AIMS: Land Rover hopes crowds will flock to Evoque

BRITISH mud-plugging specialist Land Rover will have both three-door ‘coupe’ and five-door variants of its urban-oriented Range Rover Evoque crossover taking pride of place on its Australian International Motor Show stand.

Land Rover will also display limited-edition variants of its compact SUV-sized Freelander and venerable Defender off-roader, while the more luxurious end of the brand’s line-up will be represented by the Discovery 4, Range Rover Sport and Range Rover Vogue Autobiography flagship.

The latter – priced from $212,500 and representing the most expensive vehicle on Land Rover’s stand – was subject to a mild facelift in February, headlined by the addition of a more efficient V8 twin-turbo diesel engine.

The head-turning Evoque’s first trip to Australia’s fashion capital – ahead of its November arrival in Australia – follows its Down Under debut in three-door form at the Sydney show last year.

Land Rover Australia brand manager Tim Krieger told GoAuto that both Evoque variants at the show will be displayed in a specification that will be available in Australia.

Priced lower than expected (from $53,395 to $75,895), the Evoque will become the most affordable Range Rover product, going head-to-head with premium crossovers like BMW’s X1 (priced from $43,990 to $60,564) and next year’s Audi Q3.

Engine options will include 110kW/400Nm TD4 and 140kW/420Nm SD4 versions of the 2.2-litre turbo diesel that powers the Freelander and will also sit under the bonnet of a new entry-level Jaguar XF from October.

Representing petrol power will be a 177kW/340Nm Ford-derived 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol four-cylinder that will find its way into next year’s locally built Falcon and can also be found under the bonnets of Volvo’s S60, V60 and XC60.