Land Rover

The Evoque is nothing if not a head-turner, but its visual drama compromises practicality. The styling comes at a cost to both cargo space and outward visibility; three- and five-foor body styles are offered. Also, curiously enough, so is a convertible. A 240-hp turbo four with a nine-speed automatic and a firm suspension give it the moves to match its sporting character, but the ride is often harsh and raucous. The lavish interior impresses, with high-quality materials and luxury features.

Ever since Land Rover showed the Evoque convertible concept at the 2012 Geneva auto show, it has been compared with one thing—the ill-conceived, overwrought 2011­–2014 Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet. Given the Evoque’s high-altitude seating for four, all-wheel drive, true crossover stance, and the same questionable raison d'être (exactly what is the point of a convertible crossover?), comparisons with the Nissan droptop are understandable. But that doesn’t destine the Evoque convertible—now finally available, five full years after we first saw the concept—to the same fate. Indeed, after this test of the 2017 Evoque convertible, the convertible-crossover idea is one that we think could catch on—if only as a niche within a niche—provided it’s done right.

We picked up the Evoque convertible during the posh Monterey Car Week, where our Yulong White HSE Dynamic test car shuttled us from hotels to racetracks to grassy fairways covered in gleaming cars. This fancy cruise-in appears to be the sort of venue for which the Evoque convertible was conceived. The Monterey Peninsula’s rustic, winding two-lane roads and parade-pace speed limits allow motorists plenty of time to sightsee. With its high seating position and 360-degree sightlines, the Evoque convertible provides unparalleled views for gawking at soaring redwood trees or a convoy of Ferrari barchettas. The high perch and open top, however, also make occupants accessible to chatty passersby, who seemed to be either confused at the sight of a convertible SUV that’s not a Jeep or thrilled to see the Evoque convertible on the street. Anecdotally, most folks we spoke with were impressed with the execution even if they weren’t universally on board with the idea.
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The only major packaging casualty involves the cargo area or, more accurately, the near elimination of it. Despite Land Rover’s efforts to minimize the top well’s intrusion on cargo space, the trunk is undeniably small—nine cubic feet, barely enough for two standard carry-on suitcases. The space is accessed via an abbreviated liftgate that’s as vertical as the cliffs of Yosemite and swings up awkwardly at chest level, making loading and unloading of items more like shoveling coal into a steam locomotive. For something ostensibly based on a “utility” vehicle, this one’s laughably low on practicality.


Its “sport” quotient is somewhat higher, although not by much. First, it’s sloooooow, which didn’t really bother us during our leisurely jaunts around Monterey but became quite frustrating on the 300-plus-mile hustle back to Los Angeles to perform our instrumented tests. We didn’t need our equipment to tell us the Evoque would make a poor showing; the unceasing turbo lag of the Evoque’s 240-hp turbo four-cylinder, the slurry nine-speed automatic transmission, and the massive 4525-pound curb weight—408 pounds more (!) than the standard four-door Evoque we tested in 2013 and 140 pounds more than our long-term BMW 7-series—all had a hand in killing its acceleration, particularly during passing. The track test provided confirmation: a zero-to-60-mph run takes 8.1 seconds, 1.2 seconds longer than the four-door. Our 5-to-60-mph rolling-start figure of 9.3 seconds is perhaps more illustrative of the time turbo lag adds to a typical acceleration event.
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