Range Rovers are very capable off-roaders, but they’re also great luxury vehicles. That’s why you don’t want to “YEET!” them like a Ford Bronco, Jeep, or Ram TRX, even though they might cost similar money. A famous digital artist wants to challenge that perception of the iconic British SUV with an awesome 2022 Range Rover “PreRunner” rendering.
This is the farthest thing from what designers and engineers wanted from the all-new 2022 Range Rover. But great art is built on contrast and unanswered questions. Why ruin such an expensive SUV? How far into the future are we? What is this thing capable of?
Kyza, the digital artist tasked by Hagerty with this rendering, is being a little modest. Yes, he is best known for slamming everything to the ground in grand JDM style. But he’s also got some amazing Range Rover renderings to his name. I remember the dystopian, beat-up vehicles he photoshopped about a decade ago.
But his methods (and technology) have obviously improved. In 2022, he’s all about mixing and matching in 3D. So after buying a Ranger Rover model and sourcing some off-road suspension, he gets to work creating the luxury prerunner nobody has ever seen.
A custom tubular chassis is required for this to work as a true off-roader. Sure, the real Range Rover is tough, but pressed metal isn’t going to handle the same kind of pounding as the spaceframe. The body kit then comes to life, a widebody setup designed to swallow up giant tires.
The bumpers get modified to accommodate underbody protection, spare tires are added, and even a pickup variant gets envisioned. Really, nothing is left of the original SUV. For me, the stand-out features are how Khyzyl kept the matte paint from the original and those exhaust pipes carving their way through the hatch. Here’s Johnny!
What is a PreRunner truck?
In case you didn’t know, a prerunner is the type of pickup used to pre-run an off-road race. They have similar specifications to the actual race vehicles. But they might not get the same design or flamboyant livery.
The term is also associated with a specific model. The Tacoma PreRunner was a two-wheel-drive truck that sported a slightly taller suspension and wider track, and this was offered between 1998 and 2015.
There’s no fixed definition for a prerunner. Its main task could be to scout out GPS points or become familiar with landmarks, so anything works, including a dune buggy or quad. And if you race bikes… your prerunner is obviously going to be a bike.
But the term generally describes a certain style of a truck that has a slightly lifted nose, wider tracks, and fiberglass fenders. The old Ford Ranger is generally seen as the best prerunner. That’s why in Kyza’s Goggle searches, you’ll repeatedly see a black Ford. Yes, it looks like a Raptor, but it’s a Ranger. The build cost $350,000 and is powered by a big-block Chevy V8.
