The Range Rover Gets a Black Paint Bath

Unveiled at Goodwood, the new Range Rover Sport SV Black Edition takes monochrome aesthetics to the extreme.

Don’t look for color on this Range Rover. A black body, black wheels, black badges, a black interior… this high-performance SUV seems, according to its designers, to have been literally dipped in a pool of shiny black paint. The result is spectacular, but to say it is successful is a step we will not take.

Technically, the model impresses. Under the hood, there is a 4.4 liters V8 mild-hybrid twin-turbo developing 635 hp and 750 Nm. The 0 to 100 km/h sprint is completed in 3.6 seconds, reaching a top speed of 290 km/h. All this is accompanied by a 6D Dynamics active suspension, “Body and Soul” sensory-stimulating seats, and omnipresent luxury, from Ebony Windsor leather to black lacquered wood inserts.

Offered from €195,100, the SV Black targets a discerning, wealthy clientele… sensitive to style effects. More than ever, this model embodies an underlying trend in the high-end market: the cult of “full black.”

Range gets lost in a trend

But this obsession with total black eventually borders on caricature. In trying to transform every luxury SUV into a stealth tank, one ends up losing the plot. Behind this aggressive and dark hue, one can sense a well-off family man trying to pass for a bad boy out of an 80s gangsta rap video… or a supporting character in a heavy-handed thriller. All within a visual register that mixes luxury, intimidation, and ostentation, teetering on the edge of pastiche.

Black, a symbol of elegance and mystery, becomes here the uniform of the Expendable. And it does not come without constraints: ultra-dirty bodywork, scratches visible to the naked eye, meticulous maintenance, and wheels constantly threatened by curb edges. Not to mention a rapid depreciation for a model aimed at a limited clientele.

The Range Rover Sport SV Black is undoubtedly a beautiful object, highly desirable. But in its quest to impress, it flirts with kitsch. A spectacular, temperamental toy that is a bit theatrical.

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