RANGE ROVER AUTOBIOGRAPHY LIMITED EDITION
If Youre Going To Buy A Range
Rover, You Might As Well Go For Broke And Buy The Best Darn Range Rover There Is. Steve Walker Luxuriates In The Autobiography Limited Edition
Anybody who is anybody, and quite a few people who arent, seems to have an autobiography out these days. Footballers, film stars, fashion models, A, B and C-list celebrities, their personal assistants, bodyguards and butlers, they all get an overwhelming urge to put the ins and outs of their life down on paper. Theres money to be made in the book business, so these people, and their ghostwriters, are keen to be the ones who make it. Usually by including some juicy disclosure or thinly-veiled allegation about another public figure that grabs headlines but borders on the libellous.
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Its all good for sales. Well, now these celebrity wordsmiths have the perfect vehicle to splash out on when those fat royalty cheques start hitting the doormat. Its a lavish limited edition Range
Rover thats been appropriately titled Autobiography.
If you thought the standard Range Rover was posh, think again. The Autobiography sets new standards of over-the-top opulence with an equipment list as long as the red carpet outside Claridges. It sits atop the standard Range Rover line-up, lording it over lesser derivatives, including the Vogue on which it is based. To give you an idea of the general order of things, a base 3.
0-litre TD6 SE Range Rover will cost you a far from insignificant £45,995 but youll pay around £51,000 for the same 4.4-litre V8 thats housed under the Autobiographys bonnet. The V8 Vogue, at £54,995 as a diesel or £60,995 in V8 petrol form, is pricier still. As you might expect, the LE Autobiographys book value of £59,995 for the diesel and £64,995 for the V8 petrol eclipses them all.
Even for the seriously well-heeled, thats a premium demanding of serious investigation. Mind you, with only 200 Range Rovers in total destined to carry that Autobiography badge, you have to pay some premium for the exclusivity.
"If you thought the standard Range Rover was posh, think again"
This ultimate Range Rover is available in one of two colours, Java Black or Cairns Blue, both suitably understated for a vehicle of this standing. Completing the exterior effect is a set of 20" alloy wheels (19" on the diesel) that complement the classic boxy lines well enough. Its inside that the Autobiography really comes into its own by decimating the options list. Slide inside, close the door with its darkened glass and its like midnight in a coal scuttle if you go for the Jet/Jet interior of the Java Black model. The inherent dimness inside actually works in the Autobiographys favour because once the hi-tech entertainment systems are cranked up, its like being in the front row of your own mobile disco.
The Logic 7 sound system has been specially designed to match the Range Rovers acoustic dynamics: 14 speakers and a sub-woofer with 710 watts of amplification make every last decibel count. The Autobiography is targeted squarely at the upper echelons of the UKs large 4x4 buyers. People with money to burn who might not actually need a 710 watt hi-fi but can afford to have one anyway. For these people, the V8 versions average fuel economy figure of 17mpg is of less importance than the 100-litre fuel tank, which means that the behemoth Range Rover can travel a distinctly convenient 490 motorway miles between top ups.
Use the car as an urban scoot and the 12.7mpg showing will mean the car can still crawl 278 miles before youd need to interact with the chattering classes by visiting a petrol station. Of far greater importance will be the silky manners of the 4.4-litre
BMW-sourced V8 petrol engine.
Compared to the old 4.6-litre engine, the current V8s power has been increased by 31% to a hefty 282bhp while torque rises by 10% to 325lb/ft. For what is expected to be something of a lugger, the engines peak power arrives at a relatively nosebleed 5,400rpm, whilst peak torque registers at a comparatively high 3,600rpm. Couple this with the abandonment of the traditional ladder frame chassis and live rear axles and youll soon form the opinion that this version of the Range Rover is better on-road than any of its predecessors.
Go for the diesel version and youll find that theres nothing boring about the 3.0-litre straight-six engine on offer, though the Td6 takes over 13.5s to reach sixty from rest around five seconds more than the alternative 4.4-litre petrol V8.
Overtaking will clearly require some forward thought. Though not perhaps as much as you might fear, thanks to a mighty 288lb ft of torque something which comes in particularly useful off road. Theres no shortage of technology built into the latest car. The automatic gearbox includes all the proper off-road functions Range Rover buyers now expect, such as a high/low transfer box and Hill Descent Control.
A Steptronic manual override option allows drivers to switch ratios manually and the stability control system can also be disabled. Theres also an all-independent suspension set up allied to an air suspension system that allows the car to be lowered for dignified
mini-skirted exits. Although this Range Rover may be used as the ultimate urban battle bus, should the need to take it off-road beckon, a new Torsen centre differential ought to make sure you return safely. The Range Rover has found itself up against some pretty stiff competition as the breadth of competition in the luxury 4x4 sector expands but its still the daddy as far as well to do British buyers are concerned.
The Autobiography limited edition is the model that Range Rover fans must aspire to but you might need a book on the bestseller list if youre going to afford one.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Range Rover Autobiography Limited Edition
PRICE: £59,995 - £64,995 -on the road
INSURANCE GROUP: 16
CO2 EMISSIONS: 389g/km
PERFORMANCE: Max Speed 130mph / 0-60mph 9.2s
FUEL CONSUMPTION:(urban) 12.7mpg / (extra urban) 22.4mpg / (combined) 17.4mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front and side airbags, ABS
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: Length/Width/Height 4950/1863/1863mm
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