2011 Range Rover TD V8 Vogue SE

The second iteration of the niche defining Range Rover – the P38A – was developed on a shoestring under British Aerospace ownership. Shortly after its introduction BMW acquired the Rover Group for £1.8B. Upon a cursory inspection by BMW’s Wolfgang Reitzle, a Munich research and development big-hitter, over 70 areas requiring urgent improvement were highlighted for the P38A. Unsurprisingly, BMW soon resolved that it would be a short-lived model. A project named “L30” was launched by a joint Rover / BMW team to get a successor Range Rover in the works as soon as possible. During the development of the L30, however, the Rover shaped hot potato was passed on yet again – this time to Ford. The L30 project was too far along to shelve so a contract clause was framed to retain BMW’s involvement in the project until it reached full-scale production. The project was renamed “L322”and the third generation of Range Rover was launched in 2001. The pre-2005 models featured many components from the 5 and 7 Series BMWs, to include engines, transmissions and many of the electronic components. With the involvement of the uber-engineers at BMW, the L322 was a triumph and a full light year ahead of the clunky, agricultural P38A. Construction was now by way of strong monocoque – reportedly 250% stiffer than the ladder frame of the P38A - together with a fully independent suspension with advanced interconnected air springs. The interior had been improved exponentially with the design inspiration reportedly coming from high end yachts and their top-of-the-line fixtures and fittings. Another L322 milestone was passed in 2010 with that model-year’s update ushering in a thoroughly improved interior with a substantially redesigned dashboard, a 12.3-inch TFT virtual instrument cluster, upgraded infotainment and the innovative dual-view central touchscreen, where specified. Mechanically the new 4.4-litre TDV8 used parallel sequential turbocharging, designed to combine strong low-speed response with sustained performance higher in the rev range. It also introduced the sublime ZF 8HP70 eight-speed automatic transmission. Little wonder, then, that for many the L322 Range Rover represents the most significant highwater mark in the model’s history.

Specification

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