New Rangie!
2021 RANGE ROVER: THE INSIDE STORY
Within the next 36 months, Land Rover plans to reveal replacements for the Range Rover (2021) and the Range Rover Sport (2022), as well as a brand-new pure electric crossover, an on/off project dubbed Road Rover (2022), which has been simmering inside the marque’s R&D department for over a decade. At the centre of Land Rover’s design facility, in a small but bright cuckoo’s nest, you’ll find chief creative ocer Gerry McGovern, whose signature features on the recently unveiled 50th anniversary special edition Range Rovers. Like only a handful of top guns in the car-design business – Audi’s Marc Lichte, Aston’s Marek Reichman and Gorden Wagener of MercedesBenz – Land Rover’s chief designer enjoys the trust and support of his board. Until September that board will be led by Ralf Speth, in charge of JLR for a decade. When Speth steps down to become non-executive vice-chairman, new CEO Thierry Bolloré (see below) takes over.
The support is understandable, as McGovern was instrumental in turning around this now highly successful maker of premium SUVs, which earns the funds the CEO needs to keep Jaguar out of intensive care.
When McGovern and his team presented the Velar to the press, the new model was flanked by a current Range Rover Sport and a long-wheelbase Range Rover. ‘Of this threesome, the Velar is clearly the most modern, advanced vehicle,’ explained the maestro. ‘The other two models are going to evolve in different directions. The next Sport will be even chunkier, bolder, more aggressive. The Range Rover, on the other hand, will become even sleeker, smoother and sexier. The proportions are to be more contemporary, but the message it relays remains the same: tastefully reduced, understated.’
ONE PLATFORM BENEATH THEM ALL
MLA is the key to all Jaguar Land Rover’s premium future models. Short for Modular Longitudinal Architecture, MLA is complemented by MTA (T for transversely-mounted engines) at the bottom end of the fleet. MLA comes in three versions known as low (next Jaguar i-Pace), mid (Jaguar’s forthcoming J-Pace flagship SUV) and high (Range Rover). Fully scalable in length, width, height and wheelbase, the aluminium MLA is much lighter, stiffer and less complex than the D7 platform it replaces. It’s a flexible yet extensively standardised base which can cater for both Jag and Land Rover.
All three versions can accommodate combustion engines, plug-in hybrids and zero-emission battery-electric powertrains. Via selectively defined modules and structural interfaces, the extensive adaptability stretches from passenger cars through crossovers to wilderness-ready full SUVs. But MLA is not just about parts sharing and commonality. It also describes key character-forming and investment-intensive componentry like axles, transmissions, differentials, brakes and powertrains, not to mention the full range of option packs from luxury to serious off-roading.
SLEEKER BUT STILL A RANGE ROVER
The camouflaged prototypes recently caught on camera in Germany and in the far north, undergoing cold-weather testing, don’t tell the full story. But they do indicate a wider, lower and more aerodynamic silhouette, a more steeply raked windscreen and a more three-dimensional evolution of the current, slab-sided form. This time around, the long-wheelbase version is no afterthought but an integral part of the L460 programme, a truth reflected in the bespoke rear doors, side windows and falling roofline.
The traditional split tailgate lives on, as do – most likely – the vertical louvres in the front wings and the trademark wraparound indicators. The stacked indicators and repeaters – two on each side, front and rear, and first seen on the new Defender – are also likely to make an appearance on the new Range Rover. Another item handed down from the latest Land Rover is its much faster and more comprehensive infotainment system, complete with large touchscreen, wi-fi, secure vehicle tracking, real-time nav and over-the-air updates.
FUTURE PROOFED
Noteworthy tech set to feature on the next Range Rover includes a 48-volt system as an enabler for mild hybrids, air suspension with increased bandwidth, steel as well as carbon-ceramic disc brake options, electric power steering in combination with Level 2 assisted motorway driving and eyesoff Level 3 in the making, Bentayga/DBX-style active anti-roll bars (carried over from the last gen), a locking rear diff, Terrain Response 3 off-road electronics and a choice of even larger wheel and tyre sizes which currently max out at 22 inches.
In addition, the next Range Rover will take
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The new Range Rover is a wider, lower and more aerodynamic evolution of the current form
connectivity to another level by integrating the vehicle into the user’s personalised digital microcosm. Be it by voice activation, pressing a button or using the tailor-made app, you can prepare for your next journey, whether that’s advice from the car (about when and where to fill up), route planning, road pricing (the app will pre-pay the congestion charge, if required), parking (pre-booked, pre-paid) or a spot of off-roading (adjusting tyre pressures).
At the same time, the next Range Rover will be more comfortable than ever, offering heated and ventilated active-support massage seats all round, together with adjustable surface heating for door panels and both armrests. The goal is sustainable luxury with a twist – the opulence buyers expect but without the guilt that comes hand-in-hand with acres of leather, felled timber and conspicuous excess.
THE FAMILY RANGE ROVER
According to several sources, MLA is the confirmed donor platform for no less than five new JLR models. First off is the aforementioned Jaguar J-Pace (code X393), due 2021. After one short cycle the i-Pace is set to move to the MLA-low platform in 2025. The petrol/diesel-only J-Pace sits on the larger and higher MLA-mid matrix; there is no EV version of this SUV in the pipeline. The greenest derivative earmarked for the F-Pace’s bigger brother is a longer-range PHEV: the familiar 296bhp 2.0-litre four with a 20kWh battery (sourced from BMW’s HEAT – highly-integrated electric drivetrain – parts set) for a combined output of some 440bhp and 400lb ft. Naturally, all-wheel drive will be standard. Expect 30,000 units per year, at prices competitive with German rivals.
