Land Rovers have always gone their own way – often literally. While off-roading demands a low center of gravity and muddy trails would seem to warrant hose-out interiors and body-on-frame-construction, the British automaker has long contented itself building tippy-looking unibody boxes with tall greenhouses and opulent cabins – the anti-Humvee, as it were. Further, in recent iterations, they've packed their products with immense electronic systems, air suspensions, dial-a-topography Terrain Response controller, and so on... the very sort of complexity that ought to be enough to send English sports car enthusiasts running back to their therapists' offices.

And yet, the formula has always worked – vehicles like the Range Rover and Discovery (now LR3) have somehow managed to earn both Kalahari-traversing credentials and valet stand privileges. Other companies have attempted the leather-lined off-roader thing before (Lamborghini, Lexus, Hummer, Porsche, and LaForza come to mind), but while some have added the trappings of luxury to their SUVs, exactly no one has been as successful in marrying their vehicles to the notion of aristocracy – the sort of "Lord and Master of All That I Survey" quality that has remained Solihull's historic preserve. In short, Land Rovers have always been a gloriously and uniquely British contradiction on wheels – a fact that goes some way toward explaining why your author remains more than a little conflicted when it comes to this LR2.

Click through to the jump to find how it all shakes out.



Photos copyright ©2009 Chris Paukert / Weblogs, Inc.

On the eve of the New York Auto Show, Land Rover has released all the details on its new 2010 LR4. The new LR4 (the SUV formerly-known-as LR3) is packing a thoroughly revised, direct-injected 5.0-liter V8 sourced from Jaguar putting 375 hp and 375 lb-ft of torque through a six-speed automatic transmission. Land Rover has updated its Terrain Response system to deliver five different settings to suit the terrain, ranging from a normal driving mode to the infamous "Rock Crawl" setting.

A new front end with revised headlamps and fascia joins a restyled rump with LEDs, while an all-new interior provides ample accommodations for five or seven passengers, depending on spec. A Surround Camera system joins keyless entry, push-button start, gradient release control and tow assist (max. towing is 7,716 pounds) to make jaunts to Grandma's through the snowy climes a breeze. A revised suspension architecture, improved steering and larger brakes (14.2-inch discs in front and 13.8-inch rotors in the rear) round out the major modifications.

Hit the jump for all the details and check the gallery below for plenty of LR4 eye-candy.

When the facelifted Range Rover Sport and Land Rover Discovery 3 (LR3 in the U.S.) take their bows later this year, in addition to the new faces they'll also be showing off new engines. The 2.7-liter TDV6 currently used is good for 190 hp and 324 lb-ft. The new engine will be Jaguar's 3.0-liter twin turbocharged V6 diesel and will come in two flavors: one with 237 hp for the Discovery 3, and one with 272 hp and 420 lb-ft for the Range Rover Sport.

Those numbers are down on the figures achieved by the same lump in the Jaguar, at 275 hp and 443 lb-ft, but even the 237 hp variant should give the 190 hp 2.7-liter a proper shellacking. Even though the 2.7-liter, might remain as an option, the same engine swap yielded a 12% increase in gas mileage in the Jaguar. With the 3.0-liter providing more power on less fuel, it makes us think the 2.7-liter will be shown the door either by Land Rover or its customers.

[Source: Autocar]

Click above for high-res gallery of the Land Rover LR2 HSE

The LR2 gives Land Rover a semi-affordable entry model that is much more fuel efficient than the rest of the luxury SUV-maker's lineup. To help keep LR2 sales strong in a car market that is increasingly tougher for crossovers and SUVs, Land Rover is reportedly looking at adding a third row of seats by 2010. So the question is, how does Land Rover differentiate the seven-seat LR2 from the five-seater? Sometimes an automaker will just increase the number in the model's name by one, but that apparently doesn't work well with the luxury automaker's brilliantly simple naming convention.

One idea is to shuffle names around to differentiate the two LR2 models. The seven-seat LR2 could be called the LR3, while the current LR3, a different model entirely, would then get bumped up to LR4 status. We understand there aren't many options for Land Rover, but shuffling around model names with which customers are already familiar seems extreme. Why not make the seven-seat model the LR2 L or LR2 XL or LR2 ES? There is, after all, already an LR2 HSE.


[Source: Auto Week]

When Aston Martin was up for bid a few months ago, billionaires that nobody has ever heard of were coming out of the woodwork to bid on the ultra-luxury lineup. Now Ford is trying to recapture the magic with the sale of its other two premium British Marquees, Jaguar and Land Rover. The problem is, Jaguar is a cash whore and Land Rover doesn't have nearly the cachet of Aston (big surprise). We've heard differing accounts as to the worth of Ford's unwanted PAG members, but Merrill Lynch pegs the number at between $1.3 billion and $1.5 billion. That certainly isn't chump change, but it's only marginally better than the $900 million that was paid for smallish Aston. Many of the "small-time" billionaires aren't bothering with this sale, even at lower financials, because they couldn't afford one of Jaguar's big-time losses, and stalwarts like Blackstone are rumored to be out, too. Hyundai and Nissan/Renault don't seem to be interested either.

