Land Rover has unveiled its most fuel-efficient Range Rover ever, a new 4.4-litre 8-speed auto diesel.

On sale from late September, the ‘super diesel’ will see Range Rover delivering over 30mpg for the first time said managing director Phil Popham. Its Range Rover Sport 3.0 V6 model already delivers 30.7mpg.

Replacing a 3.6-litre model, the new engine reduces CO2 emissions by 14% from 294g/km to 253g/km. The 5.0-litre supercharged LR-V8 stays as part of the range.

The carmaker has tweaked styling on the Range Rover and introduced an exterior design pack in a choice of eight colours and five new alloy wheel designs.

This article was taken from: BusinessCar.co.uk

Land Rover has undertaken a far-reaching update of the Range Rover. The two most significant changes are the adoption of a much more powerful diesel engine and a new eight-speed automatic gearbox.

The 3.6 litre V8 diesel engine previously fitted to the Range Rover is very well regarded but the arrival of a heavily revamped 3.0-litre version of the Land Rover’s V6 diesel – adopted last year in the Discovery and Range Rover Sport, as well as Jaguar’s XF and XJ – with greatly improved performance, economy and emissions, seemed to call its future into question. Now, however, the V8 has had the benefit of a similar programme of improvements which should allow it to re-establish its lead over the V6. Capacity is increased to 4.4 litres, and the engine now provides 313 horsepower and 700 Newton metres of torque. At the same time, combined cycle fuel consumption improves to 30.1mpg (making this the first Range Rover to break the 30mpg barrier in official tests), while CO2 emissions fall by 14% to an admittedly still hefty 253g/km.

The diesel’s new eight-speed automatic transmission, like the previous six-speeder, comes from German transmission specialist ZF. Another ZF customer, BMW, has had eight-speed ‘boxes in some of its cars for several months now, so Jaguar Land Rover will probably be pleased to catch up; even if the extra ratios don’t make much difference on the road, they will have given BMW a bit of an edge in showroom and brochure comparisons. The new engine/gearbox combination allows the diesel Range Rover to reach 130mph and accelerate to 60mph in 7.5 seconds.

The existing 5.0 litre supercharged petrol engine continues to be offered alongside the improved diesel, although it sticks with ZF’s six-speed gearbox, rather than adopting the new eight-speeder. Both petrol and diesel models get an improved version of Land Rover’s impressive Terrain Response, which makes it easier for less experienced drivers to set the Range Rover’s highly capable 4×4 system up for different types of off-road conditions.

There are small adjustments to the car’s appearance and equipment levels, and Land Rover is also offering 700 examples of the specially-trimmed Autobiography Black 40th anniversary limited edition to commemorate the launch of the first-generation Range Rover in 1970.

This article was taken from: independent.co.uk

Top car for Towing award
All the winners revealed
Watch the video, here

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Kia recalls Cee’d and PicantoStability control gets cheaperFifteen million cars low on oilLive lunchtime Q&A sessionThe UK-made Land Rover Discovery has been named the best towcar 2010 in the annual Towcar Awards, a coalition between experts from Practical Caravan, The Camping and Caravanning Club and What Car?.

Practical Caravan, in association with The Camping and Caravanning Club and What Car?, hitched up 41 cars with caravans in their quest to find the best towing cars for 2010 to help holidaymakers make the right choice this year.

Skoda were awarded two accolades. The Green Award went to the Skoda Octavia Estate 1.6 Greenline with judges praising the excellent fuel economy of 64.2mpg and low carbon dioxide emissions of 114g/km that rewards the user with low road tax bills. Judges were also impressed with its all-round package including head and legroom and spacious boot. Skoda’s second award went to the Skoda Superb Estate 2.0 TDI 170 SE for the 1575-1724kg towing category for its tremendous space for passengers and luggage as well as being an impressive stable towcar.

Volkswagen picked up the trophy for the up to 1424kg towing category for the VW Golf 2.0 TDI 140 Match 5dr for its performance, stability and comfort. The Astra 2.0 CDTi (160 PS) SRi 5dr was awarded the 1425-1574kg towing category award with judges being impressed with its good looks, drivability and towing capabilities. In the 1725–1899kg category the Mazda CX-7 2.2 Diesel zoomed off with the top award. The panel of judges commented that it towed extremely well and made other 4x4s in the segment look overpriced and under equipped.

