Land Rover’s Newest SUV
I was just reading an article about Land Rover's new Range Rover Evoque, and in addition to having a terrible name, one of the Spice Girls was a design executive on it. It turns out that Land Rover asked Gloria Beckham to design the interior.
You can't really fault Land Rover here. They know their customers, and this must be what they want, what they really, really want.
I became interested in this SUV because I saw it on Top Gear, and James May drove it across the Nevada desert. The surprising thing was it did well. It manhandled the rocky terrain and had no problem coping with the desert. It was a real off-road machine.
At the end of the day, I guess I just don't understand the SUV concept. Why build this off-road capability into a vehicle driven by soccer moms? Ninety-eight percent of these things are never going off-road unless the driver falls asleep at the wheel.
Once it hits showrooms, the starting price will be $43,995 for the base model, and prices go up from there. Even though this is low for its class, this still seems steep. The heaviest thing this vehicle will ever haul is the woman driving it, but you still have to pay for all that unused capability.
The Toyota Sienna minivan has a base price of $24,500. It seats up to eight passengers, is reliable, and it handles well. Best of all, you aren't paying a premium for features you will never use.
Oh, you want to sit up high because it allows you to see the road better. Are you sure that matters? You're still going to drift into my lane because you're too busy talking on your phone to watch the road.
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