Range Rover SV: First Drive Review

Elegant luxury meets blank cheque and a powerful powertrain to create a truly special SUV experience

The Range Rover SV is a 4-seat luxury SUV with no direct rivals, but it can be considered a more expensive alternative to the Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600. This flagship variant was last offered with both petrol and diesel engine options, with all-wheel-drive and air suspension as standard. The Range Rover is only offered in the long-wheelbase (LWB) version in India.

Looks

The fifth-generation Range Rover combines sleek modern lines with elegant styling for its massive proportions. It is almost 5.3 metres long, 2.2 metres wide and nearly 1.9 metres in height, giving the British luxury SUV immense road presence along with the attention-grabbing design. Even those 23-inch wheels have a classy design that perfectly suit the overall aesthetic of the SV. Even the way the door handles pop out when the car is unlocked is part of the whole classy exterior design.

Those slim vertically oriented taillights give it a futuristic look at the rear, taking a classier approach for the connected design with the black panel featuring the Range Rover lettering. Another nice detail is that the main taillights themselves are housed under black panels, visible only when the car is in use, for a seamless rear-end design when parked.

You need to be a long-time fan of Jaguar Land Rover to immediately differentiate the SV from other variants of the Range Rover, and here are the key details to look out for.  The first clue is the SV badge finished in ceramic, located on the boot and the silver-bronze strips on the front doors. Next is the Land Rover badge on the slightly different grille which has a black background instead of the usual green. Another visual differentiation is the bumper which has 5 horizontal slats and no fog lamps. This specification we tested also had the variant-exclusive bronze accents all around.

Interior

Given that the purpose of a luxurious land yacht is to offer sublime and exclusive comforts to its wealthy owners, the Range Rover SV ticks that requirement and then goes a few steps further. Even before you get into the long list of personalisation options to rack up the price tag by some tens of lakh rupees, you are treated to a clean and spacious cabin layout with high-quality leather all around, complemented by aluminium-finished surfaces around most controls, and even some ceramic elements for that royal treatment. The carpeting is just as plush as the upholstery and you really question if you should even be wearing your shoes while inside the Range Rover SV. We'll start with the rear seats which are the main point of such an SUV.

Sure, electronically adjustable seats with heating, cooling, memory and massage functions are standard kit. But then we have the SV Signature Suite in our test unit which features a fixed centre console that bisects the cabin, for a business-class experience in the back. Not only does this divide the cabin into separate sections for the comfort of each occupant, it also incorporates two impressively cool features - motorised cupholders and a motorised fold-out table. If you had to nitpick, you could argue that the table can only be used by one rear occupant at a time. There is one more motorised section back here and that's the access panel for the mini fridge that can store one bottle and comes with two SV-branded glasses to drink from.

There is also a fixed tablet fitted into this console for individually adjusting the rear seats in terms of position, bolstering, lumbar support, massage modes and their respective climate settings. If you want even more comfort for your long journey, and you're sitting on the rear-left side, you can almost recline your seat with leg and foot support with the front passenger seat moved forward. You also use the tablet to control the two 13-inch curved displays fitted to the front seatbacks as the rear entertainment package. Surprisingly, you do not have complete control over the car's media playback from this tablet in terms of selecting the playlists, but you can still mute/unmute if you need to give new instructions to your chauffeur.

Under the rear armrest, you will find a wireless charging pad to let your device juice up while stored away, and below that there is another deep storage area. However, this also doubles up as the access point for various electronic functions like two USB-C fast chargers, two HDMI ports for the rear entertainment screens, a proper power outlet for plugging in laptop chargers (or other entertainment devices), and even an old-school 12V lighter.

While the Range Rover SV does have large windows for decent visibility, it's the big panoramic sunroof that opens up the cabin. You can also control how much of the shade is covering this glassy roof section from the rear tablet. At night, it's the multi-tone ambient lighting that sets the mood for this luxurious and relaxed cabin. Additionally, the tall stance of the Range Rover translates to a high seating position for the occupants, offering an elevated limousine experience with a commanding view.

