Read more
First ever fully plugged-in Range Rover arriving in 2024
Tipped to become the most powerful Range Rover ever made, the simply named Range Rover Electric has received approval for South Africa.
Taillight teaser appears identical to that of the regular Range Rover. Image: JLR
Its move towards complete electrification before 2030 having already started with the roll-out of several plug-in hybrid models, JLR, formerly Jaguar-Land Rover, has released the first series of teaser images of the first ever fully electric Range Rover due for unveiling next year.
New flagship
Modelled on the full-size model instead of the Evoque, Velar or Sport, the officially titled Range Rover Electric will form part of the Indian-owned British automakers’ Reimagine strategy that will see sister brand, Jaguar, become wholly electric in 2025.
ALSO READ: Jaguar-Land Rover officially becomes JLR without Land Rover
While confirmed to ride on the existing MLA platform instead of the EV-optimised JEA that will underpin the next Velar as well as Jaguar’s post-2025 line-up, the Electric will slot-in above the existing full-size Range Rover derivatives instead of replacing them outright.
“We are on target to create the quietest and most refined Range Rover ever created. The magic ingredients that underpin the success of Range Rover remain unchanged: timeless, design, a serene cabin and go-anywhere capability, but now offered with zero tailpipe emissions,” JLR’s Executive Director for Product Engineering, Thomas Müller, said in a statement.
“Comparable V8 performance”
Confirmed to have started testing in Sweden and Dubai, the provided teaser images show little in the way of exact details apart from the charging port, the vertical taillight cluster seemingly unchanged from the combustion engine models, and a EV decal on the centre cap of the alloy wheels.
In disclosing the images though, as well as confirming production alongside the petrol, diesel and plug-in hybrid models at the Solihull Plant in the UK as part of an investment by parent company Tata worth £70-million, JLR also disclosed first details of what its tipped to be the most powerful Range Rover ever made.
Billed as offering “performance comparable to a flagship Range Rover V8”, the Electric’s 800-volt platform will not only support fast charging, but come with a wading depth of 850 mm, the most of any current Land Rover model.
According to JLR, its standardised testing programme has gone through a number of alterations to accommodate the Electric’s powertrain as a means of ensuring the “robustness of the electric drive system, including its underfloor, battery durability, chassis integrity and vehicle dynamics for thermal derating”.
Coming to South Africa
While more details are only expected next year, including an official date-of-reveal, JLR South Africa has announced that the Range Rover Electric has received local market approval as evident by the opening of a waiting list in the run-up to the commencing of orders next year.
As such, expect more announcements to be made in due course.
NOW READ: WATCH: New Range Rover as close to motoring heaven as it gets
