen to that. It should be badged a LAND ROVER. The RR moniker should be reserved for the big daddy.

I think the company needs to remain Land Rover, that would be a shame to see the core name go away. Not sure why they are naming the Evoque a Range Rover. It seems to be the polar opposite of what a Range Rover historically was.

 

I've bought a couple of these - 3 door Dynamic Coupe with the 2.0 petrol turbo and 5 door Dynamic with the 2.2 diesel turbo. The Dynamic comes with Magneride 3 suspension and the ride quality is superb. Does your car have the Magneride option or the standard damper set up? With the Dynamic models you get a 5th "dynamic" setting in the terrain response system which greatly improves the handling at speed in terms of cornering ability and suspension control. With regard to the paddle shifters are you using the transmission in S mode? That makes a difference to the shift responsiveness.

They are great cars and very well built. One of ours has the Lux pack with the 360 deg camera system, auto park function and the upgraded 16 speaker Meridien hifi. The sound from that is really good.

 

I guess it's because it's more luxe and less hardcore. I actually think it would be odd to have called it a Land Rover, because I still associate that with hose-it-out stuff like the Defender.

I'm interested in driving one. My biggest qualm with SUVs has been that they feel like they're about to roll in a bend or bounce you into the headliner when they roll over a pebble.

 

congrats Paul... love the look of them ... very curious to see how it drives/rides

 

Saw one on display at the Miami auto show last week.

Looked great.

Small but stout.

 

I have had Series IIa and Series III station wagons as well as a soft top Defender 90 and 4 Range Rovers. I think in the American market especially Land Rover has been an upscale brand for the last 20 years. You really couldn't buy a bare bones Land Rover during that time frame. Yes they sold the Defender in very limited quantities between '94-'97 (don't quote me on that) but they were twice the price of a Jeep Wrangler and half as luxurious. To me the Evoque is more similar to a LR2 or even an LR4 than a full sized Range Rover.

 

I saw the car at the Seattle car show a couple of weeks ago. I've become interested in it, even though I've not been in the market for a small SUV. I'll wait to see its reliability record over time.

 

I test drove a Defender 90 back in '95 or so and it's the one new car that I'm kicking myself for not buying. I think they were $30K-ish back then. Probably could have owned it driven it, and resold it for more than that.

To me, the Evoque makes more sense than the LR2 (which doesn't tow much either). And I have a hard time buying any vehicle with more than two doors...