Hoping to further increase their already widespread popularity, Land Rover recently launched a Limited Edition Victoria Beckham Evoque (200 only) with deep-pile luxury mohair floor mats, vintage tan leather and a bespoke four-piece leather luggage set. With such fashion-istic origins, owning one is as much a statement of your lifestyle as it is buying something to pop down the shops in.
I had to make do with a regular ‘old’ new Si4 Automatic (4WD) 2.0 Litre Petrol Engine (240hp), six-speed transmission five-door Evoque to review, with all the extras it’s not cheap and will cost you close to £50,000. With that in mind expectations are very high, luckily the car doesn’t disappoint.
Since it’s launch less than a year ago, the Evoque been one of British motoring’s great success stories. It’s an exclusive club at the moment, and right now Land Rover can’t build them fast enough for you to become a member. If you order one today, you could be waiting nearly six months before it’s actually parked on your drive.
Everything about the Evoque is carefully considered and self-aware, from the branded floor mats to the immense Meridian Stereo and aluminium silver trim interior, all contribute to the not inconsiderable sense of well being you get from being inside it.
With it’s high doors and small side windows, from the outside the roof of the car seems like it will be low on the inside, but I’m 6ft 2 and still had a good amount of headroom. The huge expanse of room you get in a ‘old fashioned’ Range Rover Sport or a 4×4 is missing from the Evoque, but it’s not cramped, and there is room for 5 adults to travel good distances in comfort.
A concession is made for boot space, which is fairly limited in comparison, but flat folding rear seats really help for those away day trips to IKEA, or the local auction / recycling centre.
The leather seats make the ride all the more luxurious and the moulded shape of the front two resemble something from the space shuttle cockpit. The Evoque shares much of it’s dashboard and controls with Jaguar, the pop up circular gear ‘dial’, the TV, Sat Nav / Console / Media information centre, and push button ignition. All effortlessly stylish, efficient and functional, this is one Evoque that doesn’t come with un-necessary baggage.
Maybe it is just me, but I’m not a fan of the tiny handbrake buttons, I can never seem to remember if it is ‘push up’ or ‘push forward’, and because half of the time it will activate itself automatically I am always checking to see if it is on or off (just me then).
Whatever Victoria Beckham’s involvement in the development of the interior was, it would be slightly condescending not to give the team of designers at Land Rover enormous credit for coming up with something so immediately familiar, but just that bit different. Even a year after it’s release the Evoque is still an arresting sight on the road.
The drive itself is unbelievable smooth, the steering feels more direct than the looseness you sometimes get in a Range Rover, the brakes are soft, but have just the right dampening before they firm up. Body roll is minimal even at higher speeds, and it will effortlessly eat the road up before you faster than a truck driver with a Little Chef coupon.
In fact on the open road, driving the Evoque under 70 mph feels much too slow, and it’s easy to accidentally creep over the speed limit without noticing any real sensation of speed. If you do, the cruise control is perfectly positioned to use on a regular basis, and I did quite often.
It would get ten out of ten if it wasn’t for a few small details. The doors require an extra pull to close properly, and I drove off half a dozen times to discover it wasn’t completely shut.
There’s also no pause button on the stereo, a small but significant omission. Actually to be fair the touch screen does have a pause button, but if you are using the sat nav it’s not accessible. I know, it’s not much, but that is about all could come up with.
Overall the Range Rover Evoque is everything you hope it is, and then some – guaranteed to ‘spice’ up your life .
Top speed mph (kph) 135 (217)
0-60mph (0-100kph) seconds 7.1 (7.6)
Fuel Economy
Urban mpg (L/100km) 23.7 (11.9)
Extra urban mpg (L/100km) 40.9 (6.9)
Combined mpg (L/100km) 32.5 (8.7)
CO₂ emissions (g/km) 199
For more info visit
www.landrover.com