The super-expensive SUV is here, and here to stay

London

BRACE yourself. We're nowhere near peak SUV. Just as Land Rover and Mercedes-Benz unveiled their own new sports utility vehicles at the New York Auto Show last week, Rolls-Royce is testing drivetrains for its so-called "Project Cullinan", a prototype all-wheel-drive suspension model that will be sold by 2018. Experts say it could cost as much as US$400,000.

The Rolls fits right in with the US$200,000 Land Rover Range Rover SV Autobiography. That's the one with a 550hp supercharged V8 engine that can hit 60mph in just over five seconds. It's the one that sets a high bar for the crossover its sister brand Jaguar says it'll introduce by 2017. And it fits in with the US$218,000 Mercedes-Benz G65 AMG, which has a hand-built V12 engine that pulls in a whopping 621hp. The G65 AMG is the fourth AMG model to cross the US$200,000 threshold.