Going the distance

The new Range Rover Fifty limited edition celebrates half a century of iconic SUV design and engineering that hasn’t lost sight of its roots

- VARUN GODINHO

SUVs, in their original guise and design, were rugged go-anywhere utilitarian machines. Challenging the stereotype was the Range Rover that broke cover in 1970.

A two-door SUV, it swapped sharp edges for curves and right-angles for sweeping lines. Even the Louvre Museum in Paris called it an “exemplary work of industrial design” while exhibiting it in the museum. It became the first vehicle ever to be displayed inside the institution.