‘Project’ Land Rovers on the way
SVO boss confirms Landie specials could follow Jags
LAND ROVER could get its own limitededition ‘Project’ vehicles to sit alongside the exclusive Jaguar Project 7 and new XE Project 8, according to the boss of the brand’s Special Vehicle Operations division.
Just months after SVO revealed the Discovery Project Hero (right) at the Geneva Motor Show, brand chief John Edwards has confirmed plans have been discussed to create limited-run Land Rovers in a similar vein to the recently revealed Jaguar XE SV Project 8.
The 592bhp Project 8 (Issue 1,475) is lined up to make its public debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed later this month. It’s the most powerful Jaguar saloon car ever, and even outperforms the XJ220 supercar from the early nineties. Its limited production run of just 300 cars will follow the earlier £135,000 F-type-based Project 7.
Despite the fact that the first two ‘Project’ cars have been based on Jaguars, SVO boss Edwards has revealed to Auto Express that his engineers have already pitched ideas for special Land Rovers that could follow the Jaguars in the current series. He confirmed there is nothing to say that such vehicles couldn’t arrive later down the line.
“I can say – partly because I write the rules on this – that right now, there are no rules. There’s nothing written down to say that all ‘Project’ cars have to be performance-focused,” he told us. “And equally, there’s nothing written down to say that they all have to be Jaguars.”
When asked if SVO engineers had already formed ideas that could potentially become limited-edition Land Rover ‘Project’ models, Edwards replied: “Yes, they have.”
Special Operations has focused so far on performance and luxury editions of Jaguars and Land Rovers, such as the flagship Range Rover Sport SVR (inset, above) and the 567bhp Jaguar F-type
SVR. But extreme off-roaders, badged SVX, are also said to be in the pipeline. Any such model could take its inspiration from SVO’S Discovery Project Hero, a one-off custom-built SUV based on the off-roader. It was created with the Austrian Red Cross to improve response times in disaster zones.
Special features include a drone to help with access to inaccessible terrain, a heavy-duty floor, full-height partition and various storage solutions. A ‘Project’ Land Rover would have to go further than this, however, adding upgrades to the car’s off and on-road performance, as well as to the aesthetics. Such tweaks would be in keeping with the Project 7 and Project 8, both of which were treated to bigger wings and aggressive bodykits.
“There are no rules. There’s nothing written down to say that all ‘Project’ cars have to be Jaguars” JOHN EDWARDS JLR Special Vehicle Operations boss