Range Rover has just unveiled the fifth name in the family, and it's called the GT. The first all-electric Range Rover, dressed in gold camouflage, with coupe-like lines and the promise of being the most "automotive" Range Rover ever. But they've kept power, battery and range details under wraps. Of course.
There's something you need to know about the presentations made by British luxury brands: they're masters at showing you everything except what you really want to see. The Range Rover GT is a textbook example. We got the name, we got the promises of “flawless performance” and “ultimate long-distance comfort”, we even got our first look at the cabin. What we didn't get were kilowatts, kilometers, and seconds. But let's go in order, because the story is still good.
The fifth member of the family who opted for a lower roof
The Range Rover GT joins the base Range Rover, Sport, Velar and Evoque as fifth member of the family. After positioning, it sits somewhere between Velar and Sport, with a personality all its own. While the classic Range Rover stands erect like a butler with years of practice, the GT has hunched over. The roof drops into a coupe-like arc, the body wraps around the big wheels, the rear tapers. This is no longer an SUV pretending to be a sports car. This is a grand tourer that happened to be born into the SUV family and doesn't hide it.
The name GT is no coincidence. Grand tourer is a genre for those who want to drive half a continent in a day, arrive rested and looking like they just woke up. Range Rover claims that in recent years “we worked obsessively on the foundations of the GT formula” and created “the most automotive yet unmistakably capable Range Rover ever”Translated from marketing: they want a Bentley Continental that's not afraid of dirt roads.
Interior: less is more, everything is hidden
This is where the Range Rover first opened its doors and the view is worth seeing. The cabin follows the same principle as the exterior: reductionInstead of classical instruments you get single screen, paired with the driver display. The air vents are hidden and they run across the entire width of the dashboard as one horizontal stroke, which is the old Range Rover signature, except now without visible holes.
The most beautiful detail is the fabric. It wraps around the dashboard in a single movement. woven textile, which hides the speakers in its structure. So you can't see the speakers, but you can hear them. Range Rover sells this as "sanctuary of peace" with less visual and acoustic noise and, be careful here, Class-leading second-row roominessA coupe with plenty of space in the back is a contradiction that most competitors can't solve. Hats off to them if they've managed to do it.
Lower battery and front trunk
Now the technical part, as much as they allowed us to. The Range Rover GT will be the first electric Range Rover on the new platform EMA (Electrified Modular Architecture), made in the factory Halewood in the UK, alongside petrol and hybrid models. It will first be launched as fully electric vehicle (BEV), and later in the life cycle it should get the opportunity full hybrid (HEV).
An interesting fact that you won't find in the official announcement, but was discovered by colleagues: the battery is said to use single-layer arrangement of cells instead of the double-stacked layout that the upcoming Range Rover Electric will have. The result: a lower cabin floor, more space and additional front trunk under the hood. The EMA platform is expected to support 800-volt architecture, dual electric motor and fast charging, but these are predictions for now, not official data.
And here we get to the fine print that you won't hear so bluntly elsewhere: power, torque, battery in kWh, range, top speed and acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h are not available for now. Nothing. Range Rover has saved it all for later this year. Introducing an electric grand tourer and hiding the range is a bit like introducing a restaurant and hiding the menu. But we know the game: suspense sells.
Golden camouflage that is actually a map
Prototypes are now undergoing final testing around the world, wrapped in camouflage, which was designed at home. And it is not ordinary. The pattern is based on topographic contours of the landscape around Gaydon, home to Range Rover's design and engineering team. They've turned the contour lines into a flowing gold pattern that suggests travel and distance. Camouflage as a road map. We have to admit: it's clever. Most brands wrap their cars in a psychedelic black and white noise, but Range Rover has made a design statement out of camouflage foil.
Verdict: A promise with a great frame and empty space for numbers
Who is the GT for? Those who want the peace and quiet of a Range Rover, but in a form that can take a corner without feeling like they're driving a closet. Who do I not recommend it for? Anyone making a decision today, because deciding on a car without knowing its price, range and performance is like buying a house based on a photo of the front door.
“The most automotive yet unmistakably capable Range Rover ever,” he says Martin Limpert, Range Rover director. If they keep their word about comfort, space and capabilities that no classic GT can match, then this could be one of the most important Range Rovers of this decade. The brand is sold in 121 countries, and promises fully electric models before 2030, so the GT is not an isolated experiment, but the first stone in a new wall.
For now, we have a stunning silhouette, a smart cabin, a golden map and a bunch of promises. Price and numbers will come later this year. Until they do, the Range Rover GT is the most beautiful blank sheet of paper in the world. Let's write on it when they finally tell us how many horses are powering this golden secret.
