Priced from: £110,150
Price as tested: £143,400
Available: Now

For those who always turn left whenever they board a flight, the Range Rover Autobiography Black aims to bring a touch of business-class travel to the road. We elected to test whether this could be the executive express that is the jack of all trades and the master of all.

The Range Rover is hardly known for its diminutive dimensions and if you thought that the biggest could not get any bigger, then you will need to think again with the launch of this new Long Wheelbase version. The standard Range Rover despite its size cannot offer the limousine-like levels of rear space that other luxury saloons can. This Long Wheelbase version counters this by offering a 200 mm extension at the rear but also allows the Range Rover brand to be further taken upmarket by offering the type of interior layout that one would normally associate with a marque like Bentley. When you consider that over 80% of all Range Rovers sold are exported, often into key emerging markets where status is attached to being driven rather than driving yourself, it makes sound business sense that Land Rover target such markets with their most premium of premium SUVs. It is a fast developing market too, with plans by Bentley, Maserati, Lamborghini and even Rolls-Royce to shortly offer competing products. Welcome to the dawn of the Über-SUV.

The Long Wheelbase model you see pictured here is the flagship Autobiography Black version, which has since been succeeded by the SVAutobiography model. Finished in Loire Blue and complimented by a Navy and Ivory interior with an Ebony Macassar veneer it was a textbook example in restrained good taste. There was nothing restrained about the rear interior though which was better appointed than my lounge at home. Thanks to an Executive Seat option (£2,500), both rear seats could recline by 17-degrees at the touch of a button and could reach the parts that others could not by offering not only heating and cooling, but also an in-built massage function to soothe away those hectic days. One’s inner calm could also be further restored by reaching for the in-built Champagne chiller complete with necessary flute storage to toast to perhaps another successful day in the office. Throw in a Rear Seat Entertainment pack (£1,500) which offers each rear passenger their own screen, complete with wireless headphones so that they can fully immerse themselves in their favourite DVD or digital TV programme and you have a back-seat that is a haven for peace and tranquility.

When the focus is more on business than pleasure, a pair of electrically deployable tables can be summoned at will to glide silently out of their central storage unit to provide a mounting for your laptop or tablet whilst offering integrated USB sockets so that you can charge whilst on the go.

Elsewhere the interior is classic Range Rover which emphasises heavily on British Craftsmanship with perforated Semi-Aniline leather that is buttery soft to the touch and expensive smelling to the nose. The mixture of wooden veneer along with exquisite aluminium details make it a very elegant living space that feels incredibly spacious thanks to a high leather-lined roof, large side windows area and a full length panoramic roof.

After dark the interior ambiance glows according to your mood thanks to a large array of different mood lighting shades. Devilish red, hot pink or contemporary purple (my choice) to name but a few are only ever a dial turn away. Combine this with a 29-speaker, 1700 watt Meridian Audio that can make your hair stand on its end and you can have a night out without actually leaving the car.

The front passengers are not forgotten either thanks to Land Rover’s acclaimed ‘Dual-View’ central touchscreen, which allows the passenger to catch up on the television news whilst the driver simultaneously follows the satellite navigation on the same screen. Very, very clever.

When it comes to departure you simply pilot this land-castle as to which way you want to go, as saying that you drive a Range Rover tends to undermine the wonderful commanding driving position that it offers. You sit up high and upright which affords a great view of the road ahead and despite its size, it never intimidates. Of course there may be some sweaty palm moments when say manoeuvring in a multi-storey car park, but out on the open road progress is effortless. The steering is direct and the handling is not the sailing boat affair you may imagine, thanks to an all-aluminium construction which keeps the car’s mass surprisingly well controlled. The TDV8 Diesel engine is fabulous offering locomotive levels of pulling power combined with a turbine-smoothness. Fuel economy is better than you may expect as well. Coming back into London after a lengthy motorway journey from the Midlands, I was within a whisker of achieving 40 miles per gallon. For a car of this size, that is extraordinary. Yes you can have a petrol V8, but the diesel offers such an enticing proposition that it renders the petrol version, at least in the UK, redundant in my view.

