Invited to the London Boat show to try out the L405.

Full marks to the caterers (Leiths) for a really good meal before hand, overlooking the obstacle course in one of the halls (more of which later).

Okay so they had pre programmed a route (26miles ish) into the sat nav from the Docklands with a mix of motorway + urban driving. We had a supercharged with everysingle option ticked including the 2 back seats and massaging seats.

First impressions were mixed:Roof is amazing, headrests are great (just like the winged ones in the rear of our current one). But I felt that I could not get my seat as high as I can in the current one. Fine for those who don't have it at the highest setting, but i like to be high up so that my knees are compfy (being lanky). Other thing the start button is a bit more of a reach to get to.

And we are off....20mph zone with speed bumps. It still hits the speed bumps rather than floating over them, no big problem. Very quiet in the cabin, except for the whir..woosh of the massage seats.

Traffic light grand prix...the supercharged just launches...spped camera....damn the brakes are good.

The drive felt a bit jerky, more sports car responsive than a traditional RR feel. Comes across as a cross between a TT and a RR, a very strange mix. No roll but figety steering meant you had to concentrate more than normal.

Right here is the big wow for me (and the reason I can not get a Supercharged)...(this is all theoretical)....plant your foot at 80 and the acceleration is astounding. Even at a theoretical 120 it will be accelerating like mad. Amazing, just amazing....really truly this thing can accelerate.

Sat Nav got lost a few times, the voice on the sat nav gets very mumbled with long words resulting in giggles...but it will get frustrating. The directions displaying by the dials is much better ( and long awaited).

Colours in the cabin are a novelty, and i am not really sure why they bothered.

Junction view cameras are now useful as the viewing angle is so much wider, and there is also a hard button to access them with one click (rather than 3+ clicks currently).

Self parking function is good, but needing a space that is 90cm longer than the car seems a bit extreeme.


Summary, amazing engine but a bit too car like for me. Getting back in ours afterwards felt that bit more tall/imposing/less bling. *Gone* Discovery3 HSE
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Oh and the steering wheel feels too small, just adds to the feeling of driving a car not a RR. *Gone* Discovery3 HSE
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Thanks for the review. I gather you were not impressed with the ride comfort. What wheel size did the car you drove have? 21 or 22 rims?

Not sure of the wheel size.

It is not that I was not impressed with the ride quality, it is just more car than RR. *Gone* Discovery3 HSE
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kkqd0298 wrote:

Oh and the steering wheel feels too small, just adds to the feeling of driving a car not a RR.

I attended the same event at the London boat show today and drove the Supercharged AB. My thoughts were as follows:

It looks a lot better than I expected and the things that I didn't like from the pictures (silver stripe on the bottom of the doors, wrap around headlights, rounded front) didn't bother me at all in the metal. It just looks much more modern than the L322 and makes the L322 look very dated in my opinion. I think it is very colour sensitive and wheel sensitive. Dark colour and 21 inch wheels or greater for it too look its best.

The biggest noticeable difference for me was the car like way in which it drove. It is much more like driving a large BMW rather than piloting a large truck. This is down to a number of factors. You are riding lower (not an improvement), the car doesn't roll at all (biggest improvement of all IMO), the steering has a faster rack (good) and when you apply the breaks it doesn't feel like you are slowing down a supertanker. It is a car which you can throw around with confidence if you are in a hurry whereas the L322 does not like being rushed.

A lot has been said about it being more luxurious. Compared to my 2010 Supercharged AB I don't really see the big difference in terms of interior look or feel (the leather seems to be the same and in the same places). What is different and higher spec are the various gadgets (auto tailgate, soft close doors, panoramic roof, reclining rear seats). Massage seats are new and didn't really do much for me, but the headrests are brilliant and the way you can pump up the side bolsters of the seats to hold you in place better I really like.

If I put the seat on the highest setting as I do in my 2010 it felt like I was sat much closer to the steering wheel which I did not like. To get further away I had to lower the seat (not good).

Performance did not really seem that different to my supercharged which was a bit disappointing considering the weight reduction. Maybe this was because it was quieter and went about its business with less fuss so gave the impression that it was slower than it really was. Ride was good on 22s and seemed better than my 2010 on 20s.

Standard 850W AB stereo was very good, I can't imagine that the £4k upgrade can really be worth the difference.

The touch screen system seems about 5 years behind the likes of BMW's interface and is disappointing for a completely new car.

Overall, it is not perfect but still very very good and I can't wait to get one.

5.0 wrote:

The biggest noticeable difference for me was the car like way in which it drove. It is much more like driving a large BMW rather than piloting a large truck.

The auto boot close did not work on the one I drove either.

I understand your point re. Cayenne turbo but the benefit of the RR is that it is much bigger inside, better trimmed and rides much more smoothly and quietly. Plus the Cayenne looks awful.

i had the same impressions when in testdrove the L405 SC  All my spelling errorz are belong to me!

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