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The Range Rover story: looking back as the icon turns 45

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Author: | Updated: 17 Jun 2015 15:05

There’s a wealth of evidence to suggest that the Range Rover is the most complete car about.

If you want a luxurious cruiser, it’ll do that as well as any Mercedes S-Class. If you want a capable 4x4, it’ll match any Jeep and have most of them licked. If you need a practical family bus, it has the boot to mix it with most estate cars, and if you want something fast, there’s a supercharged V8 available to get from nought to 62 in 5.4 seconds (although even the basic diesel will still take you to 62mph in less than eight seconds).

With all that going for it, it’s no surprise that the Range Rover has become something of a British institution. That alone is reason to celebrate it, but it just so happens that the Range Rover turns 45 years old today, so in a blaze of pomp and circumstance, we decided to take a look at the history of what is arguably Britain’s best car.

Classic

1970-1996

Range Rover Classic 1970 Blue

Although the first Range Rover didn’t come to market until 1970, the Rangie’s story actually begins in 1966, when the 100 Station Wagon prototype was tested. The basic shape was already in evidence, and though the front end was modified and the 3.5-litre Rover V8 was fitted, it was more or less the same car as was rolled out in the June of 1970.

That said, it was a far cry from the current Range Rovers. Although it was decidedly more luxurious than previous Land Rovers, it was by no means a luxury car. Effectively designed to be a 4x4 capable of farm work while still being able to take the family out at the weekend, it had an interior built to be hosed down.

In a feat almost unbelievable by modern standards, the car that became known as the ‘Classic’ was in production for more than 25 years, overlapping its successor by two years, and although various changes were made, such as the arrival of the diesel engine, power steering and cloth seats, the basic car remained the same throughout.

Longevity, however, was not the strength that made the Classic its name. It was so capable that it set numerous records and was used by expeditions travelling around the world, the most famous being the 18,000-mile Trans-America.

P38A

1994-2001

Range Rover P38A 1994 Front

The Classic was always going to be a tough act to follow, but by 1994 the original Range Rover was looking tired and desperately needed replacing.

Realising the strength of the luxury SUV market, Land Rover positioned the new car, named P38A after the part of Land Rover’s Solihull plant it was designed in, above the Discovery in terms of opulence.

It wasn’t without its practical, off-road features though. Technologically, it was similar to its predecessor, although the chassis was strengthened, so many would see the P38A as more of a heavy facelift than an all-new car.

The engine range was practically unchanged too, comprising various V8s and a 2.5-litre diesel from BMW, the then-owners of Land Rover. With that outdated and thirsty line-up, the P38A was destined to be the shortest-lived Range Rover yet, managing ‘just’ seven years of continuous production. A sad statistic for what was, in many ways, the most complete iteration of the most complete car ever to go on sale.

L322

2001-2012

Range Rover L322 2010 Grey Front Dynamic

In 2001, the Land Rover bigwigs decided change was in the air, and the L322 Range Rover was unveiled. Unlike the P38A, it was a bit of a departure from what had gone before, playing the luxury card even more strongly and slightly playing down its (still formidable) off-road capability.

The manual gearbox which had seen such sterling service in the Classic and P38A was canned to make way for a more relaxed automatic transmission, while the V8-dominated engine range of yesteryear was diluted with the inclusion of more environmentally friendly three-litre diesels.

At the same time, the car grew to become more spacious, so the proportions changed. The L322 looked more upright than its predecessors, and as facelifts pandered to the desires of the increasingly jet-set clientele, it became less and less understated.

Range Rover Sport 2005 Grey Front

The L322 era also saw the Range Rover ‘family’ expand for the first time as Land Rover rolled out the Range Rover Sport in 2005. Effectively a smaller version of the Range Rover and sitting on the same underpinnings as the new Discovery, the Sport rapidly earned a reputation for being the transport of choice for countless footballers and ladies of leisure.

Towards the end of the L322’s life, the range grew again with the arrival of the Porsche Macan-rivalling Range Rover Evoque – a car well on its way to becoming one of the company’s all-time best sellers.

L405

2012-Present

Range Rover L405 2013 Front

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A successful 11-year production run came to an end for the L322 in 2012, when Land Rover brought out the current L405 model.

Substantially larger than anything that has gone before, the L405 has the all-aluminium architecture that Jaguar Land Rover has perfected, so while it is over a foot longer than the P38A and 20cm wider, it has a very similar kerb weight.

It’s more luxurious than ever before too, boasting a world of cutting-edge technology like adaptive cruise control and cameras to monitor every possible angle. But it hasn’t entirely forgotten its roots. The buttons, for example, are still designed to be used while wearing gloves, and with a 90cm maximum wading depth, there’s no doubting the off-road credentials.

The Range Rover, then, is far from done. It’s still selling in ridiculous numbers and there looks to be no stopping it. Whether the L405 has the lifespan of its predecessors remains to be seen, but we fully expect to celebrate the car’s 50th birthday in 2020, when it will, in all probability, still be one of the best in the business.

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