THE RANGE ROVER SPORT VESUVIUS EDITION: HOW AN ORANGE RANGE ROVER CHANGED THE RULES
By Douglas Topott·
In 2012, most Range Rover Sports wore black, silver or grey. The Project Kahn Range Rover Sport Vesuvius Edition wore Vesuvius Orange.
It was never meant to blend in. A two-tone, fully colour-coded statement, inside and out, built on one of the most desirable SUVs in Britain. People stopped. People photographed it. Then, which was rather the point, people wanted one.
More than a decade on, we still get calls about it. So here's the story: why the Vesuvius Edition existed, what made it special, and why the name might not be finished yet.
Why Project Kahn Created the Range Rover Sport Vesuvius Edition
A Range Rover Sport on Every Driveway
The Range Rover Sport was everywhere in the early 2010s. Footballers had them. Bankers had them. Half of Cheshire had them. That popularity was its problem. A car that expensive should not look like the one parked next door.
Afzal Kahn saw the gap. Land Rover built a superb vehicle, but it built it for everyone. Our customers did not want everyone's car. They wanted the same Range Rover Sport, engineered to the same standard, but unmistakably theirs.
Colour as a Complete Design Language
The answer was colour. Not a sticker kit. Not a token stripe. A complete colour programme, carried through the paint, the trim, the leather and the stitching, so the car read as one design rather than a set of add-ons.
From the 2010 Original to the 2012 Sport 300 and RS300
Vesuvius was the first of these colour editions. It began on the TDV8 and 4.2 supercharged Range Rover Sport in 2010. When Land Rover facelifted the Sport, we moved with it. The 2012 Vesuvius Edition Sport 300 arrived in August 2011, and the RS300 Vesuvius Edition on the 3.0 SDV6 followed in October 2012.
Range Rover Sport Vesuvius Edition Design and Specification
The brief was simple. Every Vesuvius detail had to look like it left the factory that way.
Exterior Styling in Vesuvius Orange
Vesuvius Orange went on the bonnet and grille inserts, set against black. The RS300 version added an RS front grille in 3D mesh, RS vented front wheel arches with integrated air dams, and a front apron lip. Side exhaust vents mixed body colour with Matte Pearl Grey. LED light strips sat in the front arches. A painted floating roof and bonnet stripe tied it together, with Kahn enamel wing shields and Matte Grey door handles finishing the job.
22-Inch Kahn RS Black Wheels
The stance came from 22-inch Kahn RS Black wheels: 9.5 inches wide at the front, 10.5 inches at the rear, the rears with a concave face. Big wheels on a Range Rover can look like an afterthought. These looked like they were drawn with the car.
A Diamond-Quilted Vesuvius Interior
Open the door and the theme keeps going. Diamond-quilted, perforated black leather with Vesuvius Orange trimming. Quilted door tops with orange stitching. A quilted instrument binnacle. A Kahn Vesuvius clock with a crystal-tinted bezel, an orange rev counter, a diamond gear shifter and machined vented pedals. Even the tailgate trim got a 3D carbon finish.
This is where Kahn's OEM background showed. Leather that is quilted well looks bespoke. Leather that is quilted badly looks like a nightclub. Ours looked bespoke.
Vesuvius Edition Specification at a Glance
| 2012 Vesuvius Edition Sport 300 | RS300 Vesuvius Edition | |
|---|---|---|
| Announced | August 2011 | October 2012 |
| Base vehicle | 2012 Range Rover Sport | Range Rover Sport 3.0 SDV6 HSE |
| Engine | Range Rover Sport, with Kahn stainless steel exhaust | 3.0 SDV6, 256 hp, 600 Nm, ZF eight-speed automatic |
| 0 to 60 mph | Not published | 8.4 seconds |
| Wheels | 22-inch Kahn RS | 22-inch Kahn RS Black, 9.5J front, 10.5J rear |
| Interior | Black and orange leather, quilted doors, orange-stitched wheel | Diamond-quilted perforated leather, Vesuvius clock and rev counter |
| Price | From £69,875 complete, or as individual items | Not published |
Why the Vesuvius Edition Was a Huge Success
It sold because it did something the factory would not. It gave a mass-market luxury car a single, confident identity.
Press Coverage Around the World
The press noticed. The Vesuvius Edition was covered across Britain, Europe, the US and Australia, and What Car? took one out for a drive. It was offered as a complete package or as individual items, so customers could commit fully or start with wheels and an interior and build from there. Plenty did both.
One Edition Became a Family
The real measure was what happened next. Vesuvius stopped being one car and became a family.
Range Rover Evoque Vesuvius Edition. The same colour story, scaled to Land Rover's smallest Range Rover, for a younger, more fashion-led buyer.
Defender Vesuvius Edition by Chelsea Truck Company. Built on the new-shape Defender, with 22-inch forged Kahn RS Black wheels and twin exhausts exiting at each rear corner.
How the Vesuvius Edition Influenced Land Rover
The best compliment in this industry is imitation. Afzal Kahn believes the Vesuvius Edition earned exactly that.
After the Vesuvius cars proved there was real appetite for bold, contrast-colour Range Rovers, Land Rover went on to launch something very similar of its own.
We will let you draw your own conclusions. We have drawn ours.
Designed to OEM Standards
It says something about how Project Kahn works. We design to Tier 1 OEM standards, using the same tools the manufacturers use, including Autodesk Alias. When your work is good enough that the factory follows it, you are no longer modifying cars. You are setting the direction.
Will There Be a New Range Rover Sport Vesuvius Edition?
Possibly. And that depends on you.
The Case for the New-Shape Range Rover Sport
We still hear from owners and admirers who want the Vesuvius treatment on the new Range Rover Sport. The current car is lower, sleeker, and more minimal than the one we worked on in 2012. That is exactly why a Vesuvius version could be so striking. A clean canvas takes bold colour very well.
A Relaunch Through Racing Green Automotive
If it happens, it will come through Racing Green Automotive. We will only build it if the interest is genuine. No hype, no countdown clock, no fake scarcity. Just a proper car for people who actually want one.
The Range Rover Sport Vesuvius Edition was built for people who would rather be remembered than blend in. Fourteen years on, it still does that job.