Only last week, we brought you spy pictures of the all-new 2012 Range Rover, but our man with the long lens has once again managed to capture the luxury 4×4, this time, in and out of the Nordschleife.
The company’s test drivers put the zebra-dressed Range Rover prototype through its paces to check out different suspension settings and evaluate its on-road high-speed behavior and agility.
This will be the fourth generation of the model that initiated the luxury 4×4 segment back in 1970, but the first to be developed under new owner Tata Motors, which brought the brand along with Jaguar from Ford in 2008.
Even though it still bears heavy camouflage, we can see that the lines of Range Rover’s flagship are influenced by the all-new Evoque, something that the company’s head of design, Gerry McGovern, has already admitted in a recent interview.
This means that instead of the classic but rather boxy design the new generation of the Range Rover will have a more raked windshield and rear window and a shallower window line.
Off-road ability is a given in any Range Rover, but it seems that the company will pay special attention to on-road manners as well. And justifiably so, since the competition in the luxury SUV segment has become fierce.
The new Tata developed Range Rover will use much of the expertise gained in developing Jaguar’s new models such as the XJ, with lightweight materials making their presence in its construction in order to shed almost half a tonne compared to its predecessor.
Tata is counting heavily on the new Range Rover to emulate the success of the Evoque since Land Rover is –currently- the only part of its automotive group that is increasing its sales.
The new Range Rover will be powered by a newly-developed range of diesel and petrol engines, including V6 and V8 naturally aspirated and supercharged configurations combined with an 8-speed auto transmission. Later on, a hybrid model based on the diesel-hybrid Range_e concept will also be launched.
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