Land Rover Range RoverJuly 2009

This is the latest Range Rover - and it's one of the finest luxury cars money can buy. Although it looks only subtly different to the last, highly successful model - the front and rear have been revised - beneath the surface Land Rover has successfully developed all the best bits we've come to expect from its flagship model.

There's an impressive array of new equipment, including virtual TFT screens that display the dials and more, a class-topping multimedia system and a plethora of cameras to help with parking and off-road manoeuvring.

But there's more here than just a few new gizmos. The latest Range Rover is more comfortable than a Fatboy beanbag, more luxurious than a sheikh's suite and, crucially, its world-beating range of engines make it better to live with (and drive) than any other luxury 4x4 on the market.

Of course, the big challenge has been trying to improve the Range Rover's profligate image - a process made easier by the development of the TDV8. This model's sumptuous 3.6-litre diesel engine was upgraded in 2010 to provide an immense 309 bhp but, more importantly, a fuel economy improvement of 20%. It is now capable of blending 30mpg fuel economy with the urge to propel this heavyweight to 62mph from a standing start in 7.5 seconds.

But the green lobby can only be appeased so far: this is, after all, a large, luxury off-roader and Land Rover is pleasingly unapologetic about its place in the world. So the range-topping 5.0-litre supercharged V8 petrol version is still a thumpingly opulent express of a car and, despite being 29% more powerful than the V8 it replaces, it's also 7.4% more economical.

This flagship model comes in fully-loaded Autobiography spec and wears a consequently high price tag (which will ensure Land Rover sells relatively few) but lucky owners will be driving one of the finest examples of automotive engineering and craftsmanship currently on the market.

Most buyers will undoubtedly opt for the TDV8 model, whose suitably smooth and clean revving character, lower running costs and abundance of power make it a class-leading choice.