While the J-Pace keeps fuel-burning traditionalists happy, the all-new electric XJ will build on the trailblazing brilliance of the i-Pace. Codenamed X301, the new XJ is fully electric and based on the new MLA-mid architecture. Expect power around the 450bhp mark, some 480lb ft of torque and a 100kWh, BMW-derived battery. Expect approximately 10,000 units per year and prices somewhat below Mercedes’ forthcoming electric flagship, the EQS, and the eagerly anticipated BMW i7.
The first Land Rover on MLA is the all-new Range Rover, called L460 internally. Based on the full-size MLA-high matrix, the Mk5 Range Rover will again offer a choice of two wheelbase options. Mild hybridisation with e-boosting will be standard across the board, except on the two plug-in hybrids. The base PHEV features the 300bhp P300 2.0-litre four in combination with a 140bhp e-motor. The more powerful derivative matches the 394bhp/406lb ft Ingenium 3.0-litre six to the standard 20kWh battery and the same e-motor for a total output of 534bhp and 502lb ft of torque. Once again, all-wheel drive will be standard issue – a Range Rover with an idle axle feels wildly inauthentic. Other engines include a mild-hybrid version of the 3.0-litre six detuned to 355bhp, an all-new straight-six diesel (see right), and a BMW-sourced 4.4-litre V8 range-topper good for 520bhp. ⊲
The next Range Rover’s aluminium MLA structure is much lighter, sti er and less complex than thenpdrevious D7 matrix
The fifth Range Rover epitomises the fine art of the high-end British 4x4
A NEW SPORT TO FOLLOW
The Range Rover Sport – which in aggressive and sporty Mk2 guise is one of Gerry McGovern’s crowning achievements – is also set for replacement. We should see the L461-generation car next year too, making 2021 an unbelievably busy year for Land Rover – unless Covid and the economic downturn pull the launch dates of the Range Rover and Range Rover Sport further apart.
The next Sport sits on the MLA-mid architecture and shares most of its under-bonnet hardware with Velar and Range Rover. Both PHEV modules are twinned with petrol engines, the only diesel being the new 3.0-litre six (296bhp or 345bhp). Land Rover’s own 5.0-litre V8 gives way to that 4.4-litre BMW unit. Again, all-wheel drive will be compulsory, as will a ZF eightspeed gearbox. Volume is expected to be 50,000 units annually (as opposed to 40,000 for the Range Rover).
REVOLUTION: THE ROAD ROVER!
And now for something completely different – the battery-electric Road Rover, a kind of Range Rover i-Pace, dubbed L392, due in 2022 and set to use the MLA-mid architecture. Imagine, if you can, a kind of a zero-emission Super Velar lowrider tapping into the same componentry as its sister models. Batteries are likely to be 100 and 120kWh (derived from BMW’s performance EV components set), reportedly good for 496bhp/575lb ft and 603bhp/642lb ft. The transmission is textbook performance-EV: all-wheel drive via a motor and single-speed reduction gearbox on each axle. Expect 10,000 units per year and lofty pricing.
A BATTERY ELECTRIC RANGE ROVER?
For a BEV Range Rover we must wait until 2027, and a car one generation more advanced and notably more off-road-capable than the Road Rover. Fully electric, the future crossover flagship taps MLA-high. The two battery options, courtesy of BMW, are said to be rated at 90 and 120kWh. While the lesser version develops an estimated 536bhp and 590lb ft, the top-of-the-line variant is allegedly good for 670bhp and a monstrous, Everest-scrambling 738lb ft. All-wheel drive is a given, and we may also see a new two-speed powershift transmission. While such practice is indulgently expensive, performance is increased – the Porsche Taycan uses a two-speed rear gearbox for blood vessel-troubling initial acceleration with greater eciency at speed. The electric Range Rover could do the same but with extremely accurate and torque-rich low-speed drive the low ratio’s priority, rather than uncouth, supercar-style acceleration.
Just as the weight, refinement and torque of an EV powertrain suits marques like Bentley perfectly, so they’re a good fit for JLR’s flagship. ‘On the road, the increased refinement and silent running [of an electrified powertrain] excites me,’ JLR vehicle line director Nick Collins has told CAR previously. ‘And off-road, you get peak torque at zero revs together with much more accurate control.’
RANGE ROVER: THE FIFTH COMING
Land Rover understands better than most that it’s love at first sight that really matters. Good news, then, that even when clad in a swirly camo wrap the new Rangie impresses with its self-confident stance and classy, restrained proportions. It is less extrovert than Velar but just as elegant.
Those who considered Evoque 2.0 too evolutionary should find project L460 more satisfyingly ambitious, even if – on the surface, at least – the next Range Rover will be as laudably restrained as ever. More so than the more performance-focused, brasher Aston Martin DBX, the Range Rover epitomises the fine art of the high-end British 4x4 – a timeless blend of style, substance, craftsmanship and comfort. True, the full electrification of Range Rover is set to arrive rather late. But when the icon does finally go electric, in 2027, we can at least expect a truly formidable luxury SUV – as each new generation of Spen King’s enduring classic must surely be.