The Range Rover Electric's real test isn't its 542 hp, it's silence
With 542 hp, 333 miles and 800 volts on paper, the specs are table stakes. What's left is whether quiet refinement justifies V8 money for a Range Rover without the engine.
Photo: Jaguar Land Rover / sala de prensa (uso editorial)
Can a Range Rover still feel like a Range Rover when the thing under the hood is gone? That's the only question that matters about the first electric one, and no spec sheet answers it.
The facts first. Autoweek reports that the Range Rover Electric has two motors, 542 hp, 627 lb-ft, a 118.5 kWh battery on an 800-volt system and up to 333 miles of EPA range. It does 0-60 mph in as little as 4.3 seconds. Orders opened September 2, 2026, and the SE lists at $138,000, or $140,450 with destination, according to The Weekly Driver.
The spec sheet is table stakes, and Range Rover knows it
Everything here is impressive, and none of it is the pitch. The car looks almost identical to the combustion version. MotorTrend says only the aero wheels and the sealed grille give it away. Range Rover's own mantra, as quoted by Focus, is "Range Rover first and Electric second." We think that's the smartest decision in the whole program. Other makers have staged their electric SUVs as loud technology statements. Range Rover's buyers, by long habit, want to be recognized as Range Rover buyers.
The headline numbers are mostly there to prove nothing was lost. 542 hp matches what Land Rover calls "V8 levels of power." The 800-volt system with "split charging" can use ordinary 400-volt fast chargers. A NACS port opens the Tesla Supercharger network. Those are the entry fees for a roughly $140,000 EV in 2026, not reasons to buy one.
The real selling point is refinement, which is hard to put on a spreadsheet
The single most interesting claim is about noise. Focus says Range Rover puts the noise level seven decibels below the V8 model. If independent testing confirms that, it matters more than the 0-60 time. Silence is the one thing an engine could never give a Range Rover, and a $140,000 SUV is arguably the best place to sell it.
Off-road, the company claims a 45-degree climb and 35 inches of wading, the same as the gas models. The EV argument is plausible too: MotorTrend notes that precise power delivery and one-pedal driving make EVs great for careful off-roading. Still, these are manufacturer claims. Owners will tell us how they hold up.
There are real compromises, and we shouldn't gloss over them. Towing drops to 5,511 lb, against 7,716 lb for the gas P400 and P530, per The Weekly Driver. For horse and boat owners, that's a real cost. There's also no seven-seat version, and Focus reports there's no frunk.
$138,000 is the bet: same price as the V8
Here's what we find most revealing. On every trim that offers both, the electric costs the same as the V8, and the entry SE costs $24,700 more than the inline-six SE. That reads as a deliberate message: you aren't paying a premium for tech, you're choosing a powertrain. It's also a gamble that buyers won't see it as a $24,700 surcharge over the cheapest SE.
Context cuts both ways. Autoweek notes it's pricier than just about everything in the class of large electric crossovers, with the Cadillac Escalade IQ around $130,000 and the Lucid Gravity starting near $80,000. And The Weekly Driver points out that the Lucid Gravity Grand Touring is rated at 450 miles, well above 333. Against Bentley and Rolls-Royce, though, TopSpeed says the Range Rover undercuts both on price and beats both on range. That's the more flattering comparison, and probably the more honest one for this buyer.
One caution on range. The Weekly Driver found no EPA listing yet and noted the configurator shows 341 miles, so treat 333 as the company's number for now. The release that opened orders doesn't say when US deliveries start either.
Our verdict
Don't buy this because of the 4.3 seconds. If you already own a Range Rover and your driving is mostly commuting, school runs and the occasional trail, the quiet is the argument, so wait for independent range and noise tests. If you tow heavy or need a third row, the gas models remain the better tools.
For the industry, the lesson is bigger. Range Rover is betting that luxury is a feeling, not a powertrain. According to Focus, the company says 77,000 people worldwide have registered interest, about 70 percent of them from other brands. If that holds once the checks are written, the engine was never the luxury.
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