LONDON: Land Rover has unveiled a series of images of its upcoming electric Range Rover being tested in Dubai. The car itself looks almost identical to the combustion-powered car with a few subtle changes.
In typical EV fashion, the front radiator grille has gone and in its place is a smoothed-off front end, while the charging flap is electrically operated and slides left to right to reveal a CCS charging port.
On the face of it, the Range Rover Electric looks almost identical to the petrol, diesel and plug-in hybrid models, bringing it closer into line styling-wise as the more "traditional" versions.
This new Electric version will also sit on the same Modular Longitudinal Architecture (MLA) as the standard cars as well.
Further details regarding its battery size, technology and performance are yet to be announced.
Thomas Muller, executive director for product engineering, said: “A hot climate is one of the most challenging for any battery-electric vehicle, because of the need to cool the cabin and optimise battery performance at the same time.
The additional challenge of driving and sand requires controlled low-speed torque, so our specially developed traction control and thermal management systems work in harmony to ensure power delivery is unaffected.
“Our tests have shown that in this climate, repeatedly driving the equivalent of 100 metres uphill on fine sand, Range Rover Electric matches the performance of its ICE equivalents; in some instances even surpassing them – thanks to the introduction of these new features.”
Prices and further details are yet to be announced, but it’s likely that the Electric Range Rover will carry a premium over the standard car which starts at £104,025 (RM587,000) in the UK. — PA Media/dpa
