Jaguar Land Rover is undertaking a significant programme that will see every model in the group’s product line-up updated by 2024, according to Autocar. This will comprise an expansion courtesy of four new or returning nameplates, and 99 new model variants will be launched by then.
The report names the Jaguar I-Pace, new Land Rover Defender, a flagship Jaguar J-Pace SUV and a road-biased Range Rover ‘Allroad’ as the four new models. First to emerge from JLR’s group-wide model revamp is the Range Rover Evoque, which will be based upon a heavily revised version of its current steel platform.
That platform will be known as the Premium Transverse Architecture (PTA), which the company says has been significantly upgraded to justify the new name. Better ride comfort will result from the new, stiffer body structure, says the company, while refinement has also been improved. This is helped by a 10% reduction of drag and wind noise thanks to improved aerodynamics, Autocar quotes JLR as saying.
However, the company’s new strategy will see its model line-up eventually move to the Modular Longitudinal Architecture (MLA) platform for all-new models, across the board. Designed for rear- and all-wheel-drive layouts, this new architecture will allow for petrol and diesel mild-hybrid powertrains, as well as plug-in hybridity and a full EV configuration.
Luggage space will also grow by 10% in the new models, a growth that will also carry over to the PHEV and EV versions as the battery packs will be installed beneath the floorpan, ahead of the rear axle, the report says.
The Evoque 2 will also be the first Land Rover model to get ‘see-through’ bonnet technology. This is enabled by under-engine cameras and head-up display technology to overlay an image of the ground, otherwise hidden by the car’s front end. This will be complemented by a ‘smart’ rear-view mirror, JLR says.
On the side of conventional fuels, a new generation of Ingenium diesel engines will convert up to 98% of NOx emissions into harmless gases, and will be much cleaner than is required by forthcoming regulations. All new models will be powered by a selection of three base Ingenium engines, which will be include a three-cylinder and an inline-six-cylinder.
Future petrol and diesel engines will also feature electric turbochargers, which will allow for downsizing. Sad news if you’re a fan of large, multi-cylinder engines; JLR V8s will be discontinued, and will be replaced by high-performance versions of the Ingenium inline-six.
The efficiency leader for the Evoque range will be a plug-in hybrid, employing a 300-volt setup paired with a new three-cylinder Ingenium diesel for a CO2 rating of 45 g/km. The company says this exceeds China’s requirements for ‘new energy vehicles’, which automakers are aiming to attain due to the sales potential in the Chinese market stemming from the country’s objective of becoming a leader in EVs.
The aforementioned aluminium MLA platform will be lighter than the current JLR aluminium architecture, which Autocar says will also bring with it more driver aids. The all-new Defender will be the first to use this platform, to be built at JLR’s new plant in Slovakia from 2020 alongside the Discovery. The space vacated in Solihull by the relocation of Discovery production is tipped to be taken up by the forthcoming J-Pace, also to be based on the MLA platform.
At the top of the tree, the all-new Range Rover will be postponed until 2021, and an all-electric version of the range-topper won’t be making its debut sooner than 2022. Meanwhile, the new, road-oriented ‘Allroad’ is scheduled for 2022 onwards. This, Autocar says, isn’t fully confirmed, and that a downturn in the economy or a further downwards trend of global estate car sales could see the project axed.
Beyond 2024, Autocar quotes official documents as saying that the all-new Evoque, Discovery Sport and E-Pace are set to move to the new platform from 2025 onwards. This too, however, is also subject to change, as switching the Evoque and E-Pace will mean considerable physical growth in the move to a longitudinal engine layout.
The alternative would be for JLR to invest in the potentially uneconomical decision of developing a stand-alone platform for these models, should the company want to keep the models physically as compact as possible.
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Why JLR want to update their rage by 2024? Is it bcoz tougher trading conditions in the crucial Chinese market has put pressure on the company’s financial results?
– The answer is a Big Yes.
Surely with sales in the 3rd quarter surged by almost a quarter to 137,653 cars, JLR should NOT worry Right!!
– JLR is worry bcos sales in China were down 10% even though sales in US & Europe have grown.
So, why should JLR update all their models by 2024??
– It is bcoz they have a CEO Ralf Speth who have foresight & want to grow JLR to a new high.
So…basically the new Evoque will ride on the same platform. I don’t buy their ‘major’ alteration to the existing platform it’s just sweet word or being lazy to develop something new. It’s also shocking to see an inline 6 instead of a V8 in their Range Rovers as their competitors are still developing V8 engines with hybrid assist as seen in the VW/Audi/Lambo V8 4.0 engine. All the best in competing in the upper segment JLR, especially in the American continent.