Land Rover Is Designing A Soft-Roader Called The Road Rover
Land Rover is doing something that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago: building a car that isn’t designed to go off-road any more than any other car. It will start a new model line with a controversial new name, and the first will be all-electric.
Autocar is reporting that the new car, which will come in 2020 at the latest, will be badged as a ‘Road Rover’. We know exactly what’s coming in the comments, but it’s safe to say that this one will prod the fire beneath a bubbling cauldron of opinions. JLR has already got Jaguar to take care of the road car side of things. Surely the two brands are heading for a world of sales cannibalism hurt, particularly when the electric Jaguar i-Pace already exists?
Land Rover is apparently aiming the Road Rover at wealthy, luxury-hungry markets like China and California, and intends to build it with enough luxury and technology to rival the Mercedes S-Class, although Autocar’s renders see it more as an SUV than a saloon. But if it’s ultimately a luxury SUV, surely the Range Rover line-up already takes care of that?
The magazine says that the Road Rover will have ‘some all-terrain capability’, but then so does a Ferrari 288 GTO. We’ll reserve judgement on that front until we’ve got more information, but it would be a hell of a departure for a brand built on and defined by incredibly capable mud-pluggers.
Like Velar, the name Road Rover is not plucked at random. Back in the 1950s the name was considered for Rover models, with the idea being to form a link between the original Land Rover’s proud British military heritage and the road-going cars. Marketing nonsense for the win. As it happened, though, the idea was binned for a decade until an off-road three-door estate was designed: the first concept that would eventually turn into the original production Range Rover.
The project is one of JLR’s most secret, so don’t count on us getting any more data any time soon. But feel free to tell us what you think of the idea, at least.
Source: Autocar
Comments
Am I the only one that laughed when I saw the name of the car?
But… aren’t ALL Land Rovers (minus the Defender) like that?
That’s the point
I thought the soft roader was Calle Seth evoque?
So that Land Rover which ended up in a pool after a party will be re-branded as Water-Rover?
Land rover
Range rover
Road rover
Drag rover
Track rover
Speed rover
Drift rover
Water rover
Rock rover
Snow rover
Dirt rover
Gold rover
What next. I don’t known, memes rover?
but land rovers after 2012 have basically been this shiteee awd crossover tings
JLR have Land Rover brand and Jaguar brand.
One for off-roaders, other for luxury and sports cars. Whats wrong with that?!
JLR be like nah, lets screw up the brands and make F-pace first and then a Land Rover which isn’t a Land Rover.
Porsche made Cayenne and Macan, Bentley made Bentayga, Mercedes made X-class, BMW made a 3-cylinder FWD compact-van, Lamborghini is making Urus… So what’s wrong with Jaguar F-pace or RR? ))
Except the name nothing is new.
Land Rover is designing cars only for streets since a long time
And btw. The name sounds dumb
Road Rover? Isn’t that just a Rover?
It seems to me like this is a vehicle that nobody was asking for… then again, I probably would have said the same thing about crossovers.