Subscription Notification
We have noticed that there is an issue with your subscription billing details. Please update your billing details here
Please update your billing information
The subscription details associated with this account need to be updated. Please update your billing details here to continue enjoying your subscription.
Your subscription will end shortly
Please update your billing details here to continue enjoying your access to the most informative and considered journalism in the UK.
MOTORING

The best luxury SUVs

David Green assesses the big beasts of the road

Mercedes-Benz G-Class
Mercedes-Benz G-Class
DAIMLER AG
The Times

Once the most popular type of car was a saloon, now the SUV is ubiquitous. And the luxury SUV market is a perennial growth sector with the model often being a brand’s bestseller, crucial to profitably and survival. We bring you the cream of the crop.

Mercedes G-Class

Still commonly referred to as the “G-Wagon”, this darling of the Hollywood set has an old-school box-like look that has barely changed since the Shah of Iran, then a shareholder of Mercedes, persuaded the company to create a military 4×4 in the 1970s. Inside and underneath it is 21st-century ready. An indestructible build feel and German engineering make it a potent mix. The “G” may be constantly evolving — the only remaining part carried over from the original is the rear wheel cover — but it retains all of the elements that make this vehicle so special, including doors that shut with a reassuring metallic thud and central locking that engages like a bolt-action rifle.

The old-school design gives it a modern real-world advantage over some of its rivals with a bright glass greenhouse and thin pillars giving easy sight lines that make placing and parking the car easy. This is a serious 4×4 SUV capable of taking on any terrain masquerading as an S-Class luxury executive express on the inside. A fully electric model pencilled for 2024 will keep this modern classic in production for decades to come.

Seats 5
Loadspace (with seats folded) 667 (1,941) litres
Price from £131,335
Website mercedes-benz.co.uk

Ferrari Purosangue profile
Ferrari Purosangue profile
FERRARI

Ferrari Purosangue

The Italian car maker finally entered the SUV market in 2023. And it was some entrance. . . as if anyone expected anything else. The elegant floating body design is a tale of two cars. An attractive upper body with a coupé look that has rear “welcome doors” which have the effect of reducing the car’s wheelbase. These open up to a cockpit that holds four adults in more comfort and luxury than the brand has offered in the past. Underneath this body is the technical underside created by the finest brains in Maranello. It delivers clever aerodynamics and trick suspension to allow the chassis to seemingly defy the laws of physics and make this SUV handle as close as possible to its supercar stablemates.

Advertisement

Marque firsts abound — the first four-door Ferrari, the first with four independent electrically adjustable, heated seats and the first with 3D stereo sound, courtesy of the first collaboration with Burmester. However, the main recipe is still straight from the Italian old school — place a monumental V12 engine in the car’s beating heart and let it sing and stir. On a practical level, it may not win every battle with rival luxury SUVs in areas such as loadspace, economy or off-road aptitude. Yet on pure emotion, it enters the market and immediately sets the benchmark.

Seats 4
Loadspace 473 litres
Price from £313,000
Website ferrari.com

Bentley Bentayga
Bentley Bentayga
BENTLEY

Bentley Bentayga

Business is booming for Bentley and the Bentayga is leading the sale sheets. The creator of probably the finest interiors in the market transfers this skill well to the big SUV. Quilted leather and exquisite wooden veneers make this cabin a glorious place to inhabit. There are 22 separate motors in the driver’s seat alone, so an ideal sitting position should be easy to obtain. That is before you get to the extended wheelbase version which is now available. It takes the rear luxury seating to a class of its own and up to and perhaps beyond that of first-class air travel.

It comes with a range of engines. The enormously powerful W12 is no longer available in UK or Europe, so you’ll have to make do with a twin-turbo V8 if performance is your thing. Otherwise, the V6 3 Litre hybrid model is there for the frugal with up to 81mpg if you plug in regularly and drive with a light right foot. If the standard Bentayga is not quite luxurious enough, you can pop along to the bespoke Mulliner division. Priding itself in the ultimate in craftsmanship and coachbuilding, it can indulge your every wish.

Seats 4 to 7
Loadspace (with seats folded) 484 (1,774) litres
Price from £155,675
Website bentleymotors.com

Rolls-Royce Cullinan
Rolls-Royce Cullinan
ROLLS-ROYCE

Rolls-Royce Cullinan

The most famous of the luxury car brands goes about its SUV in a way only Rolls-Royce can. A huge, hand-built, magisterial vehicle that feels as if it could drive through a wall intact, while still wafting along with effortless power and in near silence. The Rolls-Royce of SUVs is everything you’d expect from a car adorned with the Spirit of Ecstasy, with a price tag to match. It was the first Rolls-Royce to have a touchscreen, but listing any “standard” equipment is a futile affair as this car, as with all current Rolls-Royce vehicles, is all about the bespoke and individuality. And the list of options is endless. You can opt for two main seats in the rear, swapping the central seat for a drinks cabinet, with a whisky decanter and refrigerated champagne chiller. The cocktail bar or private members’ club on wheels cliché can be further exaggerated with a rear-mounted “Viewing Suite”. At the touch of a button, two seats emerge from the rear deck when the tailgate is open. Angled around a small table it is the perfect place to drink in the scenery.

Seats 5
Loadspace (with seats folded) 600 (1,886) litres
Price from £303,000
Website rolls-roycemotorcars.com

Land Rover Range Rover
Land Rover Range Rover
RANGE ROVER

Land Rover Range Rover

The original and still the best? The car that created the luxury SUV market has been honing its product for over five decades and is still, for many, the “go-to” sports utility vehicle. It had the market to itself for years but has had to raise its game recently to fight off the challengers to its position. It has risen to the occasion and the latest model has drastically increased the luxe quotient with thousands of options available to personalise your own Range Rover. It had to get in on the bespoke game and now offers luxury and exotic materials such as ceramic controls. The SV Signature Suite in the rear is an option that we see in similar guise with the other luxury competitors, but in the Range Rover it transforms the rear cabin into a two-seater with a full-length veneer-topped console that holds a fridge and an electronically deployable Club Table. Alternatively, if you want to dangle your feet in the air, Range Rover’s signature split tailgate is often the favourite seat in the vehicle.

Advertisement

It is still the one by which all others are judged.

Seats 4 to 7
Loadspace (with seats folded) 818 (1,841) litres
Price from £103,720
Website landrover.co.uk