2014 Land Rover Range Rover Supercharged: Nobody Does It Better

Sometimes the divine and the absurd converge in an absolutely perfect combination that defies conventional description.  Such is the case with the 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Supercharged, an enormous sport-utility vehicle that manages to deliver both outstanding luxury along with the kind of unstoppable off-road attitude that is rarely seen outside of a half-track.  Even better: the Range Rover Supercharged's overwhelming road presence is paired with driving manners that could keep a sleeping baby in la-la-land while tearing down the quarter mile.  Land Rover has produced a study in contrasts with its flagship SUV, which is one of the rare production vehicles I have ever driven that completely convinced me of its six-figure price tag.

Opulence, Thy Name Is Range Rover

Few sport-utility vehicles can pull off the kind of old school luxury that seems so effortless when experienced from the inside of the Land Rover Range Rover Supercharged.  In addition to heated and cooled seats that envelope the body like a warm duvet, the tester I drove came with a massage function, LCD screens mounted in the headrests of the front two positions in order to entertain rear passengers, acres of legroom, and an outstanding Meridian sound system.

• Also: 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Sport: All-Terrain Land Missile
• Also: 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Gains Supercharged V6

The fit and finish of the Range Rover Supercharged's trim was excellent, and every surface I touched felt like it belonged in an automobile that cost roughly half of what I paid for my house.  Practicality is also part and parcel of the Land Rover experience, too, as the two-piece power tailgate is paired with a set of buttons just inside the cargo area that can be used fold the rear row of accommodations forward when loading oversized items.

Supernatural Body Control

A vehicle as big and hefty-looking as the Land Rover Range Rover Supercharged has every excuse to handle like a land yacht being buffeted to and fro by the broken pavement that in Montreal passes for a road system.  Thanks to the clever design implemented by Land Rover's engineers, however, the Range Rover Supercharged floats across even the most battered cluster of potholes with a calm reminiscent of the eye of a hurricane.  It all starts with the SUV's almost entirely aluminium body and platform, which was introduced in 2013 in order to cut nearly 330 kilograms from the Range Rover's curb weight.  Working together with this lightened chassis is an air suspension system that automatically adjusts damping to keep up with road conditions, as well as a feature called Dynamic Lean Response that virtually eliminates body roll in the corners, regardless of what speed the vehicle is traveling.

Fast, Fun, And Under Control

Speed is definitely another ace in the 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Supercharged's deck, considering that its blown 5.0-liter V8 engine churns out an incredible 510 horsepower and 461 lb-ft of torque.  This phenomenal output is routed through a very smooth eight-speed automatic transmission to a permanent four-wheel drive system.  The result: a sprint to 100 km/h that takes a mere 4.7 seconds, which seems all the more incredible from behind the wheel of this blazing behemoth.  The ability to surge forward with relentless acceleration was always lurking underneath my right foot during my time with the Land Rover, which probably contributed in part to the absolutely horrendous fuel economy that its eight-cylinder engine delivered.

Snow, Sea, Mud - Bring It On

The Land Rover Range Rover Supercharged's four-wheel drive system isn't just adept at channelling the prodigious output of its V8 engine - it's also a key component in making sure that this massive sport-utility vehicle never, ever, gets stuck, no matter how hairy the path ahead.  I had the good fortune of spending time with the Land Rover during a blizzard that dumped 20 centimetres of snow on the city overnight, and I devoted a good part of the next day seeking out some kind of obstacle that could at least slow down the Range Rover.

It was not to be.  The SUV's Terrain Response system, which offers a console-mounted dial for adapting engine, transmission, differential, and four-wheel drive characteristics to best handle what Mother Nature throws your way, ate up the white stuff with ease no matter how high it was piled in front of me.  It's not hyperbole to suggest that the Range Rover Supercharged might be the ultimate winter warrior, especially considering that its adjustable air suspension system can be jacked up to offer 30 centimetres of ground clearance for when you really want to get gnarly (or simply need to stuff it into a snowbank for parking purposes).

The Perfect Package?

After heaping so much praise on the 2014 Land Rover Range Rover Sport, is there anything I don't like about it?  I have to say that the SUV's wipers front and rear weren't up to the task of clearing off snow and ice, forcing me to rely on the heated windshield to maintain forward visibility.  Fuel consumption - albeit dragged down by my heavy foot and off-road, waist-deep-in-snow exploits - was also incredibly thirsty.  The latter point probably won't matter, however, if you can afford the high purchase price of the Range Rover Sport.  And if you can afford it, you really should buy it, because there's nothing in its class that does what it does better, faster, or more comfortably.