It’s a little strange to use affordable and Range Rover in the same sentence, but there is such a thing.
It is called the Range Rover Evoq.
At least relative to other Range Rovers like the $83,700 to start Range Rover Sport and the $61,500 to start Range Rover Velar.
You can pick up this luxury-brand small crossover SUV for not all that much more than it costs to drive home a comparably equipped small crossover with similar capabilities, but without the luxury cachet that comes with the Range Rover brand.
And with the style that’s generally lacking in this class – at almost any price.
What It Is
The Evoq is a compact-sized, luxury crossover that stickers for $49,900 to start for the base P250 S trim.
That’s about what you’d pay to drive home a comparably equipped Ford Bronco Sport Badlands with an identically sized 2.0 liter turbocharged four cylinder engine as the one that comes standard in the Evoq, that makes almost exactly the same power, as well as a similar AWD system with similar driver-selectable terrain modes.
A top-of-the-line P250 Dynamic SE stickers for $54,900. This version of the Evoq comes standard with a set of 19 inch wheels and copper/gloss black trim.
The Evoq can also be compared with luxury-brand small crossovers such as the BMW X1 – which is a little larger – and a lot less expensive ($40,950 to start for the xDrive28i). The BMW also comes standard with a 2.0 liter turbocharged four that makes about the same power as the Evoq’s standard four – but unlike the RR, the BMW is also available with a much stronger 2.0 liter four, in the $50,350 M35i.
Another luxury-brand cross-shop is the Mercedes-Benz GLB 250 – which is a little larger than both the Evoq and the X1 but closer in price to the Evoq, at $47,800 to start with the optional 4Matic AWD system. (The Evoq comes standard with AWD.)
It also comes with a 2.0 liter four.
The Benz and BMW are not, however, as stylish as the Evoq – and neither is the Ford. Neither is anything else in this range – and that’s the main sell in a market so saturated with look-alike crossovers that it’s refreshing to find one that isn’t.
What’s New For 2025
Land Rover refreshed the Evoq’s look last year so there are few significant changes for the new model year – including the price. Which remains the same this year as it was last year.
What’s Good
A stylish alternative to the others.
A bit more bad weather capability than most.
12 speaker Meridian premium audio system and panorama sunroof are standard.
What’s Not So Good
Previously available stronger-iteration of the 2.0 liter four no longer is.
Less stylish small-sized luxury crossovers like the BMW X1 cost much less and are more practical because they have a bit more cargo, leg – and head – room.
Dealer network not as abundant as non-luxury (and even some luxury) brands.
All 2025 Evoqs come standard with the same 2.0 liter turbocharged four cylinder engine that makes 246 horsepower. It is paired with a full-time all-wheel-drive system that includes driver-selectable terrain modes for Grass/Gravel/Snow, Mud/Ruts and Sand – as well as a Wade Sensing system that alerts the driver to water depth that might be too deep to risk.
A nine speed automatic transmission is standard. This transmission has several overdrive gears – like others that have more than six forward gears – but even so, the Evoq’s gas mileage isn’t great: 20 city, 27 highway.
Probably because it’s so heavy.
Curb weight is just shy of two tons – 3,935 lbs. – which is several hundred pounds heavier than the BMW X1 (3,750 lbs.) and that probably accounts for the BMW’s significantly higher gas mileage numbers – 25 city, 34 highway – even though its 2.0 liter four is exactly the same size as the Evoq’s and makes almost exactly the same horsepower (241).
The Benz GLB 250 weighs even less (3,638 lbs.) and has the fuel-efficiency advantage of a mild hybrid system paired with its standard 2.0 liter (221 horsepower) four cylinder engine, which is why it also bests the Evoq’s mileage considerably, posting 24 city, 33 highway.
Both of these rivals are also still available with optional, more potent engines. The Evoq was – through the 2023 model year. Until that year, there was a P300 iteration that came with a 296 horsepower version of the 2.0 liter four that delivered about the same gas mileage – 21 city, 26 highway – as the 2025 Evoq’s 246 horsepower four while making 55 more horsepwoer.