Other awards included the Hyundai Santa Fe 2.2 CRDi Style 7st picking up the best value 4×4 award. Editor Nigel Donnelly commented ‘You know the Santa Fe is a good towcar after just a few miles, but it’s easy to miss just how good until you consider the price. Costing just over £22,000 (less if you haggle), the big Hyundai is one of the best value cars in this year’s tests’.

Best MPV award went to Kia for the Sedona 2.2 CRDi 3 auto which offers great value for families who want and need the versatility of a multi purpose vehicle with 7-seats but not the big budgets historically required.

Towcar Awards 2010

This article was taken from: whatcar.com

Now so ubiquitous as to merit scarcely a second glance, the Range Rover firmly enters middle-age next week when it celebrates its 40th birthday.

Launched on June 17, 1970 the Range Rover was revolutionary in its day; the first luxury 4×4 as good off the road as on it.

Relatively spartan by today’s standards – with vinyl seat trim and moulded rubber flooring – it is now seen as a key milestone in the development of the SUV (Sports Utility Vehicle) and today’s versions are packed with leather upholstery, wood veneer, thick carpets and a host of high-tech driver aids.

The first Range Rover – characterised by the square, upright stance still apparent in today’s version – is now known as the “Classic” and had two doors only.

It continued in production with numerous upgrades, the addition of two further doors and a vast number of variants, for 25 years.

The second-generation vehicle, known as the P38a, went on sale in 1994 and was replaced in 2001 by the current Range Rover. The latest version has enjoyed higher sales than any previous model and is still popular around the world.

“The Range Rover is really four vehicles in one,” said Land Rover managing director, Phil Popham.

“It’s a seven-days-a-week luxury motor car; a leisure vehicle that will range far and wide on the highways and no-ways of the world; a high performance car for long distance travel and a working cross-country vehicle.”

Charles Spencer “Spen” King, the former Rover car company’s engineering chief for new vehicle projects and the “father” of the Range Rover, is more prosaic: “The idea was to combine the comfort and on-road ability of a Rover saloon with the off-road ability of a Land Rover.

“Nobody was doing it at the time. It seemed worth a try and Land Rover needed a new product.”

A second model line, the Range Rover Sport, based on the Discovery platform, was launched in 2005. In 2007 it was Land Rover’s best-selling vehicle worldwide.

Later this year, a further member of the Range Rover family will be added; a “baby” model which, says the firm, will be “no less premium, no less special than other Range Rover products”. It will be revealed at the Paris motor show.

Perhaps what appears to have changed most over the course of 40 years is the price. On June 17, 1970, the Range Rover would have set you back £1,998. Today the starting price is an eye-watering £66,095.

This article was taken from: Telegraph

Until June, 1970, there were several brands of 4×4 that delivered serious off-road capability. There were also many luxurious sedans capable of ferrying passengers across continents in style. But Land Rover’s Range Rover was the first to marry the two ideas into a vehicle that could do both equally well. That simple, and, in retrospect, somewhat obvious idea has led the Range Rover on to 40 years of production as of June 17, and spawned a whole field of luxury SUVs.

There have been highs and lows along the way, with multiple owners of the parent brand handing the Range Rover about, and at times a mixed reputation for reliability and build quality. But along the way, off-road capability and on-road comfort were among the qualities never compromised.

For the car industry, the Range Rover has seen extraordinarily long product cycles, particularly the first generation, which spanned the vehicle’s inception in 1970 through 1994. The second generation was replaced in 2001 with the current model, though over the past 9 years many mechanical and technological upgrades have transformed it into an almost wholly different beast. In 2005, the Range Rover Sport joined the lineup, offering more on-road capability without sacrificing much off-road.

For a better look at all that the current Range Rover and Range Rover Sport are capable of, both on-road and off, check out our report on the Land Rover Experience Driving School at the Biltmore Estate near Asheville, North Carolina.

This article was taken from: motorauthority.com