The countdown is on to the unveiling of the new 2012 Range Rover, due in just a few months’ time over this Olympic summer. And you can tell its debut is nearing as the camouflage continues to drop off the new Rangie.
This new set of spyshots is our best look yet at the new Range Rover – a once-a-decade launch for Land Rover, and consequently rather important.
Once-a-decade you say? So the new Range Rover is a big deal?
You bet. CAR Magazine’s new spyshots reveal similar proportions to today’s Range Rover, but the detailing will be very new and bang up to date in this post-Evoque world.
Despite the black tape, you can see that the front end is upright and bluff, conforming to design chief Jerry McGovern’s dictat that the top-of-the-range model must be regal and proud. But don’t take these photos too much at face value; the devil is in the detail.
It’s an all-new model, sired from a new aluminium-intensive matrix to save weight. This car will be substantially lighter than the outgoing Range Rover which weighed in at a chunky 2810kg. Never mind pinch an inch – you’re grabbing yards with the biggest Land Rovers from the outgoing generation.
Note also the panoramic glass roof and split tailgate visible in these new Range Rover spy photos.
So what else is new on the 2012/2013 Range Rover?
A quick glimpse at the top of the windscreen reveals the usual camera-based observation systems, so we’d expect radar- and lens-assisted devices to help you cruise, keep a safe distance from the car in front and deploy lights and wipers automatically.
We’ve previously reported how Land Rover is focusing on improving the rear passenger access and you can now see that the rear door has a larger opening area (the shutline today is vertical, here it is angled sharply back) – promising easier access to what is pledged to be a roomier rear seat.
We expect the Jaguar Land Rover group’s new V6 engine to be made available in the new Range Rover. While most Europeans will surely spec a diesel, the just-announced 3.0-litre bent six in supercharged guise should do wonders to trim the thirst of a 5.0-litre V8. In the new F-type, it’ll offer 335bhp or 375bhp – plenty enough to keep a two-tonne luxury SUV on boost.