Range Rover Evoque Convertible: Needed !

Several of my friends call the Evoque a woman’s car. The normal basic one that is. Mostly because it was introduced on the market by Victoria Beckham, so they presume, and some even think she designed it. Bummer. Nope, not good for the LandRover / Range Rover image I think. 

It is however, a car more manouvrable than the much larger big Range Rover, that I still adore after having had the pleasure of owning 2 of them: A green P38 and a navy LM322.  And yes, it is more elegant as well, and I do know the model attracts a lot of women.

Hence there comes the convertible. And a lot of people do ask, do we need this kind of car ? Well, do they need to ask that question ? Anyway, it doesn’t make it easier for me to write an article or review about it. As usual, I’m not going into depth on the tech specs.  I drove the 180 BHP Turbo Diesel and I liked it a lot. As a matter of fact, I didn’t even know it was a diesel ‘till after a few miles, I read the on-board manual. Acceleration is quite sporty, so for city driving it has ample power, and even on the highway, it was decent enough for me.  The 240 BHP version however, ….. I’m curious, in a very positive way.

About the Range Rover Evoque Convertible we can say that it is expensive, yet it looks expensive as well. The car delivers what it promises: It looks fancy and hip. Very fancy on every road. Hip in every neighbourhood. Onorthodox as it is, the car is very easy to mount, as the normal model, and so extremely fashionable. The Range Rover Evoque Convertible is certainly a style-focussed SUV, so exclusive on the design level that is a niche within a niche……yet a class leader. In a class of its own. Intruiging…

On the level of exclusivity ? It has few-to-none rivals: Name me one 2-door SUV that’s a real full convertible. And for those who don’t like convertibles, because they break the lines of the original design….. It’s profile is practically the same as the regular, hardtopped version. Job well-done ! With the top down or up, it looks like a normal Evoque, but on steroids. Muscled, powerfull and solid. And that improves the manly image of the Evoque. 

You get noticed in this car. Everywhere, everytime. Some will like the attention, others won't.

Controversial: The Range Rover Evoque Convertible turns heads. Lots of them. Everywhere. And that happens for the right reasons. It has to withhold the brands’ reputation as well. And that reputation is a very high standard. It represent luxury and style. And performance.

About the drop-top…. Well you’ll notice the road roar, even with the top up. When I started the engine in my garage, it sounded like I left a window open in the back, or the trunk was open. You can hear it clearly, yet you get used to it, and after that, it isn’t an annoyance anymore. 

The seemless roof comes down in 18 sec (with a very quite mechanism) up to a speed of 50 km/u-h, there’s little air turbulence, even at 120 km/u. Because of the front windscreen that goes fairly long way back (aerodynamics), and your’e in deep in the car, and with the windows up. Normal conversations are no problem at all.

About the 4x4: It’s a convertible (drop-top), as efficient on rough terrain as the hard-topped version. So it seems. I haven’t tested it, but others have, and I trust them. However, fancy paved avenues in posh venues is more the territory and habitat of this car. It’s truly a statement car. 

Interior: The dash might look a bit outdated, compared to the newest designs on the market today, yet the InControl Touch pro, 10.2 inch, is definitively among the best available on the market today. The Meridian car audio system, one of my favorites. The quality double stitched leather makes for the finish drivers of the larger Range Rover models appreciate.  And that is what is to this cars’ standards. And about comfort ? Well, it is a Range Rover.

The trunk is reduced from 420 to 251 liters. So don’t go overly wild when shopping, but do compromise !!! Otherwise, use the backseats to drop your posh shopping bags. 

The seatbelt is kinda hard to reach. And I’m not extra tall or small. It’s just placed quite far behind the front seat. An electronic seat belt extender however seems to be on the way.

Visibility on the front and thru the sides is fairly good to excellent, however, the view towards the back ? Well the camera system, I was happy to have it when parking this car !  I can imagine that during winter times, it’s quite a dark car when entering.

The Range Rover Evoque is a great car with some imperfections (which car isn’t). But it has some great distinctive characteristics as well. The Range Rover Evoque is so much fun !!!

And the question remains: Do we need it ? I still don’t know. Do I want it ? Yes, yes and yes. 

And if we want, we do need it ! ...........Where are my driving gloves ?

www.landrover.com    www.landrover.be

click here to continue reading....