It managed to almost match the current 246-horse four’s mileage because – like the Benz GL250 – the four was supplemented by a mild-hybrid system that also cycled the four off as often as feasible.
This version of the 2023 Evoq stickered for $55,300 when it was new – which is almost exactly what a 2025 Evoq P250 Dynamic SE (with 246 horsepower and without the mild-hybrid system) stickers for today.
Both versions of the ’25 Evoq are rated to tow a maximum of 4,000 lbs. – which bests the BMW X1’s 3,500 max.
The Benz GLB 250 isn’t rated to tow anything.
The Evoq is a Range Rover – and looks like a smaller iteration of its Velar and Range Rover Sport siblings – but it’s the least off-road-capable of the three.
That’s on purpose.
It was designed to be more at home on paved roads but with more capability to deal with poor conditions (such as snow and standing water) on those roads than the typical small crossover.
This is not the one to take into the deep desert – or jungle – but it is the one that would probably have gotten you home after or even during the recent hurricanes that hit North Carolina, Tennessee and Florida. There’s enough ground clearance – 8.3 inches – to wade through standing water and the Evoq’s full-time AWD system routes torque to the wheels that aren’t slipping, which helps keep you going. Lacking is the Low range leverage advantage of a two speed transfer case such as you’d have in a Range Rover Sport – but that’s something that rarely comes in handy on road unless the snow is really deep.
The Evoq isn’t especially quick – zero to 60 takes about 7 seconds – but it does not feel slow because the turbo four musters its peak torque output (269 ft.-lbs.) at just 1,300 RPM – which means it’s all available pretty much all the time. An engine that makes abundant torque at low RPM can feel stronger than a higher-horsepower engine that has to be revved higher to access its power.
This is the biggest practical advantage of the small, turbocharged engines coming online today to achieve compliance with federal fuel economy and “greenhouse gas emissions” regs.
On the other side of the drivetrain balance sheet is the nine speed automatic, which as mentioned earlier has several overdrive gears – for the same reasons. Once you reach cruising speed, the engine’s hardly running – around 1,8000 RPM will hold 65 MPH, leaving 4,500 more RPM on the digital tach to play with.
The result is a relaxed driving feel, notwithstanding there’s only a four under the hood to motivate all that weight.
Looking at the Evoq from the outside, you’d think it’d be hard to see outside from inside – due to the RR’s low squat and chopped-looking (and sloping) roofline). While visibility to the rear isn’t great – a deficit that afflicts pretty much every crossover available today due to the combination of the canted and relatively scant glass area of the rear liftgate, visibility to the sides is very good because there is a lot of seat adjustment available to compensate for the short side glass. This also allows for more real-world headroom than the stats indicate (more about this follows below).
Looking ahead over the broad and flat hood, you feel as though you’re driving something bigger than the Evoq is. The two-tons of curb weight adds literal substantiality – compensating for the not-so-great fuel economy.
The shortness of the Evoq – it has about the same footprint as an early-mid 2000s Toyota RAV4 – makes it as easy to slip into (and out of) tight spots as an early-mid 2000s RAV4, which you cannot say about a Range Rover Sport – which may be capable of going almost anywhere off-road but often requires more room to maneuver on-road.
Style matters. Or – rather – style is what’s supposed to set the Evoq apart. Take away the low squat and the chopped-looking, steeply rearward sloping roofline and what you’d be looking at would be just another crossover with another 2.0 liter turbocharged four and . . . yawn . . . not that there’s anything wrong with that.
But it’s harder to sell that when that’s what everyone else is also selling it.
You may not like the Evoq’s looks. But there is no denying it looks different. Some might say evocative.
As mentioned above, this Range Rover has a small footprint. It is just 172.2 inches long. For some sense of scale, a Range Rover Sport is 194.7 inches long, so a difference of about two feet in length (and about 50 percent in MSRP).
The cost of this smaller size – and evocative styling – relative to slightly larger and more practically styled small luxury crossovers such as the BMW X1 and the Mercedes-Benz GLB is a noticeably tighter back seat. The Evoq has just 34.1 inches of legroom for second to passengers, vs. 37 inches in the X1 and 38.1 in the Benz GLB. On the upside, rearseat headroom in the Evoq – 38.1 inches – is only slightly less than in the X1 (39.3 inches) and Benz GLB 250 (also 39.3 inches).
