Land Rover is drip feeding details for its forthcoming Range Rover Electric, which is said to be quieter but just as quick as the V8-engined P530.
We saw this coming, didn’t we? Land Rover has announced that development of its first all-electric Range Rover is well underway, inviting customers to join a waiting list to be among the first to take delivery in 2024.
The Range Rover Electric is set to be the most advanced version yet, riding on an 800V Modular Longitudinal Architecture with an EV powertrain built in-house. Details are still thin on the ground, but Land Rover promises not to compromise on versatility or off-road performance with its first EV, while taking the Range Rover to new levels of refinement and luxury.
The firm hasn’t held back on setting targets for the new model, claiming that it will offer all-terrain technology, wading and towing ability to surpass any other EV in its segment. The EV has been designed to offer similar performance to the petrol-engined Range Rover P530, which uses a 390kW 4.4-litre twin-turbocharged V8 to achieve a 4.4sec 0-100km/h time. Those numbers won’t trouble a Tesla Model X Plaid, but the Range Rover has never been a car for drag racing on YouTube.
Instead, the EV has been designed to be the quietest and most sumptuous Range Rover ever built, thanks to the silent powertrain and active noise cancellation. It will also offer a ‘unique sound design’ according to Land Rover, suggesting that some sort of artificial driving noise will be pumped through the speakers.
Off-road performance is one of Land Rover’s key engineering pillars, and the Range Rover Electric is being tested for its all-terrain ability in extreme conditions ahead of its global launch next year. With an 850mm wading depth it falls 50mm short of the petrol model but matches the Range Rover Sport, and will offer the usual suite of Terrain Response systems and wade sensors. The MLA platform allows for four-wheel drive with an electric motor on each axle, and these will be calibrated to optimise traction on a range of surfaces.
We don’t know how far the Range Rover Electric will go on a charge, but it’s reasonable to expect a range beyond 480km to compete with the Mercedes EQS SUV and Lotus Eletre. There will be a series of subtle design changes to improve aero efficiency and eke out a few more miles, and Land Rover promises competitive charging speeds thanks to the 800V architecture.