There's a new Range Rover Evoque, don'cha know. Here it is, on the road and ripe for testing against its two key rivals in the smallish, very premium, 4x4/SUV/crossover market.
First among them is the Volvo XC40, 2018's Car of the Year and a compact premium SUV that we like a great deal. Then there's the Audi Q3, a car that has been around for a while but one that is no less popular for that.
Diesel engines still make a great deal of sense in cars like this, which can be used for towing but just as often for covering big motorway distances and the (very occasional) light off-roading. So that's the engines we're testing.
Look on, then, to find who makes the best luxurious small 4x4 - is it Audi, Land Rover or Volvo?
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Ergonomic failures
Ergonomic adjustment is easy
Notice Volvo owners are not moaning? You can use the touch screen with gloves. Early morning boot times in first generation units were slow. However, the climate control system was normally preset to the temperature you needed. Getting used to the system takes no time and once you start using the voice control button. It becomes a game.
I’m going to buck the trend here...
and say this test was rubbish...
1. Although comparable in size, the Evoque is in another league price wise. It’s hugely more expensive than the two other cars here. In reality it competes in the X3/Q5/GLC class. How Prior got it wrong is beyond me, or he’s just being dishonest or negligent or dumb.
2. He dislikes the Audi but doesn’t say why. It’s certainly better looking than the LEGO/Tonka like Volvo.
3. The Audi has a better engine than the Volvo, and is more agile. So why does he dump on it in this test???
Price
Point 1. The RR starting price is £31,600 (Diesel) the starting price for a XC is £29,000 (petrol?). £2.5k is hardly another league, it's only around 7%, and works out even less if you opt for Diesel XC40 which is still a popular fuel in this category.
UK (Tata) vs the World
It's pretty unusual to see a LR/RR score a win OUTSIDE the UK.
Same with Ford. Fiesta & Focus as the non-plus ultra according to UK motoring press, yet on the mainland, these models never win a comparison. Not that I mind - I'll judge myself.