Bears Crusin’ in Style: Land Rover / Range Rover

Seen as one of the most luxurious and elegant brands in the automotive world, Land Rover / Range Rover is a nameplate that has transported everyone from the British Royal Family to soldiers in the Falklands, the Middle East and anyplace that requires a well-built ‘land rover’ vehicle.

Ever since Bill and Hillary Clinton have been in the world headlines, the Land Rover nameplate has been making its mark throughout the world as a status symbol of style and grace … and as a commanding presence on any terrain. 

People who drive Land Rovers, those who are often known as hoity-toity, high-falutin’ or bougie, will tell you that these vehicles indeed make the drive feel as though they ‘command’ the road. While the drive is smooth, it is not necessarily a rolling awards ceremony of grace and continuity, as many American-made luxury brands offer.

Rather, it is firm and direct, and that is what gives it its elegance. These days, that commanding presence also involves German engineering and other automotive brilliance from around the world.  The experience is, well, an experience.

For example, a top-tier Range Rover has an available 607-horsepower V8 turbo (along with a 22-speaker audio system) that is truly unnecessary, yet so is spending more than $100,000 US on a vehicle IMHO. 

While the brand is popular with those with assets, it is also popular with the under-40 crowd, yet few are actually buying new.  

They are scouring the used-car markets with a discerning eye and investing in Land Rovers of yesteryear as though they are works of art; in fact, in 1971, a ¼ scale model of the original Range Rover was on display at the Louvre in Paris because it was seen as a masterpiece of industrial design. 

Having driven several Land Rovers (technically, the nameplate is Land Rover while a subset of vehicles is called Range Rover), I can tell you that they can be intimidating – while the drive is indeed luxuriating. These Rovers are not meant for having one hand on the steering wheel and the other on a cup of diet soda or a cheeseburger. You will need to pay attention – but you will enjoy every minute of what is truly a Royal British experience. 

Buying new, you can get the 2026 Range Rover Evoque or the Land Rover Discovery Sport starting at just over $50K US on the cheap end. Both of these models are considered Compact SUVs but there is considerable interior room; as always, get inside first before you buy or rent.

Should you have a spare quarter-million dollars, the Range Rover P615 SV Black Long-Wheelbase (with a BMW-sourced twin-turbo V8) can be special-ordered and delivered to you anywhere in the world. If you have that kind of disposable income, my bosses Richard and Robin have a business proposition that can turn that P615 into a legitimate tax write-off, just let me know.  

In the event that you can barely scrape together enough for a new or used Land Rover, know that the engineering and design comes from far and wide and from all corners of the globe. Thusly, you are getting a true masterpiece of industrial design. 

You can also try a car hire for the special Bear Road trip, but you will need to contact a leasing agency that has Land Rovers in its fleet.  And you may have to pass a background and / or credit check (I really don’t know).

Is there a luxury brand or car you would like me to check out? Let me know.  As men-of-size, we often feel like we have to take what we can get, never thinking that perhaps we too can have luxury and style in a size that fits. And fits well.

Trust me, there is no longer any need for us to feel like second-class gays.  

It’s a big wide world out there.  It’s about time we fit into it.

For more info on Cars & Trucks for bears – head to our Motoring Section Here.