2022 Range Rover First Edition
Price As Tested: $183,800 CAD
Colour: Charente Grey Premium Metallic
I will admit that I haven’t spent an enormous amount of time in Range Rovers in recent years. This isn’t by choice as I’d live in the back of the 2022 Range Rover if I could. It’s a palace of opulence and refined beauty. It immediately sweeps you up in a wave of pomp and circumstance that I think only a Range Rover can. Driving one is a singular experience. It’s special. No vehicle is perfect, and the Range is certainly counted among this group, but the experience it delivers is as close as humans get. Not to get all aspirational, but my world shifted just a little bit after a little time with this car.
power & performance
The 2022 Range Rover as tested comes with a 4.4L twin turbo V8 engine that delivers 523hp and 553 lb/ft of torque. This is a good number and it’s needed as this thing weighs nearly 6000lbs. This strange combination of speed and weight really typifies what the Range Rover is all about. It’s not built for all out speed but can tear your face off when it’s required. The rest of the time it is content to cruise with ease while dodging in and out of lanes as it takes you effortlessly to your destination.
For a sizeable land yacht, the Range Rover has an incredible turning radius. Usually, vehicles this size need to utilize multi-point turns on a pretty regular basis, but this thing can turn on a dime. It was remarkably nimble and agile which I really appreciated when I found myself in a tight parking lot with only one spot that was only just large enough for my beloved Range.
The Range Rover isn’t built to compete with the German offerings when it comes to performance. German cars, regardless of their type, have sporty characteristics flowing through their DNA and nothing can stop it. It’s the by-product of being developed in a country that still has roads with no speed limits. The Range Rover on the other hand is designed to keep you endlessly comfortable and at ease while you travel. It wallows a bit and you don’t want to slam it around corners with too much aggression as it will object. This is the whole point of course. You can’t go anywhere in greater comfort than you can in the Range. This is a car for gentlepeople.
I know that concerning oneself with the fuel economy of a vehicle that costs nearly 200k is ridiculous, but I do need to touch on it to preserve my internet car writer credentials. The 4.4L twin turbo is a proper guzzler. I average something like 23L/100kms and I promise you I wasn’t lead footing it. This thing likes to drink. My associate had it for several days as well and reported the same thing. Given the level of refinement and sophistication of this vehicles power plant I would have expected it to perform a little better.
exterior
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I have yet to meet a beholder who thinks the Range Rover is anything but spectacularly beautiful. The looks of other vehicles in the lineup can be put up for debate (looking at you Evoque) but the big boy, granddaddy Range Rover is an absolute stunner. The lines are so clean and crisp. There are changes made to the new generation but not so many that you don’t immediately know what you’re looking at when it comes your way. They don’t make drastic changes to the Range Rover from one generation to the next and I like that. This things bloodlines are very clear.
A signature feature of the Range Rover for many years has been the split tailgate. It’s a wonderful bit of design and while we don’t need it to live, I’d rather not live without it. I didn’t get out to the bush with my brace of shotguns and a cabinet full of liquor for a days shooting while I tested the car but, I did grab a cup of coffee, find a parking spot with a nice view and enjoyed that coffee for a serene 20 mins. That little edge is a lovely thing to sit on.
interior
The interior of the Range Rover is where the magic really happens. I’ll start with the leather. There is a trend in the car business to shy away from leather products. I drove a Volvo C40 recently that is proudly proclaimed to be leather free. It’s a policy I support for many reasons. The exception to this rule though has to be the Range Rover. The leather they use and how they work it is exquisite. It’s soft, supple and delicious. It’s also everywhere. Leather seats of course, center console, the dash and even the headliner is leather. It may sound like overload but they way it’s applied in the Range Rover feels absolutely right.
Regular readers will know I’m a carpet snob. Seems like an irrelevant detail to get so invested in, but quality carpet in a car affects its character. A car with cheap carpet is a sad thing, something to be pitied. Fortunately, the Range Rover comes with the nicest carpet I’ve ever see in any vehicle. It’s thick, robust, soft and so comfortable it makes my desire to sleep in the back a real possibility.
Massaging seats are a must at this level of vehicle and the Range comes fully equipped. My 13-year-old son spent an hour tinkering with the settings and playing with the seats. No phone needed when you have massaging seats to occupy the teens in the car. Getting a heated massage on a seat with such soft and wonderful leather gives one the impression they’re at a retreat in the Swiss Alps where a lovely lady named Ursula is kneeding away the stresses of the day. How sad then when the illusion is smashed as you pull up to the 7-Eleven for a slurpee.
I love a good stereo. It doesn’t need to be fancy or expensive, it just needs to produce quality sound and allow me to turn it up when the mood should strike. The 2022 Range Rover First Edition comes equipped with a Meridian Signature Sound System that delivers on all counts. It is crisp and clear and can be heard on the moon if you really dial it up.
I will admit the interior of the Range Rover did let me down, just a little bit, on one point. There did seem to be an over abundance of plastic trims in the cabin. It’s good quality plastic but I would have preferred to see pieces of machined aluminum and bits of exotic metals scattered about the cabin. At this price point it seems justified.
quality
The Range Rover is a beloved marque and is highly sought after all over the world. That being said, it does bear something of a reputation for reliability issues. The vehicle has most certainly improved in this regard over the last several decades but as the amount of electronics it’s fitted with has grown the issues with their reliability has done the same. The 2022 Range certainly feels like a quality vehicle and only time will tell if the electric gremlins have been sorted on this generation.
CQI – 10. The best carpet I’ve ever seen in a car. It’s amazing and I want it in my life.
value
The 2022 Range Rover costs nearly $200,000 CAD. That’s quite a bit. That being said it is in line with its competitors. The Mercedes GLS (Maybach or otherwise) or G-Wagon, the BMW X7 or even my beloved Cadillac Escalade V are all in the same price range and present legitimate options. The Cadillac gives you more seats, more power and will give the Range Rover’s V8 a run for its money on the fuel consumption side of things. Clearly, if you are in the market for a car in this price range there are many options, and some shopping is in order.
final thoughts
The 2022 Range Rover First Edition comes close to perfection, it really does. If you disregard the fuel economy and a little too much plastic, there is little to criticize in this vehicle. It’s beautiful, elegant, refined, sophisticated and made me feel like a gentleman while driving it. It also prizes my comfort over a bunch of power statistics and handling wins and I appreciate that. If I were to travel long distances, there are few vehicles that would rate higher on my list than the Range. It’s been the king for decades and still is.
