The History of Range Rover’s Cars

Range Rover has been around since the 1970s. What makes them so special?

The Range Rover was originally designed by British engineer John Wyer. He wanted to create a vehicle that would be able to take him anywhere he needed to go.

The Range Rover was initially created as a military vehicle. In the 1980s, it became a luxury car. Today, it remains one of the top selling vehicles in the UK. It’s no surprise then that they have become one of the best-selling cars worldwide over the years.

Let’s look at an overview of the development of Range Rovers throughout history!

History of the Range Rover: Development and Evolution

John Wyer began working with the military designing tanks in the 1960s. While he was at this job, he became friends with Peter Stevens who worked for Land Rover. They talked about creating a new type of SUV – a four wheel drive vehicle. This is how the Range Rover came into existence.

Wyer moved on from his work in the military and started looking for investors to help fund the start up of what could become a very successful business venture. Eventually, he met Tony Ruddock, who had already invested $1 million in the company. The two men partnered together and named their company “Land Rover” based off of Wyer’s experience designing armored vehicles for the army during WWII.

They raised $750,000 through private investment to get the project underway and spent much of the next few years making the first models out of wood before finally beginning production on their own range rover model.

Wyer’s original plan for the Range Rover included three different versions; a 4 x 4 sedan, a 2+2 coupe, and a convertible version. However, the final design ended up being significantly different than any of these ideas. Instead, it featured a traditional roofline, but made extensive use of aluminum to reduce weight while still providing good protection from the elements.

Now let’s discuss the evolution of the Range Rover itself. Here are the three generations of the Range Rover.

1st generation (1972)

In 1972, the production process began. At the time, the Range Rover weighed 5,500 lbs and could carry 7,200 lbs of cargo. However, it got off to a rough start. Most people weren’t ready for such a heavy vehicle after all. Land Rover wasn’t happy with the quality of the early models either.

While there were some positives about this particular iteration of the Range Rover, the negatives outweighed them. For example, the engine was actually just one that was borrowed from a Ford E-Series van. Also, the interior wasn’t very nice. The seats were quite worn and had vinyl covers for padding. There were no cup holders either. It was simply an uncomfortable ride.

Despite this, Land Rover managed to sell around 10,000 units of this first generation Range Rover by 1976.

2nd Generation (1979–1987)

For 1979, the second generation Range Rover appeared on the scene. This took the form of a luxury SUV to rival other offerings on the market. Now, the Range Rover was equipped with twin gas turbine engines each delivering 100 horsepower. This gave it a maximum speed of 92 mph.

Some people might remember this time thanks to the movie “Escape to Victory.” In that film, the British army uses two Range Rovers to try and escape Nazi soldiers.

But regardless of what movies we may have watched, this certainly wasn’t the best looking Range Rover yet. Despite this, the second generation was much better constructed than its predecessor. And since it was lighter and smaller, it actually handled pretty well.

It also came with new technology including four-wheel drive, ABS brakes, power steering, air conditioning, and even a radio. The standard equipment package included everything a customer needed in order to make a trip across the U.S. comfortable. Some optional packages included things like navigation systems, heated seats, alloy wheels, and leather upholstery.

By 1982, the Range Rover had become the bestselling car in the United Kingdom. However, the US version wasn’t as popular due to problems associated with the turbochargers. They would overheat while driving at high speeds so drivers ended up having to replace the turbos every year. But despite these issues, range roving continued to produce a lot of money for Land Rover. By 1984, it had sold 3 million units worldwide.

3rd Generation (1997–2005)

In 1997, the third generation arrived. It was still an SUVs but this time made almost entirely out of aluminum. Some people thought that this was the beginning of the end for the Range Rover because it was more durable and lightweight compared to any previous model. It could go through sand dunes and mud puddles without getting ruined.

Also, a diesel powered variant joined the lineup of Range Rovers. Then, for 2002, Jaguar decided to join forces with Land Rover. Together they created what is now known as the Range Rover Evoque. Its design looks rather similar to the original Range Rover. While it isn’t called “Range Rover” anymore, it continues to feature many features which were used in the original version. So far, the Evoque has proven to be quite successful and is currently available in several different countries all over the world.

4th Generation (2015–present)

The fourth generation debuted in 2015. Like the previous models, it is an SUV and comes in three variants: Sport, HSE Luxury, and HSE Ultimate. All versions come equipped with air suspension, adaptive damping, hill descent control, and active roll stability control. Additionally, a number of safety systems are fitted onto the vehicles’ computer system. These include pedestrian detection, lane keep assist, traffic sign recognition, road condition monitoring, blind spot monitor, automatic emergency braking, rear cross path warning, reverse radar, electronic brake force distribution, driver attention alert, and headlight auto dimming.

Author bio:

Sultan Asad is the Branding Manager at WeBuyCarsDXB. More than 5000 customers from all over the UAE have chosen We Buy Cars DXB as a trustworthy car selling service that provides a hassle-free way for any person selling their car by taking care of the deal front to end in under 30 minutes. Try our free tool of car valuation in UAE.

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