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Land Rover’s first crossover coupe may also be the company’s first EV

2016 Range Rover Sport SVR
2016 Range Rover Sport SVR Image used with permission by copyright holder
Land Rover Range Rover Sport – now that’s a long name for a vehicle. Still, the UK automaker may be planning to make it just a tad longer by adding the second most popular word in the present automotive lexicon: coupe.

With “crossover” being the most popular segment/word, automakers are looking to increase the number of ways that consumers can, well, consume these models. For BMW, the answer was its four-door cross-coupe X6, introduced in 2008. Since then, other brands have been playing catch-up. Mercedes-Benz most recently introduced the GLE Coupe as a direct rival to the X6, while smaller versions of the cross-coupe design have cropped up all over the market.

Now Land Rover wants in on the action, and according to Autocar, the company will start where BMW did – in the mid-size luxury category. Codenamed the L560, Land Rover’s new model will likely share its new chassis with the Jaguar F-Pace and will be marketed as more of a road warrior than dual-sport instrument.

And speaking of the F-Pace, its lightweight aluminum structure will be good for more than just better fuel economy from gas and diesel engines, there’s a good chance the brand’s rumored electric model will be based on this new platform. A lighter body and frame, with improved aerodynamics from the coupe design would be the perfect bedrock for an electric powertrain.

JLR is currently developing an electric motor for its F-Pace EV that should debut next year to help the company hit California’s target of 15% fleetmix of battery electric vehicles by 2025. Since this new Land Rover-branded crossover coupe will spend almost all of its time in cities and suburbs, an EV powertrain makes sense. There’s also talk of a hybrid setup that will pair a smaller electric motor with the XF and XE’s 340 horsepower supercharged V6.

The non-electric powertrains should come from Land Rover’s range of six and eight-cylinder diesel and gas engines, with the F-Pace’s four-cylinder also a possibility.

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Miles Branman
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