2023 Land Rover Range Rover Is Predictably Slow In The Moose Test

The fifth-generation Land Rover Range Rover made its debut in October 2021. Based on Jaguar Land Rover’s MLA-Flex platform, the SUV is a luxury cruiser with available five- and seven-seat versions, as well as a new plug-in hybrid powertrain. It has never been designed with speed and agility in mind, however, and this easily explains its relatively bad results in the moose test.

Our colleagues at km77.com put the P440e version of the Range Rover through the infamous moose test just recently. This is the less powerful plug-in hybrid variant, which has a 3.0-liter turbocharged engine under the hood supported by an electric motor. The combined output of the system is 434 horsepower (324 kilowatts) and 457 pound-feet (620 Newton-meters) of torque. A massive 38.2-kilowatt-hour battery pack provides an all-electric range of more than 62 miles (100 kilometers) on a single charge. 

This particular example of the SUV rides on Pirelli Scorpion Zero all-season tires in size 285/45 R22. This is surely not the grippiest rubber for the heavy family hauler we can think of and this probably affects negatively the results of the moose test. 

The first attempt at 47 miles per hour (76 kilometers per hour) ends quickly with a spectacular loss of traction for the Range Rover and it is clear that the maximum speed at which the maneuver can be made is significantly lower. The weight of the vehicle is obviously a huge factory here but its very aggressive electronic stability system also makes it impossible for the SUV to go around the cones. 

After several more failed attempts, the km77.com team finally manages to do the exercise without hitting any cones at a speed of just 39 mph (63 kph). At this velocity, the understeer is much less noticeable and overall, the SUV feels stable and fully controllable. Even at this speed, however, the ESC comes into action very intensively and reduces the speed of the front wheels.