It was VW owners that started waving at each other on the road; Campers, Beatles and Karmann Ghias, a party of one big happy family and the owners loved the fact that other people were driving the same car as them. Although the principle still exists with some cars these days, it certainly doesn’t exist when it comes to executive cars; you just wouldn’t see two XK owners wave to each other (classic Jags maybe but not new).

In fact, whenever I drive any car that I dream to be executive, expensive or exclusive I do not really enjoy seeing other people with the same cars, whilst in a Ferrari F430 I might smile, nod or acknowledge someone in a Ferrari 360, should an identical model pull up along side me, I’d consider hanging a left at the lights and head straight back to the dealer.

When buying cars at this level you want exclusivity and individuality. So why is it then, when I’m driving this Range Rover and I’m passing twenty for each town I pass through, I feel nothing except a mutual respect for the other Range Rover driver?

The answer is simple; it’s a sensible car to have. Not only is the Range Rover good looking but it’s also comfortable, enjoyable, a pleasant place to be and caters for any buyer, ranging from a Diesel for the farmers, a 4.2 V8 for the average-Joe and a supercharger to strap on top of that V8 for a dose of 400bhp in a 2 tonne car! The same can apply to the price, with a huge range of options which leaves you with a price range starting at around £46,000 and almost doubles to the £73,000 you’ll need to buy a basic V8 Supercharged. Expect to load another several thousand onto that price tag if you want the same television, trim level and stereo systems we are blessed with.

However, the Range Rover is truly an automobile for the affluent, with a heavy maintenance cost and the purchase price is only the start of a long-term relationship the vehicle will have with your bank balance. With its famous £100 full tank, the Range Rover will go for anything between 200 and 400 miles, depending on how fast you want to get there. The Range Rover remains, to this day, one of the select few cars where the petrol needle can actually be seen moving.

Everything happens for a reason though and despite spending a good quarter of an hour in a petrol station once a week (because, let’s face it, you can afford the car and the petrol, it’s the time that really counts and there’s nothing worse than doubling the time of your daily commute by stopping off at a petrol station to fill up).

Now the purpose of a fleet car is to let you know what it’s really like to live with a car. The price and petrol consumption information isn’t anything you won’t find in any other magazine, so what is the Range Rover like to live with? It’s fantastic.

With enough space to carry out any task, whether it be a family trip to a safari-park (where the TVs come in handy) or picking up some business guests for that all important meeting – providing you remember to remove the animal feed from the side pockets and Spider-Man from the DVD player, you’re fine.

And from a car to a van … with the seats folded flat, the luggage capacity is epic. Whether you’re carrying nearly twice the maximum load capacity the 50-mile journey into Central London for Fashion Week or the 280 carefully packed bags for the Burghley Horse Trials, the Range Rover just deals with it, with grace, determination and style!

The Range Rover comes with every feature you would expect from this sector, its powerful 300bhp engine mated to a strong 6 speed gear-box, high-tech suspension setup and complex permanent four-wheel-drive system not only provides a smooth and enjoyable on-road experience but will also surprise must unsuspecting people with its off-road capabilities, even on road tyres. I was lucky enough to enjoy a Land Rover experience in a Range Rover and had no problem climbing, descending, traversing and wading alongside the Defender and Discovery.

There are a number of similar vehicles on the market. Lexus and Volvo offer big 4x4 options but both fail to measure up to the presence, comfort and specification of the Range Rover but for a similar level of build and engine quality and interior comfort then you can always look towards the Mercedes G-Wagen. However, you would then not only be faced with the challenge of purchasing one (as they’re only available on Park Lane) but you would also be faced with Mercedes’ service.

It is said in many places that Range Rover service is exemplary but then so is the reliability of their cars, so whether I’ll get the opportunity to confirm or deny this within the months the car will be in our custody, remains to be seen.