Beyond 2025: Land Rover’s expansion plans

The announcement of the first fully-electric Range Rover this week marks the beginning of a new era for the luxury off-road brand, as well as the wider Land Rover line-up.

The battery-powered Range Rover is one of six pure-electric Land Rover models to arrive from 2024, with the British marque set to begin expanding its product lines from the middle of this decade.

As parent company Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) initiates the introduction of electric vehicles (EVs) to its range, it will also start phasing out diesel engines from 2026 – with internal-combustion engines set to disappear from its portfolio entirely 10 years later.

The BMW 4.4-litre V8 announced for the latest Range Rover appears to begin the start of a rekindled relationship between the German giant and JLR. In 2019, the two companies announced they would jointly invest in EV technologies and share components on future models.

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With the first electric variant due to arrive in 2024, the Range Rover line-up was rumoured to be joined by a so-called ‘Road Rover’ – a low-slung SUV with shared architecture from the Jaguar XJ – but earlier this year sources told the UK’s Autocar the project had been axed.

The same publication says sources within the company are now looking at plans to offer a more luxurious SUV based on the underpinnings of the just-unveiled Range Rover – but with the model set to wear a Defender badge.

The large luxury Defender would be aimed at the likes of the Mercedes-Benz G-Wagen, which is a vehicle of choice for those able to afford its combination of rugged looks, performance, opulent interior, and off-road capability.

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A report from the UK’s WhatCar suggests the other end of the range will also grow, with the addition of a ‘baby Defender’.

It’s said the small SUV will come with a 1.5-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine, as well as the option of a plug-in hybrid powertrain. The baby Defender is rumoured to come in both front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive, with the expectation the model will compete directly with the likes of the Suzuki Jimny.

As with Range Rover, it’s thought both the Defender and Discovery product lines will mature into their own pseudo sub-brands, covering a greater area of the new-car market from the second half of this decade.