Advert
Land Rover will introduce a two-wheel drive Range Rover as well as a diesel hybrid model that will emit less than 100 g/km of CO2.
The new compact Range Rover, previously known as the LRX, will be the first ever two-wheel drive Land Rover model, but there will also be a four-wheel drive version. On sale in 2011, the 2WD vehicle will emit less than 130 g/km of CO2 – making it the lightest, most fuel efficient Range Rover ever.
Phil Popham, Land Rover managing director said: “Land Rover has announced that the all-new compact Range Rover will be available in 2WD. This is good news for the company and for our customers. A 2WD option is just one way in which we are developing our vehicles’ efficiency whilst adding to the Land Rover range and expanding our customer base. We will continue to make the ‘world’s finest all-terrain vehicles’ for those customers who require 4WD but will also now offer an alternative to those that don’t.”
As part of the introduction of 2WD, Land Rover will be focussing on three main areas of technology – reducing the weight of Land Rover vehicles, reducing parasitic losses and increasing powertrain efficiency.
The use of hybrid technology is also planned for the larger vehicles in the range. By the end of 2010 Land Rover will be testing the first diesel hybrid prototype called the ‘range_e’ which is being developed using a Range Rover Sport platform. Tests of this vehicle will use the existing 3.0 litre TDV6 diesel engine featuring a ZF 8-speed automatic transmission. The goal is to achieve a range of 20 miles using electric power only, emitting less than 100 g/km of CO2 emissions and to achieve a top speed of around 120 mph. The first diesel hybrid will be available in 2012.
Jaguar Land Rover has committed to investing £800 million in developing environmental technologies and remains committed to developing vehicles with sustainable features which respond to customer demand.
Keywords: Land Rover, two-wheel drive compact Range Rover, diesel hybrid Range Rover Sport, less than 100 g/km CO2
