Daylesford Event...shocked!!

I attended the Unleashed Event at Daylesford Farm today and must confess to being rather shocked!

Firstly, the event was fantastic...getting to play on the Terrapod and with the Parking Assist was great, the customer experience generally was fantastic, and being able to go on a 31 mile unassisted test drive far outweighed my expectations...it made being a Range Rover customer feel special...unlike my previous Range Rover customer experience (and yes, I know, the dealers will soon bring me back to earth, but for now, I feel special!!).

Then there is the car...it genuinely shocked me...it was awesome! I test drove a Stornaway grey dynamic coupe specced up pretty much go my spec...and I was blown away. I have owned some lovely cars, beamers, mercs, 911's...as well as a Touareg and a FFRR...none of them have impressed me like the Evoque did today. I have always said that the FFRR is the best car in the world...no more my friends...the Evoque is taking that crown...anyone that thinks different needs to get over their size obsession!

I cannot believe how good the car was on the Terrapod (using the cameras and not looking at the windscreen at all was a little weird, but very very impressive...the Terrapod would be almost impossible without the cameras) but then handled country lanes BETTER than my A5. Anyone comparing his car with an X1 or an X3 is missing the point in my view. Same target audience perhaps, but totally different machines.

The Evoque is a truly astonishing car...I cannot wait until November 2nd...just awesome!!

Right...now to add some value for those who have not had a decent drive in one and to dispel some myths along the way!

- all grey event cars are stornaway...so if you've been told they are Orkney, that is wrong

- if you haven't ordered the glass roof and can still change your order, do it! Very dark without it (even with a light interior) very light and feels massive inside with it

- the ride on the dynamic (even on 20's) is still really smooth and comfortable...the steering is more responsive and the ride firmer, but still way more comfortable a ride than any of my fast coupes

- there were no issues with the auto box when stopping and pulling away again...I tested it several times

- the dash topping, whilst not quite as nice as leather, still outclasses the materials of any of the so called competitors

- the leather is very plush in the Prestige, but still very nice and good quality in the dynamic

- the gloss black dash trim is much nicer than the standard silver...worth the extra £200

- all colours looked great...really loved the grey but also the red. But silver with black wheels looked wicked as well

- the park assist blew me away!

- the ride height was higher than I expected, felt just like being in a big Range and the width of the car gives it that special RR feel

- the cameras are brilliant

- the motor on the front seats has already been improved once, but on the prod models it is being improved again, so not so slow anymore...but more to the point, my other half got in the back and they didn't even have to slide the seat forward to give her access...so worrying about kids waiting in the rain for 20 seconds is a red herring...and with the glass roof...I have zero concerns about rear occupants...easyish access with loads of space

I simply cannot find a single fault with the whole car...if I was being picky, I would say that I'm not a big fan of of the gloss black cover over the cup holders...and that is it!!!

So you liked it then?

How'd you guess???

Hugely long unnecessary quote removed

Hi there and thanks for the great review. Can you tell me if you drove the diesel or the petrol and and what you thought of its performance. I'm getting the Orkney Prestide SD4 Auto and just hope that the performanc is okay. I'm not expecting hot hatch pace but I'd like there to be enough. Cheers Steve

(03-09-2011 08:01pm)ytshome Wrote:  Hi there and thanks for the great review. Can you tell me if you drove the diesel or the petrol and and what you thought of its performance. I'm getting the Orkney Prestide SD4 Auto and just hope that the performanc is okay. I'm not expecting hot hatch pace but I'd like there to be enough. Cheers Steve

Hi Steve

I drove the SD4 and was impressed by the performance, easily overtook a couple of cars on the country lanes...can't see anyone having any complaints about the performance to be honest

Cheers for that. It's appreciated

Agree with all the comments


I had to take my kids (13 & 9) and they were made very welcome (they couldnt come on the drive as under 16's not allowed) but the LR guys really looked after us and kept an eye on them while we indulged in the test drive. They even got the chef to knock up dome organic burgers. Thanks LR

I've put a couple of pictures in the Stow thread

My wife and I attended the Cardiff event recently and we also found it hard to leave the drivers seat once in it!! We had our 9month old son with us and they let us fit the baby seat into the evoque so all three of us could experience the car. I think my son liked the pan. roof the most!