1999 Range Rover

Photo: Bryan's bone stock 1999 Range Rover climbing "XCL Hill" in the Mendocino National Forest -- an effort not normally attempted by unmodified vehicles.

Introduction
1999 saw the most sweeping changes of any year in the production history of the 4.0/4.6 Range Rove, with the new BMW ownership of Land Rover finally making itself felt. The engines were upgraded with a new Bosch engine management system replacing the Lucas GEMS system, but with a redesigned air intake. The combination slightly lowered peak horsepower but greatly improved torque and low speed response. The other major change was the extension of the traction control system to all four wheels (as had already been done in the Discovery). These plus a host of other minor changes result in 1999 being the break point for many replacement parts that are divided into 1995-8 and 1999-2002 categories.

1999 Model Year Statistics

Base Price $58,625 (Kelley Blue Book) Weight N/A lbs. Warrantee was 4-Year 50,000 miles.

**Early 1999 Range Rover 4.0 models were actually exactly the same as the 1998 models since there were slowdowns in starting the production of the new models with the Bosch fuel injection system. The 4.6 HSE model was sold out due to strong demand, and the only “left over” 1998/99 models were 4.0 SE models. Land Rover rebadged these left over models as “4.0” (without the SE) and “4.0 S” (without the E). If you looked closely on most of the models you could see where the S or S and E were peeled off.
new engine

Powertrain:
After the limited run of 1999 4.0 and 4.0S models that had the same 4.0L/Lucas FI engine as the 1998 models Land Rover introduced a new 4.0 SE and 4.6 HSE with Bosch fuel injection engine management (the same engine management as the BMW 7 Series). The 4.6 got dual exhaust and was 10% faster to 60mph and got 1mpg better mileage. The transmission dipstick was eliminated from all Range Rovers.

Photo: New engine intake manifold with Bosch engine controls on 1999 and up Range Rovers. This photo, courtesy of McCarty Motors, is actually a 2001 model.

Chassis and Suspension:
Traction control now on all four wheels, not just the rear wheels as it has been since 1993. Due to the addition of traction control the front axle got the stronger 4-pin carrier diff that was only in the rear diff of 1995 to 1998 Range Rovers. The 4.6 HSE got the 18-inch 10 spoke “Hurricane” Wheels standard replacing the “Mondial” wheels that had been standard on all U.S. Spec. 4.6 HSEs since the model was introduced in 1996. All 4.0L models came standard with a new design 16-inch 5-spoke square shoulder spoke wheels this year.

Exterior:

Colors: Altai Silver Chawton White, Java Black, Oxford Blue, Rioja Red, Woodcote Green, Epsom Green, Niagara Gray

The model year can be recognized externally by the dual exhausts and 10-spoke Hurricane wheels on the 4.6. The 4.0SE models are distinguished this year by the square spoke wheels, while the other variants (see below), only available in 1999, are recognizable by their badging.

Interior:

A factory in-dash navigation system called J.A.M.E.S was available for $2,995 (introduced in small numbers of late production 1998 models). Side airbags were incorporated in to the front seats (the seats with airbags have a little tag indicating the airbag) All had an all new stereo with more power and speakers (300wats and 12 speakers) Auto seat belt tensioners on the front seats Improved interior trim with smoother switch surfaces and revised upholstery patterns. All the door arm rests were now covered in leather and the cloth on the upper section of the door panels was replaced with leather (the lower part of the door panels still had carpet). The sides of the center console and the inside of the door handle assemblies were no longer black and now matched the color of the door panels with all the actual interior door handles changes from black to chrome. The plastic covers around the seat mounting points visible from the back seat were larger this year and the door lock buttons and plastic surrounds changed from black to match the interior door panel color.

Photo: JAMES Nav System on Kent Berkbueler's 2001 Range Rover. (However note the stereo system below the Nav screen is the Alpine one used on 2001 models, but the rest of the controls are the same)

As well as the integrated hands free phone (that mounted to the right of the radio) with roof mounted antenna, a factory in-dash navigation system called J.A.M.E.S was available for $2,995 (this was introduced in small numbers of late production 1998 models).

4.0: The 1999 "4.0 model" was exactly the same as a 1998 "4.0 SE" and if you looked closely you could see where the "SE" stickers were peeled off. LRNA decided at the last minute to rename the model to differentiate them from the new 4.0 SE models with the new Bosch FI that were introduced a couple months into the 1999 model year.

4.0 S: This model was identical to the 1999 4.0 model but was upgraded with the 18-inch “Mondial” wheels from the 1996-1998 4.6 HSE. Like the 4.0 model if you looked closely at the new models on the showroom floor you could see the outline of the "E" sticker that was peeled off.

4.0 SE: This had the Bosch FI They had a new 16-inch wheel this year the 5-spoke wheels with square shoulder spokes

4.6 HSE: The 4.6 HSE had a base price of $66,625 ($8,100 more than the 4.0SE) 4.6L 222hp Ash Black Leather was only available on the HSE. All had the new 10 spoke 18” Hurricane wheels.

