OPINION: How I Would Order My Range Rover Evoque
One of our writers reaches for the stratosphere, spec’ing out the Range Rover of his dreams.
Playing around on manufacturer’s car configurators is a great way to kill time. A fun feature, included with some, is the ability to share your builds with your friends and compare the options you’ve selected (or omitted).
That’s exactly what I’ve done with this Range Rover Evoque build, except instead of sharing it with a few close friends, I’ve opted to share it with you.
To start, a little background. I’m a musician, a drummer, to be precise. This means I’ve always been attracted to station wagons, hatchbacks, and yes, even the occasional minivan. I like interesting cars that can satisfy my inner car guy, while still being able to haul a set of drums across town. I’m not an SUV guy, but I do have a slight Evoque fetish. It’s kind of like a buff, sophisticated, grown-up Mini Cooper.
This is my dream Evoque build.
With that said, I opted for the two-door, which is more money and less useful. But, again, I’m a musician, so terrible financial decisions come to me as easily as melodies and rhythm. Since I’m a drummer, I only need two doors anyways, because drummers don’t have to worry about friends or groupies.
Another defining factor of musicians is a love for all things British. What’s more British than dark green paint over tan leather? In Land Rover parlance, that’s “Aintree Green Metallic over Espresso/Almond leather.” Sold.
Us musicians also tend to be flashy and extroverted, so I opted for 20″ wheels in sparkle silver finish. The standard wheels looked just a bit too uninspired for my tastes. They did look a bit more off-road ready, which I’m usually in favor of on SUVs, but on the Evoque? Come on, we’re not fooling anybody. Bring on the 20s!
I also opted for a black contrasting roof panel, which sets the green exterior off nicely, while blending in well with the tinted roof glass. It’s all about visual balance – making a statement, without standing out too much.
It’s the vehicular equivalent of a perfectly-coiffed rockstar in a leather jacket and faded jeans. It is also the ideal Range Rover for grabbing In-N-Out and Starbucks in between studio takes at Sunset Sound.
The rest of the options I chose are pretty sensible. For $1,300, the InControl Touch Pro Tech Package includes a ten-speaker stereo with a subwoofer. Yeah, big surprise, the musician chose the big-money stereo option. Gotta listen to those studio mixes somewhere, right?
In addition, the Driver Assistance Package seems like quite a bargain for $1,000. Being used to smaller cars with great visibility, I’m sure the blind spot monitoring and reverse traffic detection would come in handy. That sexy roofline comes at the expense of rearward visibility, and I’m not ashamed to take advantage of the latest tech to keep myself out of trouble.
When it’s not hauling me around Los Angeles for the session work in my dreams, my Evoque would be shuttling me and my drums around my hometown of Akron, Ohio (home of Devo and The Black Keys!). Naturally, the $1,400 Cold Climate Convenience Package is a must-have. Once you’ve had a heated steering wheel, there simply is no going back – unless you’re fortunate enough to live on the West coast all the time.
So, that’s my dream Evoque build. Here’s hoping that session work picks up, my band gets signed to a major label, or I listen to my parents and finally get a real job. Until then, I’ll be playing around on the configurator, dreaming of a reasonable facsimile of the rock-n-roll lifestyle. A lifestyle that lets me enjoy such luxuries as a reasonably-priced luxury SUV, naturally.