The RR also has less behind-the-second row cargo space (21.6 cubic feet) and total cargo space (50.5 cubic feet) with the second row folded down. The X1 has 25.7 cubic feet and 57.2 cubic feet, respectively. The Benz has 22 cubic feet and 62 cubic feet, also respectively.
Style – like speed – comes at a cost.
The Evoq’s dash is reductive – Land Rover’s term – by which is meant that almost every secondary system’s function is controlled by a single 11.4 inch LCD touchscreen with a curved glass face. It does clean up the dash by getting ride of what would otherwise be numerous buttons and switches. But it has the downside that all touchscreens have of having to look at it – because there is nothing to feel (other than the smooth glass surface).
On the upside, the system can display real-time data about the vehicle’s angle of approach and departure as well as how much you’ve got the front wheels turned – so you don’t have to get out to look in order to see.
Amazon Alexa is standard – as are Tesla-like flush-mounted door pulls that deploy as you approach.
One thing that doesn’t cost – extra, at least – is the Evoq’s outstanding (and standard) Meridian audio system, which comes standard with 12 speakers. Many other luxury brands have Bose or Harman Kardon systems (usually with fewer standard speaker) and they are also good but the Meridian system is . . . outstanding.
So also leather (real leather) seat covers.
The X1 comes standard with synthetic leather and the available 12 speaker Harman Kardon audio system costs $4,600 extra because you have to buy the Premium package to get it. The Benz GLB likewise comes standard with synthetic leather and if you want the optional 10 speaker audio system, it’s bundled as part of a $5,300 Pinnacle package.
So the Evoq’s actually not much more expensive than its main rivals – when the latter are comparably equipped.
And it’s also not much more expensive than some comparably equipped small crossovers made by non-luxury brands.
The Bottom Line
New vehicles as a class have gotten a lot more expensive. The upside is that if you can afford a new vehicle, you might be able to afford a luxury-brand vehicle.
One that doesn’t look like the run-of-the-mill, either.
. . .
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The new cars are horrible….and the market is bad….
What about the collector car market?
Brandon nomics….commiela nomics….. marxist’s wrecking the car market….anti ice car culture….
Boomers selling more then buying…
The Pebble Beach Classic Car Auctions Bloodbath
Nobody is talking about it…..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pntx1nhizwo
Hi Anon,
I’v been meaning to write about this. I think it’s likely the collector car market will decline irrespective of the awful economy because the baby boom generation that is largely responsible for the boom in classic cars prices from the ’90s to now is aging out. And Gen X’ers are mostly in no position to afford to buy one at current prices. Millennials – most – do not know or care about them. Ditto the Gen Z people. I suspect classic cars will become a niche hobby, like steam locomotives.
Recently had a 2023 Buick Envision loaner for a few weeks. Almost identical to this vehicle tested by Eric. It had AWD, turbo 2.5L 4 cylinder, 9 speed transmission ,leather, avenir model, bla bla bla. Price ? $48,500 MSRP…whew, blew my mind and pocketbook. For half price I’d consider it,but today??? LOL, who can afford these? Used only for the rest of my driving days I guess ….
YMMV…
Morning, Saxon!
Yeah, same here. And up close and personal. Each week I get sent a new vehicle to drive/write about and each time I ask myself: Who is buying these things? I think the answer is they are renting (leasing) them. This is how people “afford” them. You will own nothing – and be happy!
Chinese-made EVs in the UK are transmitting user data to China and could allow remote control and shutdown of vehicles
brandon, commiela, walz…china assets…fighting tariffs…
https://expose-news.com/2024/09/19/chinese-made-evs-in-the-uk-are-transmitting-user-data-to-china/
European auto meltdown shifts into high gear:
‘The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association show that new car registrations across Europe in September declined 4.2% compared with the same month one year ago, to 1.12 million units.
