What's the difference?
Hold back your tears. The Ford Everest Ambiente and Trend have been dumped and a new variant, the Active, is now the entry-grade in a revamped Everest line-up.
The Active has a newly offered 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine, which produces less power and torque than the twin-turbo engine it replaces – down 29kW and 95Nm, respectively.
So, does the new engine make the Everest any better or worse on- and off-road? And does it yield improved fuel economy?
Read on.
Range Rover has developed a bit of an image problem in the last few years.
To many the brand is still the face of a quintessentially British aspirational luxurious off-roader. But to a growing group, it has become synonymous with the concept of an environmentally reckless fuel-guzzling SUV.
They’re big, heavy, and still feature V8 engines, but Range Rover knows all too well the writing is on the wall for its increasingly infamous range of combustion vehicles.
The trouble is, customers love them, and while the I-Pace from sister brand Jaguar is a big leap into the future, there needs to be a happy medium for easing some of its existing customers away from combustion, while still offering the kinds of excess and aspirational performance the Range Rover brand is associated with.
Enter this car, the Evoque HSE P300e. It’s a plug-in hybrid, notably only available in the top trim level, with top-shelf performance, too.
Is it the right car to represent Range Rover’s entry-level model at a critical time of technological transformation? Let’s take a look.
The Ford Everest has always been an impressive 4WD wagon, with useful day-to-day driveability and real off-road capability.
As standard, it has a lot going for it. It’s quiet and refined on-road, very capable off-road and it’s packed with features.
The 2.0-litre single-turbo Active is a solid entry-point into the Everest line-up and, though it lacks the polish of its higher-spec stablemates and doesn’t yield the kind of improvement in fuel economy you might have hoped for, it makes a strong case as a touring vehicle with plenty of aftermarket-build potential.
The Range Rover Evoque is more highly specified and more luxurious than ever, and this plug-in hybrid version makes the most of what’s on offer with its slick but familiar feel from behind the wheel.
Unfortunately, it does have an eye-watering price tag to go with its classy design and the options list is a bit rude, all things considered, but the core offering is a solid luxury buy for city-slickers, nonetheless.
What makes the Evoque P300e stand out for me is its impressive EV driving range and excellent charging specs which make it as convenient as possible to make the most of its electrified features.
It’s up to the buyer whether these conveniences and the Range Rover badge are worth swapping into a car a full size down from its luxury plug-in rivals for the same money.