It's time to check out the front section of the Range Rover SV cabin. The dashboard layout is refreshingly minimalistic with a healthy dose of leather. The central AC vents are neatly integrated into a sleek and narrow horizontal strip that runs across it, interrupted neatly by the digital driver's display. In front of it is a round steering well with an exquisite finish, and even the flat-surfaced controls have a tactile feel.

In the centre, you get a curved floating touchscreen that matches the shape of the dashboard. Underneath it, the climate controls with displays integrated into the dials which are finished in ceramic and have a nice click when rotated. A clever detail is that you can change between fan speed or temperature setting by pushing down on the dials. This reduces the need for added controls, hence the clean layout. Then we have the console tunnel which also features a lot of ceramic surfaces in this SV version with a covered wireless charging pad, a pop-out rotary selector for the drive modes and a conventional drive-select lever, also with a ceramic finish. Both front seats get individual centre armrests, adjustable for height, and a central resting area which has additional storage space underneath.

Other interesting details at the front include the widescreen inside rearview mirror (IRVM) that can also display a rear camera feed if the cabin view is obstructed. You also get touch-enabled cabin lights in the roof-mounted console that houses the sunroof controls. When it comes to sun visors, there are two per front passenger- a regular one that can be swung around to the side and a smaller one behind it to protect from oncoming glare when the main one has been moved to the side.

Feature Highlights

Technology

Infotainment System

The Range Rover comes with a 13.1-inch touchscreen infotainment unit that also allows you to control various aspects like the full range of adjustment for all the seats, their heated and ventilated setting, and massage functions. You can also operate various vehicle settings for the luxury SUV such as the drive modes and cabin settings for ambient lighting, air quality, etc. It is also the display to monitor vehicle details such as power distribution between the wheels and various information that is useful while off-road. The Land Rover HMI is fairly intuitive with excellent visual quality, but the responsiveness could be quicker. Of course, you can connect your phone wirelessly via Android Auto and Apple CarPlay too for added convenience.

Digital driver's display

The digital instrumentation display for the driver packs in a lot of information with multiple visual layouts on offer. You can navigate through the long list from the steering-mounted controls, which takes some learning and is hard to adapt to while driving. However, the dual-dial layout with the speedometer, tachometer and a central section for additional info is an easy one to get used to. You also get a head-up display with just the crucial information to keep you focused on the road while piloting this luxury yacht.

Rear Infotainment Package

We already mentioned the rear entertainment package of the Range Rover SV with HDMI support which includes two 13.1-inch curved touchscreens (almost identical to the central infotainment display) in this specification. Lesser variants get slightly smaller screens for the rear infotainment package. For 2024, we would have liked to see some built-in entertainment applications supported by internet connectivity, but then again, we did plug in a gaming console to play racing games while in the back of a Range Rover.

Sound System

Luxury cars have high-end sound systems, and the Range Rover SV takes this role very seriously. It employs a 1600W Meridian sound system with a LOT of speakers, so many that you could spend a whole day in the cabin and still not have spotted every single one. The result is a cocoon of high-quality sound for a concert-like experience, aided by the incredible sound-deadening of the cabin. In case you're not interested in banging some tunes, you also get a pair of SV-branded noise-cancelling earphones, one for each rear passenger, for utmost peace.

Washers

Given that car enthusiasts tend to get excited by the silly little conveniences, this one got us too. When it comes to any SUV capable of going off-road, you know it will have a headlight washer system to ensure clear visibility at all times. Well, the Range Rover also has a washer for the rearview camera. But even more impressive is the main windscreen washer system, which integrates water jets into the wipers. That's why that massive bonnet has no protrusions sticking out like a normal car would for the water jets.

