All-new Range Rover GT is 'most car-like' ever

Fifth member of the Range Rover family makes good on Land Rover's long-held Grand Tourer ambitions

By PH Staff / Wednesday, 22 July 2026 / Loading comments

It’s been nearly ten years since the Velar was introduced as the fourth plinth of the Range Rover lineup, bridging the gap between the Evoque and the Range Rover Sport with precisely the kind of stylish crossover SUV that mainstream buyers appeared to crave. By dint of its low roofline and swept-back attitude - and the fact that the model shared its D7a underpinnings with the Jaguar XF - there was much referencing at the time of the unrealised 'Road Rover', a ’50s-era effort to smoosh Land Rover 4x4 usability and saloon (or more appropriately, station wagon) drivability together into a single, crowd-pleasing product.

So while the fifth member of the family, the newly revealed Range Rover GT, might aspire to the kind of ‘white space’ it identified when first unveiling the Evoque, the underlying concept of a car that combines ‘peerless long-haul comfort, effortless performance and signature Range Rover breadth of capability’ is not a new one internally. Or indeed externally: Lamborghini, buoyed by the Urus’s reception, has often threatened to launch a car with similar cross-segment appeal. More broadly, there are a veritable raft of (mostly German) SUVs that cleave off some headroom in the pursuit of a more coupe-like profile.

But those are obvious compromises. In contrast, the Range Rover GT is based on a new EMA (Electric Modular Architecture) platform said to be distinct from the one used by the Jaguar Type 01 - even if it does borrow some of the same ideas regarding proportions and glasshouse height. As the name suggests - and unlike the older MLA-Flex configuration used by both the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport - this was designed from the ground-up specifically for EVs, and the GT will initially be offered as a Battery Electric Vehicle exclusively. Though (unlike the JEA), Land Rover has already conceded that it retains the ‘flexibility’ to create a petrol-electric hybrid later in the lifecycle.

Moreover, there is a good reason why Land Rover has opted to unveil the GT with a longer look at the interior. Rather than carrying over an existing Range Rover layout, the new model previews an entirely new cabin, one meant to convey a ‘warm, reductive space, inspired by contemporary interior design’. And though you may not consider the emphasis on horizontal lines or the introduction of a slimline driver display as particularly novel, it is hard to take immediate issue with a four-seat layout that’s meant to be a ‘sanctuary of calm’. Frankly, the absence of a giant, dashboard-spanning screen feels like a conspicuous win for the GT’s less-is-more ambience.

Less so perhaps the absence of a single physical button on the centre console - though Land Rover’s current lineup is already a long way down that road (possibly too far, given the dictates of incoming legislation) - and not everyone is going to embrace the Starship Galactica-style column shifter nor the Art Deco-ish forms that some elements invoke. But we’re inclined to like the ‘woven textile’ featured on the dash, as well as the far-reaching effort to harmonise around a common theme and reduce clutter. In the rear, the vast panoramic roof is clearly intended to provide the additional headroom lost to the plunging roofline, and the GT will certainly get Range Rover levels of legroom.

Underneath, though its maker does not delve into the technical specification, you can expect Range Rover levels of terrain-defeating effortlessness, most likely of the sort we recently experienced in the Sport Electric. “The Range Rover GT will redefine the grand-touring segment with the ability to deliver beautiful and engaging GT poise, proportions and long-distance refinement while offering capabilities no conventional GT can match,” said Range Rover MD, Martin Limpert.

“We have spent the last few years working obsessively on the fundamentals of the GT formula, reinterpreted in a sophisticated, uniquely Range Rover way,” he added. “The result is the most car-like, yet unmistakably capable, Range Rover ever created, now possible on our electrified EMA architecture – complementing our existing powertrain portfolio to deliver a complete set of options for every customer need. Its blend of effortless EV performance, first-class long-haul refinement and all-terrain capability is pure Range Rover; while its calming interior previews our vision of a modern grand tourer.”

If that all sounds like your cup of tea, expect more news to follow later this year. So far as EVs are concerned, Land Rover’s timeframes have become somewhat fluid in recent years - the Range Rover Electric’s programme having suffered significant delays - though you’d imagine with that car’s launch imminent, and Halewood already nominated as the manufacturing facility, the roll-out of new electrified product will now gather pace. At any rate, the GT prototypes are already said to be at the ‘final on-road testing’ phase. You’ll know them from the ‘flowing gold pattern’ invoked in the camouflage, if you happen upon one. And, of course, the fact that this is a Range Rover like no other.