Externally there are more design flourishes for this flagship Range Rover to mark it out from the rest of the range: Unique 21 or 22 inch alloy wheels, the option of two-tone paint, clear LED rear lights and additional chrome work. These little touches all add up to help distinguish this as being the most premium of premium SUVs.

What has always made the Range Rover so special of course is its go-anywhere ability. After all, here is a car that can wade through water at depths of nearly one metre and despite the extra dimensions this Long Wheelbase version retains this incredible off-road capability. Of course the likelihood of a busy executive commanding his driver to make haste into the nearest river is unlikely. However, as with the fire blanket in your weekend retreat, the chances are you will never use it but the fact that it is there is comforting. In somewhere like China though where the road network is of a very poor condition outside urban areas, such ability will be used more often than not, which is why SUVs are in such demand there.

The only downside in offering all of this ability is that getting in and out gracefully is not as easy as with a conventional luxury saloon. There is an ‘Access Mode’ which lowers the suspension to facilitate ingress but nevertheless it is still quite a step up. That said if HM Queen Elizabeth II manages it with her Range Rover, then there is no reason why the rest of us should struggle.

My only other possible complaint is that the large wheels on our test car (22 inch) tend to hurt the low speed ride around town, which is surprising given this particular Range Rover’s likely urban domain. But this is the price you pay in having such attractive wheels fitted, which really help to bring out the design attributes of the car. Once up to speed though the air-suspension provides all the cushioning you could ever need, offering a magic carpet-like ride where the only body movement you feel is your own as you stretch out into your reclined, heated and massaged seat.

The Range Rover is the ultimate luxury vehicle that elevates itself above the competition by being the only such car that can whisk you to city meetings in the week and salmon fishing in the wilds of Scotland come the weekend. The fully-electric split tailgate even doubles as a handy perch for two when strapping on your pair of Hunter Wellington Boots.

Make no mistake, until the new Rolls-Royce or Bentley SUV’s arrive, this is the luxury car that is the jack of all trades and the master of all that it surveys.

© Nick Johnson Motoring Writer, Road Test Reviewer & Car Consultant

Price from: £51,250
Price as tested: £73,395
Available: Now

J. Lo apparently insured hers and Destiny’s Child even sung about theirs, but if ever there was a competition for ‘Rear of the Year’, Jaguar’s new F-Type Coupé is surely the most bootylicious of them all. Could this be the F-Type model to buy?

Jaguar new F-Type Coupé joins alongside last year’s Convertible model and is promised to be their most dynamic model yet. This makes choosing between them a daunting prospect. In favour of the Coupé is the £7,000 reduction in price when compared to the Convertible on a model for model basis and the added practicality that comes with offering a much bigger boot, meaning that unlike the Convertible, you won’t need to resort to vacuum-packing your luggage in order to go away for the weekend. The Convertible will undoubtedly blow away the cobwebs from behind your ears, but the Coupé with that perfectly proportioned posterior will make grown men weep every time they clap eyes on it.

The range starts with the £51,250 F-Type Coupé which uses a 3.0-litre V6 Supercharged engine (340 PS) which is connected to an excellent ZF 8-speed automatic gearbox (complete with steering wheel paddles) offering effortless performance. The 0-60 mph sprint is taken care of in a swift 5.1 seconds and there’s nothing entry-level about an electronically top speed limited to a 161 mph.

The car pictured here is the F-Type S Coupé, which starts from £60,250. In return for the £9,000 increase over the entry-level model, Jaguar undertake some electronic wizardry to the same engine to up its power to 380 PS which reduces the 0-60 mph time to 4.8 seconds and increases the top speed to 171 mph. The ‘S’ also offers more powerful brakes, sports suspension, a louder exhaust and a limited slip differential for those of us who like to wag our tails when driving. The flagship R Coupé offers a 5.0-litre V8 Supercharged engine (550 PS) which could corrupt even the most saintly of individuals such is its power to lure you over to the dark side. Hang on tight and the 0-60 mph dash is dispensed in a Jaguar’s whisker under 4.0 seconds whilst the top speed is raised to a prison-sentence-in-waiting 186 mph.

