Who Would Buy Petrol?
by David Finlay (08 Jan 07)

The most significant thing about this particular Range Rover is its engine. Ford's decision to add two cylinders to its existing 2.7-litre V6 turbo diesel means that, for the first time in many years, all Range Rovers now have V8 engines, and this particular one must surely be the pick of the bunch.

The 2.7 V6 was a coproduction involving both Ford and PSA Peugeot Citroen. Its 3.6 V8 derivative will probably be seen only in Ford and Premier Automotive Group vehicles, since there are no Peugeots or Citroens suitable for it. Extending it by one-third might not seem to be a major task ("just throw another couple of cylinders into this one, Joe") but there was a lot to it, not least because the angle between the cylinders on either side of the vee can't be the same in a V8 as it is in a V6.

So there was a lot of re-engineering involved, but it's all worked out splendidly. The 2.7 V6 is a very fine unit, but for a car the size of the Range Rover the 3.6 V8 is more appropriate. It produces 275bhp - well up on 200bhp or so of the V6 - along with 472lb/ft of torque, and all this is enough to push the car from 0-62mph in 9.2 seconds and on to a top speed of 124mph.

If those performance figures seem familiar, you're probably thinking about the 4.4-litre V8 petrol-engined Range Rover, which had a distinct advantage over the old diesel. Now the two cars have the same top speed, and although the TDV8 accelerates a little more slowly, the disadvantage - 0.5 seconds - is hardly worth bothering about.

Inevitably, the TDV8 is also much more economical (nearly 25% better on the combined cycle), and it sneaks under 300g/km of CO2 emissions. No other Range Rover comes close to this. Furthermore, although there's normally a premium for diesel cars over their petrol equivalents, the TDV8 is around £1000 cheaper than the 4.4 V8.

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