Range Rover Evoque: Perfect for Suburbia

I’d like to think that I’m a new kind of Land Rover enthusiast. I don’t go out of a weekend dressed in camouflage trousers, a hi visibility jacket and rigger boots. I don’t shoot animals for fun. Nor do I have a beard and assume anyone with a Land Rover produced since 1985 is gay for enjoying such luxuries as coil springs.

Which is why I’m not scared of holding my hands up and admitting I like the new Evoque.

Unveiled by Victoria Beckham, Land Rover are clearly quite happy to shout that their new vehicle is aimed at footballers’ wives. They’ve just announced that it’ll be marketed worldwide by ‘City Shapers’ – DJs, designers and TV personalities, including George Lamb and Ben Shephard.

And I think it makes perfect sense. If it was up to old school Land Rover enthusiasts, the new Land Rover would be even more basic than the current Defender. But just think, how much money is made from selling the current range of Land Rovers to school run mums? And how much money would be saved by removing the four wheel drive and terrain response systems that will never be used by a large proportion of owners?

Not only does it save money – the front-wheel-drive 2.2 turbo diesel Evoque emits less than 130g/km, so is kinder to the environment than a 1.4 Kia Cee’d. In days of global warming and hugging trees, this will give Land Rover huge amounts of bobble hat points.

You won’t be seeing the Evoque driven across the Sahara anytime soon. Nor will you be seeing it driven to rescue a rambler stuck up Snowdon. However, it’ll sell by the thousands in suburbia, and I can see why. When you see one of these being driven across London, resist the urge to stick two fingers up at the driver. They’re not that bad.