Our test car came festooned with over £13,000 worth of extras, giving rise to the suspicion that Jaguar has just completed a stint at the Porsche finishing school of expensive options. Options of note were the Performance Seats (£1,450), the Panoramic Roof (£1,250) and the 12 speaker, 770 watt Meridian Surround System (£1,700). Consider yourself suitably warned about treading lightly down the spec sheet when putting together your perfect F-Type.

The options on our F-Type were undoubtedly expensive but they were a textbook example in good taste and sophistication. The metallic paint (Dark Sapphire £700) and upgraded 20 inch wheels (Tornado Silver £1,250) emphasised those fine lines and the public verdict was unanimous wherever we went. We were let out of junctions, given the thumbs up multiple times and had people begging us for the keys. Try driving another £75,000 sports car, from I don’t know, Stuttgart perhaps and see if you are afforded the same courtesy.

The Coupé also benefits from the same designer touches as its Convertible cousin, including the recessed door handles that pop out to greet you when the car is unlocked, the Jaguar script a-la-E-Type which sits atop the retractable rear spoiler and the chromed Jaguar side vents.

On the note of that spoiler, it rises at speeds of over 70 mph and stays extended until you dip back below 40 mph and is a necessary evil to maintain high-speed stability. But please, never park your F-Type Coupé and manually extend it, otherwise I will personally have you tried for crimes against humanity in destroying that pristine teardrop shape.

Climb on board and again those £13,000 worth of options feel well spent with an airy cockpit thanks to the light Mineral leather and optional glass panoramic roof (£1,250) which bathes the interior in light. Fit and finish is top notch with perfect panel fit and arrow straight contrasting stitching. Gold accents to the starter button and steering wheel paddles, along with the tactile rotary heating and ventilation dials finish the job in making the interior feel suitably special.

The sports car setting is emphasised by the interior design which favours the driver and helpfully provides the passenger with a grab handle to hold on tight. The Performance Seats also completes the scene, adjusting in all manner of ways whilst providing optimum support no matter how hard you drive.

One of the advantage of the F-Type’s supercar like dimensions is that it allows plenty of space between driver and passenger, providing that perfect balance between cosy and intimate. It is not all perfect though, with some material choices feeling decidedly low-rent, the flimsy cup-holder storage tray for example would feel out of place in a Ford Focus, let alone a £75,000 Jaguar. The steering wheel paddles should also be solid metal as opposed to the rubberised plastic you get in here. Details like this Porsche will always get spot-on and Jaguar do need to raise their interior consistency to match those ruthlessly efficient Germans.

The centre touchscreen is used for all of your information and entertainment purposes and many complain that it is slow to operate, but I personally found that it worked well, connecting my phone with ease and allowing me to play DJ to my hearts content. The graphics do need to be upgraded though, but I hear that a new system will be offered shortly.

If you have read the reviews on the F-Type Convertible you will know that it is a proper sports car, so the promise of the Coupé being a notch above thanks to its stiffer construction is an enticing proposition. In truth you would be hard pressed to tell the difference though in day to day driving. There is a subtle difference with the Coupé seemingly offering a better connection with the road which gives you the confidence to push it that little bit harder. Turn-in to corners seems more planted when compared to the Roadster too. But the overwhelming character of F-Type is the engine. This particular iteration of the Supercharged V6 is a masterpiece, offering a creamy power delivery with a noise that like a fine wine assaults the senses, with undertones of classic E-Type straight six, a hint of muffled supercharger whine, finished off with a delightful 21-gun salute from the canon sized exhausts at the rear. As theatre goes it could put on its own show in the West End!