4.6 HSE Callaway Edition: The top of the line model in 1999 was a limited edition (220 were made and had stickers on the dash that say Callaway and have the number) 4.6 HSE modified by Callaway in Old Lyme, Connecticut. They were available in Niagra Gray, Epsom Green, or Rutland Red. They had much of the black plastic painted body color and special dual exhaust system. The high performance Callaway engine with 240 bhp at 5,000 rpm and peak torque of 285 lb.-ft at 3,500 rpm improved the 4.6 HSE acceleration 0-60 mph from 9.7 sec to 8.6 sec. The Callaway 4.6 HSE sold for $75,000.

The "short block" of the engine is the same as other Land Rover 4.6 HSE models. Short-blocks used for the 4.6L Callaway engines were stamped with a 9.60:1 compression ratio marking from Land Rover. The increase of 0.25 points, up from the standard 4.6L compression ratio of 9.35:1 was achieved by a modification to the cylinder heads. The cylinder heads were also modified to improve the airflow into and out of the combustion chambers. The inlet manifold gasket front valley clamp has been changed to accommodate the heater hose positioning on the bottom front of the Callaway manifold. The ram pipe housing has been modified by shortening the ram pipe tube lengths. The intake runner lengths were tuned to increase both power and torque. The black plastic air inlet tube was replaced with a larger diameter fancy looking carbon fiber inlet tube to match the larger throttle bore in the plenum. The air cleaner box base was modified to increase the airflow. The Lucas GEMS ECU was calibrated to support the mechanical changes to the Callaway engine (the Callaway engine had the same basic FI as in 1998 and did not have the Bosch system that was on other 1999 HSEs).

The Callaway drivetrain was also modified. The automatic transmission used in the Callaway 4.6 HSE Range has a different torque converter and the transmission control unit (TCU) has been recalibrated to take advantage of the increased torque and power of the engine. The shift points in both "NORMAL" and "SPORT" modes have been changed to match the engine's increased power.

The electronic shift transfer case has a new ratio sprocket set and chain. The resulting new ratios provide a high range ratio of 1.294:1, and a low range ratio of 3.481:1. The ratio change improves acceleration performance in high range while also providing improved off-road "crawl" performance and coast down rates in low range.

The front axle shafts used on the Callaway 4.6 HSE have been strengthened to withstand the increased torque to the front wheels from the engine and transmission changes. A material change in the axles ensures durability will be maintained for the front axle half shafts. <>

Callaway decided to use a four-pin front differential to accommodate the increased torque rather than the two-pin front diff used on standard production Range Rovers. After working with Callaway on the four pin front diff Land Rover decided to put them in all of the 1999 Range Rovers since the 4 wheel traction control that added ABS regulated traction control to the front axle in 1999 also put extra stress on the front diff (Range Rovers from 1993-1998 only had traction control on the rear axle). <>

The Callaway dual exhaust had reduced backpressure and was similar to the dual exhaust that all NAS Range Rovers got in the 2000 model year. Changes to the exhaust system were made rearward of the catalyst "Y" pipe. The exhaust system backpressure was reduced by 43 percent, and the interior sound level in the passenger cabin was virtually unchanged. The center silencer provides reduced backpressure and is constructed from stainless steel. A twin tail pipe system was selected to provide a performance look and sound. The straight exit twin outlets are accented by T-304 stainless steel resonator tips to visually differentiate the Callaway 4.6 HSE from other Range Rovers. The pipes are welded on to the stock mufflers and the rear bumper has cut outs for the tailpipes like it had in 1995 and 1996 (the stock single muffler pointed down and the rear bumper did not have any cut out on the 1997, 1998 and non-Callaway 1999 Range Rovers).<>The exterior of the Callaway 4.6 HSE Range Rover is had painted body color components. The exterior components painted to match the body color are, the Entire Front Bumper cover, the Front Grill, Left and Right Headlamp trim, Left and Right Door Mirror Casings, Rear Bumper including area with Exhaust Tip Openings

All Callaway Range Rovers came with the "Proline" 18 inch 5-spoke alloy wheels.

The vehicles are badged with "CALLAWAY" on the upper engine plenum, and on the lower rear tailgate under the 4.6 HSE logs (some models also have Callaway stickers on the front fenders.

Inside, the Callaway RRs some had additional wood surrounding the power window switches and HVAC controls wood and leather steering wheels and most (but not all) had GPS.

4.6 HSE Autobiography Edition: These were luxury models that were the top of the line model in Europe. The Autobiography Edition was not sold in the U.S. but they were available in North America through the Canadian dealer network, so some may be in the U.S.. The Autobiography models had custom color seat piping and full wood kits on the cash and center console (including wood shift lever and parking brake handle). The wood piece below the center console storage bin had the Autobiography script logo. This logo was also on the tailgate next to the 4.6HSE logo. Real Land Rover Autobiography models will have a numbered Land Rover Special Vehicles plaque with the Autobiography under the hood (similar to the plaque under the hood of the supercharged 4.6 SSE made in the U.S. by Cameron Concepts)

Land Rover did another Great Divide Expedition 10 years after the first one in 1989 to promote the introduction of the 2000 Range Rover. See http://www.suv.com/feature/LandRover2K/

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Page revised February 1, 2012