As some of you know, I love cars. The Northeast is not the best environment to have sports cars, due to winter weather and the potholes that reoccur every year. Also, I find myself going out to local parks more often to photograph wildlife. This led me to choose a SUV. Originally I ordered a Porsche Macan GTS, but changed my mind and went with a Range Rover Sport.
I ordered a 2022 Range Rover Sport P525 in November of 2021, and it arrived mid-March. Due to the chip shortage and supply issues, I had to give up a few options that included Heads-up display, adaptive cruise control, and a heated windshield. I did get the main things I wanted though, which included the supercharged V-8 518HP engine. Here is a breakdown of the options i chose on top of the already long list of standard features:
EXTERIOR
Carpathian Grey – Premium Metallic
Red Brake Calipers
Black contrast roof
Sliding Panoramic Roof
Black Pack with 22″ 9 split-spoke ‘Style 9012’ with Gloss Black finish
Privacy Glass
Acoustic Front and Toughened Rear Side Glass
Premium LED Headlights with Signature DRL
INTERIOR
Ebony/Ebony with Ebony seats – Windsor Leather (Extended Leather Pack)
16-Way Memory Front Seats
Heated and Cooled Front seats with Heated Rear seats
Standard Rear Seats
Five Seats
60:40 Load Through Rear Seats
Ebony Morzine Headlining
Extended Dark Engine Turned Aluminum Trim Finisher
Meridian™ Surround Sound System
OPTIONS
Climate Comfort Pack
Heated Steering Wheel
Front Center Console Refrigerator Compartment
Powered Gesture Tailgate / Trunk Lid
Blind Spot Assist
And yes, you read that right, I have a refrigerator in the SUV! Crazy, I know. After taking delivery, the first thing I did was order WeatherTech mats for the driver and passenger side, as well as the rear cargo area. I made a hook system in my garage to hang the mats when not in use. The plan is to use them in winter, and any time I am going out to parks where hiking might leave me with muddy shoes. The nice thing is I can hang the factory floor mats on the same hooks when I switch them out.
Next thing that was done was to schedule window tinting and paint protection. I chose 15% 3M Ceramic tint for the front windows. This will match the rear tinting that comes standard. The ceramic tint will cut down UV rays by 99%, reduce glare, and will keep the car interior cooler. For paint protection, I chose Opti-coat Pro+ ceramic coating. This is applied to the painted surfaces, and wheel faces, and comes with a seven year warranty.
Opti-Coat Pro+ combines the chemical and environmental resistance of Opti-Coat Pro ceramic coating with a layer of Pro Plus to add additional protection and gloss that is second to none. Opti-Coat Pro+ enhances the durability of your vehicle’s paint by adding another layer of protection for the life of your car.
Opti-Coat Pro provides a protective ceramic coating with superior resistance to swirling, chemical etching, and fading. Then, Opti-Coat Pro+ is added as the top coat to further protect the layer of ceramic paint. Not only does Opti-Coat Pro+ enhance the coated surface of your vehicle, it adds luster and slickness for an outstanding shine to your car’s paint.
Opticoat.com
Finally, I added Opti-Glass Pro to the glass surfaces. This acts similar to Rain-X products and repels water. This is just a longer lasting protection.
Optimum Opti-Glass Pro is designed to chemically bond to silica based surfaces to form a durable, hydrophobic coating that provides long term protection to glass and other silica based surfaces and to increase chip resistance, scratch and mar resistance and protect from water staining.
