With the briefing done, each of us were assigned an instructor and vehicle to drive on the trail. I met up with Shashank, my instructor, and headed to a white Range Rover Evoque, which was my steed for the afternoon. Powered by a 2.0 litre Ingenium diesel engine, the Evoque makes 177 hp and 430 Nm of torque, mated to a 9-speed automatic gearbox. Once we got in, Shashank explained the basic functions of the Terrain Response etc along with a few driving tips. We switched on the Hill Descent Control (HDC), adjusted the speed and were off. We were the first ones of the line and the trail would be completed driving as a convoy. As we started the trail, up first I encountered tricky descents where the HDC worked like a charm, the Evoque sending braking power to individual wheels and I only needed to give steering inputs. I got used to this as we drove along. As the trail progressed, Terrain Response came in to action with the Mud/Ruts and Grass/Gravel/Snow modes and the Evoque made short work of the rocks, stones and slippery surfaces. Next came a stream crossing, and while it looked exciting, it felt a bit scary for sure. But hey this is a Range Rover and will stop at nothing. I entered the stream by gently modulating throttle and braking. Once in, the Evoque with its 500 mm wading depth crossed across in a jiffy with me giving continuous acceleration.

After the stream, it was time to go up hill with a series of climbs. Here, the Hill Start Assist feature of the Evoque was of great help. This feature prevents the SUV from rolling backward for 3 seconds once you let go of the brake pedal, giving you enough time to accelerate forward. Despite this, the up hill bends were quite tricky and I had to place the wheels at just the right spot in addition to being careful with my throttle. You can also check out which wheel is getting power on the infotainment screen as well as tire direction.

And finally, it was time to test the feature that was invented by Land Rover themselves. It is the All Terrain Progress Control (ATPC). This is essentially a kind of cruise control that is used for off-roading. Just like cruise control, you can increase or decrease the speed using the steering mounted controls. The ATPC controls the braking and throttle response, and all you have to do is steer. I was told by Shashank that the entire trail could be completed by using this one feature only. Talk about technology these days.

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