THE RANGE ROVER STORY

Range Rover is one of the world’s leading British luxury brands. It has led by example since 1970 through originality and exemplary design.  

Born in changing times, it created a new kind of vehicle – one capable of going anywhere yet fitting in everywhere. From the red carpet to the countryside, each member of the Range Rover family continues to set new standards of luxury.  

Charles Spencer King knew the world was shifting. The experimental jet cars he worked on in the 1950s didn’t provide the answer, but ‘Spen’ saw another new way to travel.  

An adventurous soul whose uncles Maurice and Spencer Wilks created the original Land Rover, Spen King had done lots of epic off-roading.  

Hardcore expeditions weren’t for everyone. Spen understood that: his genius was to create something that more and more people were looking for – a combination of all-terrain capability with on-road performance and modern design.

Spen King had identified new busy lifestyles combining careers, families and recreational activities. Revealed in 1970, the Range Rover he conceived for these people was like nothing else.   

The shape, sketched by Spen and finessed by David Bache, brought the automobile into a new era, not just a new decade.  

It was a masterpiece of industrial design, so well received that it was exhibited at the Louvre Museum in Paris. No other vehicle had been so honoured.  

With its clamshell bonnet, continuous waistline and split tailgate, the imposing Range Rover stood alone. Its abilities were unchallenged too, with permanent four-wheel drive, disc brakes and a powerful V8 engine.  

Range Rover’s interior was equally modern and design-led – with its unique Command Driving Position and a cabin with shapes and materials a world away from the traditional wood-and-chrome approach.  

Innovative from the beginning, Range Rover was designed for one-handed operation – including the tailgate and fuel filler. A typical touch was the provision of levers on both sides of the front seats, so drivers could comfortably tip up the passenger seat to let someone into the back.  

Fashion followed the art world in embracing Range Rover, beginning with the luxurious In Vogue of 1981. A one-off created for a fashion shoot in Biarritz, it became the brand's first limited edition when the magazine's readers clamoured for its metallic 'Vogue Blue' paint, air conditioning and picnic hamper.   

Two more In Vogue editions followed before Vogue became a permanent model. There would be other limited Range Rovers. Designer Lord Linley gave his name to a particularly rare version with a bespoke, hand-made interior he helped create.   

Royals and other influential leaders around the world embraced Range Rover from the beginning, forging relationships that endure. The hybrid-powered State Review Range Rover created in 2015 for the late Queen Elizabeth II embodies the brand’s deep connection with its highest-profile clients.

Leaders must evolve to stay ahead, so a four-door Range Rover had naturally followed the original. Then its engineers changed the game again.   

It was the world's first 4x4 to be fitted with ABS anti-lock brakes. And the first with electronic traction control and automatic electronic air suspension.  

Revealed in 1994, the second-generation model brought greater space and upgraded air suspension – ensuring the refined feel Range Rover is so famous for, both on and off-road. It also introduced an ‘Autobiography’ service, offering hand-finished interior colours and trims and unique paint choices. That level of luxury, hitherto unseen on an SUV, is today offered by Range Rover’s SV Bespoke Service.  

Range Rover’s unique Terrain Response system was introduced during the third generation, which began in 2001. Building decades of all-terrain know-how into one intuitive control system, Terrain Response is like having a driving expert to help you make the most of Range Rover’s unrivalled capabilities.  

Its on-road abilities took a huge leap forward too. Range Rover’s ride quality had always matched traditional cars. Now it was at luxury car levels.

The fourth generation Range Rover from 2012 combined strength and lightness as never before – as the world’s first all-aluminium SUV. A powerful electric hybrid offered hushed zero-emissions propulsion for the first time.  

Today’s Range Rover continues this bloodline, leading by example with breathtaking modernity and unmatched capability. It is engineered for peerless refinement, from its next-generation noise-cancelling headrest speakers to the all-wheel steering that gives it the smallest turning circle of any current model.   

Ultra-exclusive versions remain a brand hallmark. The 2023 Range Rover SV Carmel Edition was created for select US clients, offering a Satin Bronze exterior and the pinnacle four-seat SV Signature Suite cabin featuring an electrically deployable Club Table and integrated refrigerator.  

This fifth-generation Range Rover sits at the head of a family. Distinctive yet recognisably related, each member features the clamshell bonnet and floating roof that connect it to the 1970 lineage.