Here's How The World's First Luxury SUV Evolved Over Its Lifetime

According to this video, Land Rover likes to tout the Range Rover as the world's most luxurious SUV, and until recently, that was actually the truth. However, the rapidly shifting tides in the industry have made it so that the holder of that crown is up for interpretation. The Bentley Bentayga is a solid contender for the top spot with the Maserati Levante lingering not far behind, but with Lamborghini and Rolls-Royce set to make an entrance into the segment, these top dogs could soon be left behind.

Despite the fact that the Range Rover's spot at the top is up for grabs, there's no arguing that the luxury SUV segment started when the automaker began filling its capable machines with leather and modern but tasteful amenities long before anyone else got the same idea. But things didn't start out that way.

Thanks to a comprehensive history report made by Land Rover itself, we can now see where this hugely popular segment began, starting with the 1969 two-door prototype. We can then see each of the Range Rover's defining characteristics come to fruition one by one, starting with the floating roof enabled by blacked out C pillars in 1973 and the addition of rear doors in 1981. From then on, the changes become mainly mechanical, with anti-lock brakes, traction control, and air suspension coming into the picture to give the Range Rover its off-road supremacy. Us gearheads may relish the addition of the 5.0-liter supercharged V8 for the Range Rover Sport SVR the most.