Land Rover Range Rover Electric review

You sit high in a Range Rover, with deep windows so the view out is ultra-scenic, for this is a car designed to go into the scenery. The front seats are suitably throne-like, and very comfortable. Optional packs add venting to their heating, and ever-fancier electric adjustments and massages.

The rears are electric too, with a fridge. More option packs add more adjustments, including bolster width and massage. You can also have a fixed centre console that goes to floor level. There's room to stretch in the standard wheelbase; the LWB gives a basketball player room to stretch.

The visual theme is decluttered, more like modern interior design than automotive design. Only trouble is, the decluttering has gone too far: in a facelift a couple of years ago the Range Rover lost its climate controls. They looked good, felt better and worked beautifully. Now it's screen-based and fiddly. If the physical knobs were such an affront to taste and decency, couldn't they have just gone behind a veneered hinged panel?

Anyway, the rest of the switchgear is sensible. We mentioned the modes knob earlier: there's also a well-crafted drive selector which also invokes single-pedal mode. Stalks are straightforwardly conventional. Some of the steering wheel buttons have dual purposes (for instance selecting music track or driver screen layout) but their backlit symbols change to suit the context. Other spoke buttons shortcut to quench driver warning and lane-keeping, so you seldom need to dive into that screen menu.

The touchscreen itself has logical design and beautiful graphics, but its response times can be sticky and inconsistent. For that reason we kept the switchable haptic click turned on. Better than a beep.

The standard stereo is a pretty epic Meridian system. Later there'll be the option of a world-first electrostatic panel system. We tried this in a parked demo Range Rover and it is absolutely extraordinary.

Range Rover claims no loss of boot space, so the petrol version’s 725 litres seats up (measured to the window line) and 1,814 litres seats down (to the roof) ought to apply here.

The Electric can tow up to 2,500kg braked, a tonne down on what the diesel Rangie can haul. Good luck unhitching and re-hitching the trailer every time you stop to rapid charge. Which will be a lot.