‘Constantin Gall, the managing partner at EY for Western European markets, wrote in a note to clients that the European auto market “remains in crisis mode,” adding, “There is no positive impetus towards the end of the year — the economy is weakening, the considerable geopolitical tensions are not easing and are causing uncertainty among both private and commercial customers.”
‘Regarding each automaker’s performance in September, Stellantis nosedived, recording the steepest decline in new car sales, about 26%.’
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/crisis-mode-eu-automakers-slide-first-sales-slump-two-years
Fake and gay auto makers for a fake and gay continent. Any news from the Ukrainian front, comrades? /smirk
‘Regarding each automaker’s performance in September, Stellantis nosedived, recording the steepest decline in new car sales, about 26%.’
Well, Cheapskate Carlos, the yet-to-be-shitcanned CEO of French Leyland (aka Stellantis), is adamant that he won’t be paying the government pizzo. His COO, Jean-Philippe Imparato, claims that they’d rather choose to cut production of ICE-powered cars in order to be compliant with “emissions” standards.
“Stellantis Says If It Can’t Sell EVs, It Won’t Sell ICE Either”
I highly doubt French Leyland will make it to 2026, which is when Cheapskate Carlos is supposed to retire.
The good thing is the Range Rover Evoq still has an ice engine….
Meanwhile in EV land….
Porsche and Audi recall EV’s for potential short circuit in battery cells….
9 Electric buses catch fire in China….
20 Ebikes catch fire in underground parking in Toronto…a women was injured….
In the U.K….talk about…removing EV’s from roads because of fires….what about their stupid Net Zero EV mandate?……
In the U.K….talk about…removing EV’s from roads because of fires….ebike and escooter fires have killed 13 people and injured many more…in U.K……
slaves will be walking only around their 15 minute cities…..as predicted….ban ice cars…then ban EV’s…ebikes, etc….because of fires….
In the U.K….electric furnace mandate…but power not available from grid till 2032…freeze in the dark…
Blackouts coming…..the power is needed for AI data centers…for surveillance of the slaves….
China is winning…has no net zero mandate…
rest of the world losing….. deindustrializing….net zero mandates…..no jobs, poverty, freeze in the dark….all part of agenda 2030….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uegVwydG8qY
Commiela is a China shill….supports all these mandates…..her agenda….no jobs, poverty, freeze in the dark
China is winning…has no net zero mandate…
rest of the world losing….. deindustrializing….net zero mandates…..no jobs, poverty, freeze in the dark….all part of agenda 2030….
‘almost every secondary system’s function is controlled by a single 11.4 inch LCD touchscreen with a curved glass face.’ — eric
‘Form follows function.’ — Louis Sullivan
Steve Jobs was a champion of the ‘reductive’ aesthetic. Dozens of functions are packed into an iPhone, which presents only a smooth glass panel on its face, and a few very unobtrusive buttons on its sides.
By contrast, a Boeing 737 Max 10 has hundreds of buttons, knobs and levers crammed into its cockpit:
https://ibb.co/MSQKc2N
Why? Because under pressure, muscle memory allows a trained pilot to operate those controls immediately and accurately. Whereas attempting to frantically work through a touch screen menu probably would fail.
Cars, I argue, are more analogous to an airplane cockpit than an iPhone. The real estate is available for direct controls. We know this, because 20th century vehicles have them.
Luxury means analog gauges and direct knob/switch/slider/lever controls for functions — full stop; end of story.
Touch screen menus are fake and gay. I shun them like rat poison. When I shift my Fronty from 2H to 4H, I pull a frickin’ mechanical lever that vibrates in my damned palm. And they’ll have to peel my cold, dead hand off it to take it away. Molon Labe, bitchez.
“controlled by a single 11.4 inch LCD touchscreen”
distracted driving deaths way up….because of this….
on some…go through multiple menus to open the glove box….CRASH….
part of the slave herd reduction agenda…..
“controlled by a single 11.4 inch LCD touchscreen”
just cheap crap to reduce costs….and force a purchase of a new vehicle in 4 years…it’s lifespan …. like a cell phone…..but…for $50,000….