October 3, 2014
Range Rover Great Divide Expedition
Land Rover North America is inviting fans to follow along on a 1,000-mile trek across the United States to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the "Great Divide Expedition."
The Great Divide Expedition gained its place in brand lore when a fleet of Range Rovers navigated a treacherous route through the Continental Divide in Colorado. The brand then honored this legacy by sending 10 Range Rovers to complete the journey for a second time.
"The 25th anniversary of the Great Divide celebrates Land Rover's commitment to adventure travel, and from a business perspective, it reaffirms our commitment to the U.S. market," said Wayne Kung, national product communications manager at Jaguar Land Rover North America, Mahwah, NJ.
Over mountains
The Great Divide Expedition was an opportunity for the brand to showcase the versatility and resilience of its vehicles, and the back story gave the occasion some depth.
Range Rover Great Divide Expedition
Nine of the vehicles included were 2014 Range Rovers that feature technology such as Terrain Response 2, which analyzes driving conditions and selects driving settings accordingly. Other features include improved suspension architecture to allow tires to better navigate, enhanced four-wheel drive and wading and towing capabilities.
Range Rover Great Divide Expedition
All of these qualities allowed the brand to navigate the routinely rough terrain of the journey.
Range Rover Great Divide Expedition
The final vehicle was a Range Rover Classic that participated in the original mission to connect the two trips and to showcase how Range Rovers have improved.
Range Rover Great Divide Expedition
However, the journey that fans saw on social media did not overtly boost these features.
Range Rover Great Divide Expedition
Instead, fans were invited to marvel at the majestic landscape and watch brand-approved drivers traverse tricky situations that included steep drop-offs, narrow mountain paths and rock-strewn streams.
Range Rover Great Divide Expedition
Ultimately, the Great Divide Expedition provided the brand with superb social media content.
Range Rover Great Divide Expedition
Land Rover did not have an explicit hashtag for fans to engage with the brand during the event. However, in a related initiative, fans were asked to submit personal Land Rover stories with the hashtag #WellStoried. Since many of these stories inevitably involve the vehicles overcoming hard situations, the ensuing posts overlapped with the Great Divide content.
Offshoots
Lifestyle magazine Condé Nast Traveler recruited global explorer Bryn Mooser to embark on a 12- episode video series in a Land Rover.
The episodes are around two minutes long and deliver compressed yet generous views of remote areas of the United States. “The Road Less Traveled” series accentuates the 25th anniversary of Land Rover’s Great Expedition and aims to bolster the automaker’s reputation as the quintessential provider of adventure vehicles (see story).
Both endeavors will likely generate sales from consumers impressed by what the vehicles can achieve.
"Completing such an arduous expedition in a vehicle available off the showroom floor demonstrates the unique combination of luxury and off-road capability that is available in a Range Rover," Mr. Kung said.
Final Take
Joe McCarthy, staff writer on Luxury Daily, New York
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