Ford already brunted a lot of the financial pain for Jaguar when it closed a plant and bought out a lot of workers, and the forthcoming XF should help the bottom line immensely. Land Rover is profitable and has plenty of newer models to keep sales strong for the foreseeable future. We'd be surprised if there weren't a lot of sand-baggers that show up soon looking to get something for next to nothing.

[Source: Auto News - sub. req'd]

Over the past half century Land Rovers have become synonymous with naturalists and peacekeepers the world over. The Land Rover factory in Solihull, England turned out the first of those famous off-road vehicles 59 years ago and yesterday, the four millionth example of the breed rolled out the plant and into the hands of the Born Free Foundation. Since these vehicles have so often been used explore and film nature, the historic model will be used to help preserve it.

The Land Rover LR3 was accepted Born Free's Founder patron Joanna Lumley and will be used by the Foundation as a Rapid Response Rescue vehicle starting this summer in England, rescuing and releasing stranded marine animals. Lumley is the actress best known for her portrayal of past-her-expiry-date party girl Patsy on the BBC series Absolutely Fabulous.

[Source: Ford]

Click to enlarge

This is only for the UK, which is kind of a shame. Some of us Autobloggers live in frozen regions where cargo vans fear to tread. Of course, we could pony up for a Quigley, but a Landie offers its stellar air suspension, storied capabilities, and more comfort. For commercial users, vans often make sense, but for those of us who aren't hauling furniture, the new Land Rover Discovery 3 Commercial sounds like it'd be just the ticket. The Disco, which we know in the US as the LR3, has had some fairy dust sprinkled on it in order to receive tax refunds offered to businesses by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs.

Post continues after the jump.

[Source: Land Rover]

What's with all these class-action lawsuits lately? Land Rover was just slapped with one thanks to Attorney Mark Anderson in California who filed suit on behalf of all 2004 and 2005 Land Rover LR3 owners in the state. Turns out that the tires on many of these LR3 SUVs are allegedly wearing unevenly, which causes them to make loud noises when the vehicle is moving. The piece we link to from KGO-TV Channel 7 in the Bay Area highlights the trouble of one man, Lew Colon, whose LR3 developed the noise after only 5,000 miles. After some complaining, Colon got Land Rover to give him three new tires, though he had to pay for the fourth. After another 6,000 miles, however, the tires started to wear unevenly again and the noise returned. At 25,000 miles now, Colon's still on that second set.

Land Rover has issues a technical service bulletin about the abnormal wear with instructions for service technicians to use new suspension settings. It would seem that the company at least acknowledges the rapid and uneven tire wear can be traced back to a flaw in the vehicle's suspension design, but so far it has not issued a recall to fix the problem. In the meantime, Colon and the rest of the LR3 owners in California will be filing suit against the automaker to seek a solution.

Thanks for the tip, Oliver!

[Source: KGO-TV Channel 7]

Volvo's new rival for the BMW X3 is apparently getting close to production. The new Volvo XC50 should reach dealers around the same time as another new Euro rival, the Audi Q5. Looks like there are going to be a lot of good competitors in the premium mini-ute segment. The XC50 will most likely be built on the C1 chassis underpinning the Euro Focus, Mazda3, Volvo S40 and V50. Engines should be similar to the V50's, minus the smaller ones. We're probably going to see gas engines ranging from 145 to 220hp, and perhaps the new diesel D5 unit putting out 180hp.

The Volvo XC50 will look like a mini-me version of the larger XC90. Not a copy, but similar. Infomotori sources are saying that the platform is the same as the V50, with a strong family resemblance to the new Volvo C30. It is also expected to share much with the next-generation Land Rover Freelander/LR3, including its trick AWD system.

Although only labeled a concept at this point, the car should be unveiled at the NAIAS in Detroit in January and go on sale as early as Spring 2008. Expected to be approximately the same size as the Toyota RAV4, it will compete a bit further upscale with the likes of the Lexus RX, BMW X3 and new Acura RDX.

[Source: InfoMotori]

Related Posts:

• Spy Shots: Volvo readies XC60 mini-ute for NAIAS in January
• Volvo XC50 in the pipeline
• Land Rover Freelander becomes baby LR3

As we've heard from Wheels24 before, Volvo plans to offer a smaller XC in their lineup in the not-too-distant future. The Volvo XC60 mid-size SUV, should be available to the public in late 2008. The news here comes from the folks at World Car Fans who say it will be dubbed XC60, rather than XC50 and that it will share a platform with the V70. Based on the Ford C1 EUCD platform, the XC60 should sport familiar gas and diesel engines from the S40 and V50. It is also expected to share much with the next-generation Land Rover Freelander/LR3, including its trick AWD system.

Although only labeled a concept at this point, the car should be unveiled at the NAIAS in Detroit in January and go on sale as early as Spring 2008. Expected to be approximately the same size as the Toyota RAV4, it will compete a bit further upscale with the likes of the Lexus RX, BMW X3 and new Acura RDX. Styling is conservative and the family resemblance is unmistakable if this rendering is accurate.

[Source: WorldCarFans]