Should a 2024 Range Rover SV Be Afraid of BMW's X7, Caddy's Escalade, or Lexus' LX?

Right now, if you want to play with something rough and tough on the North American market, the week's automotive novelties have been abundant on the wild side of the crossover, SUV, and truck equation. For example, the 2024 Ineos Grenadier finally has an MSRP quotation for the US fans – and this Defender lookalike kicks off at over $71,500.

Truck fans can also rock a (Baja) yellow paintjob and some contrasting black accents with their equally expensive 2023 Ram 1500 Rebel Havoc Edition. Still, more importantly, last week's 2024 Ford Ranger and Ranger Raptor siblings have a measured response from Toyota in the form of the all-new fourth-generation 2024 Tacoma mid-size pickup truck, which is not only a TRD Pro but also a Trailhunter from now on.

Alas, we are not here to discuss them or any of this past week's novelties like the upgraded Lexus LC series, the European VW Polo GTI Edition 25, or the high MSRPs of the 2024 Nissan GT-R, among others. We will not even be talking about that 'hold my beer' moment triggered by the revelation that Rimac's Nevera EV hypercar just broke 23 world performance car records – all in a single day.

You read that right. And among them is also the notorious 0-400-0 kph (0-249-0 mph) acceleration and braking test, by the way, which now has a new benchmark of fewer than 30 seconds! Instead, we should be talking about how Land Rover manages to make the Range Rover flagship SUV so successful, even though there are better packages if you take it down to a logical level. For example, the L460 fifth generation is not that different (visually) from its predecessor, yet it has quickly become a significant darling of the North American aftermarket realm.

It is also not that reliable, as per British tradition. Oh, and not to mention the prices, which are not below the $100k threshold anymore. In fact, they just surged a little because Land Rover implemented the 2024 model year changes, and with the updates came along higher MSRPs (starting from $107,400) to warrant access to the new infotainment system and a couple of fresh powertrains. The first one is an upgraded P550e plug-in hybrid which brings to the table no less than 542 horsepower, and up to 51 miles (82 km) of zero-emissions range. That is not bad, right?

But wait, as there is more. For starters, the BMW-borrowed V8 engine is now equipped with an MHEV system to pose into a more sustainable apparition, even though it has the same amount of ponies as before. If you want a larger stable of horsepower, no worries; there is a new solution with the 606-horsepower 2024 Range Rover SV P615 that can be had with standard or a longer wheelbase from $209k and $234k, respectively. That is quite lovely progress, don't you think?

Alas, it is sorely needed as the 2024 Range Rover series faces an uphill battle against some of its most ardent competitors in the North American market. And we selected a trio of foes – one for each region: BMW's X7 as an Old Continent representative (although it's made in US and Asia!), the local Cadillac Escalade full-size luxury SUV hero (or hip-hop villain, depending on your POV), as well as the decidedly Japanese (made at the Yoshiwara in Toyota, Aichi prefecture) Lexus LX.

All of them have advantages and disadvantages, but at least at first sight, they seem to be the potentially perfect measured responses to the British luxury 4x4. Starting with the BMW X7, the Bavarian brand's representative is also the most controversial of the bunch after the 2023 model year facelift (they like to call it LCI – Life Cycle Impulse) aligned the behemoth with other outrageous models like the electric iX, the all-new BMW 7 Series and i7, or the first-ever crazy ugly BMW XM.

Regarding pricing, BMW has the advantage of a much lower starting MSRP – in the US, the 2024 X7 kicks off at $81,900. Sure, we are more interested in pairing the V8s together, but the X7 M60i still has only 523 horsepower and costs $108,700. As such, it can only duke it out with the Range Rover SE P530, which kicks off at $130,400. So, no advantage for BMW, at least for now. The Range Rover SV, meanwhile, is in a new league with the 631-hp 2024 Alpina XB7, but this time, the Bavarians win by a good length - $149,400 to $209k is a long way to go, indeed!

So, the Range Rover SV definitely loses a point when brawling with the X7 series. Next up, the Americans and their Caddy Escalade. This one is even easier. So, Cadillac posts a lower starting MSRP of $81,190 with the DFC (destination freight charge) or $84,190 for the Escalade ESV and the 6.2-liter V8 with 420 hp trumps the base Range Rover SE with 395 ponies and MHEV. Moving higher up the echelon, the Escalade-V kicks off as low as $149,695, which is marginally more expensive than an Alpina XB7 but also a lot more potent with a 682-horsepower Blackwing 6.2-liter supercharged V8 under the hood.

Thus, another point goes to the competition. Last but not least comes the Lexus LX 600 – aka the posher J300 Toyota Land Cruiser. It starts from $92,160 and cannot do much to battle the Range Rover V8s because it is confined to a 409-hp twin-turbo V6 for the time being. It does try to reach out to posh crowds with the $132,250 Ultra Luxury trim, but for sure, that humongous chrome grille is not for everyone! So, the end result is simple: Range Rover has one point, and the competition wins by two!