The steering is quick and responsive and thanks to the relatively light aluminium construction, blesses it with a nose that is always eager to attack the next bend. Never mind Strictly, this is your perfect dance partner and the interaction between steering and throttle means you quickly fall into a nice flow as you glide from bend to bend. Jaguar offer three driving modes to suit your mood: Normal, Dynamic and Winter. Normal is the F-Type’s default setting, switching to Dynamic mode turns the dashboard dials the same colour as the devil sitting on your shoulder, stiffens the suspension, turns the exhaust note up to 11 and quickens the throttle response. Winter mode is for difficult driving conditions and restricts the F-Type’s power delivery to improve traction.

The Coupé is not all show and go though, as when it comes to slow, the brakes are superb in feel and particularly resistant to fade too allowing you to use their full brute force time and time again. The 8-speed automatic gearbox is f-for-fabulous and even for me, who prefers his sports cars of the manual variety, it was hard to not be persuaded by its swift execution. Gear changes are lightening fast and in keeping with the theatre, the throttle is blipped every time you down-shift resulting in more artillery fire from the exhaust. It can function as a manual too holding on to the gear for as long as you dare in Sport Dynamic mode, even bouncing off the rev limiter if you want to play real hooligan.

Do not think of the F-Type Coupé as simply a modern version of the XK model, this is a proper sports car and the ride is firmer than you first may imagine. For some traditional Jaguar customers it may be too much, but many will find it an acceptable trade off in return for the exemplary body control and superb handling.

Unless you really want to feel the wind in your hair, this is the F-type to buy. It is cheaper than the Convertible, offers more luggage space and looks even better. It is not cheap, but looks good value when measured against an Aston Martin Vantage which is more expensive and an older car. When measured against a Porsche Cayman, on first sight it may seem expensive, but the F-Type remember offers the comparative performance of the 911 not the Cayman.

The V6 S model tested here is undoubtedly the sweet spot of the range and the model we recommend. As the current marketing slogan says “It’s good to be bad” and the F-Type certainly corrupts with its combination of addictive power and laugh out loud noise. It has a character to make every journey an event and offers all of this in a body that oozes desirability. It is not only the best driver’s car that Jaguar currently makes, it is one of the best driver’s car currently on sale today. Never mind bad, it is superb.

© Nick Johnson Motoring Writer, Road Test Reviewer & Car Consultant.

Price from: £215,250
Price as tested: £263,850
Available: Now

Being offered a drive in McLaren’s latest supercar, is a big tick in the life box. At this point I would love to say that it all took place under crystal blue skies, but you cannot have it all, Or can you? After driving McLaren’s new 650S, I think it is entirely possible and yes the roof stayed down regardless of the fifty shades of grey above:

In line with McLaren’s continual development philosophy, the 650S is the replacement for the blandly titled MP4-12C, a name that never exactly rolled off the tongue! The 650S is currently McLaren’s entry-level supercar, until the new 570S arrives later this year, but study the above and you will see there is nothing ‘entry’ about its price nor its performance: 0-60 mph in under three seconds and if you keep your foot down in another five seconds you will be doing 124 mph. Never mind supercar, this is a hyper-car. Top speed is pegged at a dizzy 204 mph. The ‘650’ title denotes the engine’s power output when measured in German ‘PS’ form, or 641 BHP in old money. What really matters though is that this is more power than you get with Ferrari’s 458 even when in savage-stallion Speciale spec.

The 650S like its predecessor is available in coupe or convertible (Spider) form and is powered by a 3.8 litre twin-turbo V8 all encased in a carbon-fibre tub making it both light on its feet (1370 Kg without fluids) and incredibly stiff.

McLaren will say that the swift replacement of the 12C is due to a number of factors, but in truth the old car although well received, was often criticised for being a touch bland. By contrast, when McLaren launched the £1 million flagship P1, it arrived to near adulation with its combination of space-age looks and its re-writing of the performance rule book. McLaren wisely decided to sprinkle some of this P1 magic over its entry supercar, tweaking the design and upgrading its performance features to come up with the more passionate 650S you see here. Make no mistake this is not merely a cosmetic overhaul, a quarter of the components are new, carbon ceramic brakes are now standard, the engine although never wanting for power previously, was ordered to bulk up and the exhaust has been tuned to make the 650S sound like the fire that it has in its belly.