Tailgate And Boot Space

One of the most iconic design elements of a Range Rover is the split-tailgate design, which opens electronically. It opens up in two sections with the top half being the larger section while the lower section is smaller and designed for you to sit on it. With the SV, you also get the option to prop up some backrest sections with accessory pads for cushioning. It's not quite the fold-out seat you get in a Rolls-Royce Cullinan (which costs a few crores more), but you can still enjoy a leisurely evening chilling out of the back of this massive SUV. You even get some of the Meridian speakers focused outward for the entertainment along with some lights as well. 

But when you're not using the split-tailgate design as a hang-out spot, you can fit in a fair amount of luggage (just over 1,000 litres of cargo capacity). Other electronically controlled elements are the parcel tray, folding forward the rear seats, and lowering the rear suspension for easier access.

Safety

As the flagship offering from Land Rover, the Range Rover SV has a long list of safety features including a high-quality 360-degree surround-view camera system, a few advanced driver assist systems like adaptive cruise control and autonomous emergency braking, electronic stability control, traction control, and multiple airbags. If there is one thing we can say to be missing here, it would be the lack of a blind-spot monitoring system which is quite useful in something this big.

Performance

Big SUVs need big engines, and usually, buyers will pick a diesel option for the sheer amount of torque that can get these beasts up to speed. However, this top-of-the-line petrol-powered Range Rover SV stands out of the crowd with its BMW-sourced 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8. In this specification, it has 615 PS of power on offer along with 750 Nm of torque, channelled to the 4WD system via Land Rover's 8-speed automatic transmission. Those figures are plenty to get this 2.7-tonne-something land yacht going briskly, easily cruising at highway speeds and overtakes are a breeze. The powertrain has a nice sound to it too when accelerating, but only some of it makes its way into the noise-insulated cabin. Tunnel runs with the windows partially open are an easy solution for that particular issue.

Ride & Handling

While there is a lot of performance available under the hood, it's how Land Rover has managed to make use of it with the Range Rover SV that feels most impressive. There are different driving modes on offer and the air suspension will adjust itself and the ride height to find the optimal balance between dynamism and comfort. In regular driving modes, the ride is supple, smooth and floaty, especially in the back seat. Sudden lane changes in this setting and the body-roll is quite noticeable with such a tall seating position. However, in a more dynamic setting, it deals with curves much better but at the cost of a slightly stiffer ride.

Even with all that technology on offer, there are some physics rules you cannot bend with that form factor. For example, if you put your foot down, the front end lifts up and then stays there all the way till you hit expressway speeds. It has a performance engine, but it is not engineered to be as nimble as the performance-oriented luxury SUVs from Porsche or Bentley. If you really want a dynamic Land Rover, then maybe you should look at the smaller and slightly less luxurious Range Rover Sport SVR.

Driving it in the city at slower speeds, you can also appreciate the ergonomics of the driving position. It makes it easier to get an idea of the Range Rover SV's immense proportions while navigating through traffic. Additionally, the rear-wheel steering makes life easier while parking or making U-turns. You never quite get over its size from the outside, but in the driver's seat, it is easy to tell where the car ends and the overall visibility is commendable.

Yes, the Range Rover SV is primarily for those who wish to sit in the back, but with that engine, it feels just as special to be behind the wheel.

Verdict

The Range Rover SV is the luxury SUV you buy to make a statement, and that's exactly what it does best. With its great size, its elegant design, the luxurious cabin, an impressive drivetrain, and that price tag, the SV is the tippy top of the Range Rover product line. The specification as tested is estimated to cost around Rs 5 crore on-road. There are faster and more expensive SUVs out there, like the Ferrari Purosangue or Bentley Bentayga, but none of them tick all of the same boxes as the Range Rover SV.  

In case you're looking for something even more modern and green, you can consider waiting for the all-electric Range Rover which is set to arrive in India in 2025. But be warned, the performance version for that one could be even more expensive.