Nine’s Enough - Range Rover Evoque TD4 Dynamic 2014

2014 Range Rover Evoque

Land Rover has updated its RR Evoque with a new ZF-supplied nine-speed auto. While this gives LR a world-first bragging right, it also helps improve fuel consumption, with the TD4 Evoque improving 0.5 to 6.0L/100km overall and the petrol Si4 down by 0.9 to 7.8L/100km. While this hardware revision hasn’t netted any performance improvements, the economy gains are perhaps more relevant for both owners and Land Rover as the company looks to lower the overall CO2 output of its big SUV fleet.

And it’s not like Evoque owners in New Zealand are too concerned about the pace of their ride with the 110kW TD4 engine variant being by far the most popular. We liked the grunt of the more powerful SD4 oiler when we drove it late in 2011, but now it’s an indent option due to a lack of interest. LR engineers did a top job of honing the Evoque’s dynamics; it’s genuinely fun to punt along, but it seems the marketing and styling departments did a better job as the preferred trim level is the most expensive Dynamic line with its flashier, more aggressive styling. People would rather spend the coin on aesthetics rather than athletic ability. For Land Rover, it really doesn’t matter why people buy it, because it’s the company’s best seller and demand is still running hot.

Range Rover Evoque to get 9-speed automatic transmission

Even in TD4 trim, the Evoque is a decent drive. It has quick steering, which is light but feel some so you can really get stuck into the bends. It’s sorted in the curves too without any pitching or rolling yet it rides well, dealing to any unwanted warping characteristics over bumpy roads. Grip is assured with the Haldex AWD system while this test car’s Michelin sport rubber wouldn’t look out of place on a 911. Push on and you can get a bit of tyre scrub happening but without any ESP intervention to ruin your day. Like we said, it’s really a fun drive.  

While the nine-speed hasn’t delivered any increases in sprinting pace, it does make more of the 2.2-litre TD4’s 110kW and 400Nm outputs. This unit is aging some, with yesteryear noise levels and low-speed turbo lag but the new auto keeps it churning happily in the 2,000-4,000rpm zone. While we didn’t get close to the 9.6sec quoted 0-100km/h time, it really doesn’t reflect how well the nine-speed auto can keep the Evoque moving right along. The transmission flicks through the ratios in fine form. These are all closely stacked up to sixth gear with the final three being overdriven; 100km/h in top registers 1,400rpm. We used the Sport mode when out on a jaunt and forgot about the paddles. With all those gears, you can lose track of them when shifting it yourself, so it’s best to let the electronics sort it all out.

2014 Range Rover Evoque exterior and rear light

The Si4 engine option is where you should be looking if you’re keen on the sporting promise of this model. But it seems Evoque buyers would rather spend the extra on things like the Black Design pack that this car wears, which is a $6,000 option. There are plenty of boxes to tick here, and for an $89,000 car, it’s hardly a value proposition with items like a proximity key and sat-nav being cost extras. But we go back to our point that it’s the style, the presence and the badge appeal that work in this baby Rangie’s favour. So congrats to the marketing and styling teams, you’ve done swell. And kudos to the engineers as well, because the Evoque is also a dynamically-talented SUV.