Jaguar dropping V8s, V6s for straight-sixes: report
Jaguar Land Rover will gradually phase out its V8 and V6 engines and replace them with high-performance versions of its Ingenium straight-six engine, according to a new report from Autocar.
The 5.0-litre V8s in current Land Rovers and Jags will be replaced by the six, assisted by an electrically driven turbocharger. A less high-strung version of the same Ingenium six-cylinder will replace the 3.0-L V6 available in the company’s current product lineup.
The report says Jaguar Land Rover four- and three-cylinder engines are also in development, and while the manufacturer has a series of clean diesels planned, we’re unlikely to see those in Canada.
The next-generation Land Rover Evoque could be the first JLR vehicle powered by these new engines. It will debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November, and hit dealerships in the beginning of 2019, if Autocar is correct.
The report suggests it will be built on the company’s current Premium Transverse Architecture front-wheel-drive-based platform, but that eventually all JLR models will move to a new rear- or allwheel-drive Modular Longitudinal Architecture (MLA) chassis. The next-generation Land Rover Defender, to enter production 2020, could be the company’s first vehicle underpinned by the MLA.
The overall strategy is for Jaguar Land Rover to replace every model in its current lineup with a new one by 2024. That means some 99 new model variants will debut over the next six years.