Our test model was finished in the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it Mantis Green (special paint upgrade £1,820) with an interior lavished in Carbon-fibre and Alcantara. The Spider offers a retractable folding roof that goes from enclosed to open-air in 15 seconds. McLaren also promise that the Spider offers no dynamic penalty when compared with the Coupe.

Walk up to the car and the P1’s influence is obvious immediately, with a new frontal treatment that looks like it has been lifted straight off big brother, with the same striking all-LED headlight design that is meant to evoke the swoosh of McLaren’s logo. See one of these streaking up behind you and you won’t be able to tell whether it is the £1 million flagship or the 650S bearing down on you, either way, you’ll be moving out of the way.

The profile and rear of the car remain unchanged from the 12C which has drawn criticism from some quarters, as it can make the 650S appear like it is two different cars joined together. I tend to agree as the design is not as cohesive as it is on the P1.

Getting into the McLaren is always an event thanks to the dihedral doors and you sit Lewis Hamilton low in the fixed-back carbon fibre race seats (an option at £5,120) which are a gift from the gods in being wonderfully supportive and yet surprisingly comfortable. You come to appreciate the minimalist style of the interior too with its lashings of Alcantara and Carbon-fibre. Straight ahead you have a steering wheel that is thankfully free from distracting buttons and it even brings a touch of F1 magic by being tailored to the same requirements that Lewis demands on his weekend Company Car. It offers a bespoke feel with a welcome absence of parts-bin specials, unlike Ferrari who tend to beg, steal and borrow off Fiat.

Press the Start button and the acoustic fireworks are muted, as unlike a Ferrari and a Lamborghini, the McLaren doesn’t feel the need to advertise your impending departure. Push the gearbox into Drive and the McLaren responds like any normal car. The long throttle travel allows for measured inputs and a great view ahead means you can place the car exactly where you want. Combine this with an exceptional ride quality and a 7-speed gearbox that works perfectly as an automatic and you have a supercar that grandma could drive down to the shops, providing that she could master getting in and out with a degree of dignity.

But of course there comes a time when you can resist no longer, so as the road opens up you flick down a couple of gears and push pedal closer to metal. What happens next is to feel like you have been thrown down the road with no real recognition of how you arrived there. With a Ferrari 458, the engine shrieks and howls angrily behind you, which adds to the sensation of speed and acceleration. The McLaren by comparison, just engages warp factor and rockets you down the road. It makes for an intense experience as your brain simply has difficulty in catching up and computing what the hell has just happened. I have never driven a car where the increasing speed numbers flash up before me quicker than I count them in my head. Thankfully the carbon-ceramic brakes scrub off excess speed with ease, offering a firm pedal feel full of feedback. There is also an Airbrake at the rear that swings into action when you really need to drop the anchor.

All of this is not to say that the 650S is without drama, there is still the supercar soundtrack to accompany your rapid progress, but the McLaren just gets on with the job of piling on the speed. The Ferrari wants the whole world and his wife to know how quickly you are travelling.

Handling-wise, given that the roads were quite damp, together with the fact that I had just signed a disclaimer to say that if I damaged it, I’d be paying, I can only report that the 650S reacts instinctively to steering inputs. Like a Spitfire pilot, it feels like you wear a 650S as opposed to just simply sitting in it. It can be tuned to angel or devil, with different modes for the chassis and powertrain (Normal/Sport/Track). Needless to say given that disclaimer form, I wisely left the 650S in its default ‘Normal’ setting.

To properly explore the 650S you really need a racetrack as the public road will only ever allow you to scratch at the surface of its abilities. Tellingly when I returned to my McLaren pit crew, ok, the PR team, I explained that I never got chance to use full-throttle on my drive, their response was: “I should bloody-well hope not on the road”.

With the 650S you really can have the supercar all. It offers the looks, gives you a track-day beast or commuting beauty and makes every journey an event. Sadly the only thing it cannot provide are the funds necessary to buy one.

© Nick Johnson Motoring Writer, Road Test Reviewer & Car Consultant