Range Rover Evoque: the LRX concept made real

The Range Rover Evoque is a subcompact luxury crossover SUV developed and produced by Jaguar Land Rover. The original car grew out of the Land Rover LRX concept shown at the North American International Auto Show in January 2008; the first generation was built from July 2011 to 2018, and the second went into production in 2018.

Range Rover Evoque at a glance

based on one source (English Wikipedia); no free photographs of the model were available, so the previous cover stays

History of the Range Rover Evoque

The LRX concept was sized to carry Land Rover’s e_Terrain efficiency ideas: biofuel compatibility, lightweight materials, removable carbon composite roof panels, regenerative brakes, stop-start and an ERAD electric rear axle drive hybrid system. ERAD could move the LRX up to 20 mph (32 km/h) before the engine started, and was meant to cut CO2 by about 20% on the NEDC cycle. Land Rover aimed at 120 g/km and 60 mpg on the European combined cycle with a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel based on the PSA DW12. The Evoque would become the only four-cylinder vehicle in the Range Rover line.

The production Evoque kept nearly identical bodywork to the LRX, including a cabin-length panoramic sunroof. It used unibody construction rather than body on frame, weighed 1,670 kg, and had an aluminium bonnet and roof with a one-piece composite tailgate. Land Rover design traits were carried over: the clamshell bonnet, the floating roof, dual-pocket headlamps and a raked roofline, along with a high driving position, hill descent control and useful approach and departure angles. The Terrain Response system added sport and eco modes to the existing grass, gravel, snow and sand settings.

The car was launched as two models, the five-door Evoque and the three-door Evoque Coupé, with a Convertible added for the 2016 model year. The Coupé was dropped early in 2016, while the five-door and Convertible stayed until 2018. There were three trim levels in two variants each: Pure, Pure Tech, Prestige, Prestige Lux, Dynamic and Dynamic Lux. Land Rover marketed Pure as a minimalist version rather than a base model, Prestige added luxury equipment and Dynamic concentrated on performance, with a different front fascia and lowered suspension. No hybrid powertrain was offered in the first-generation car.

Three engines were available at first: two 2.2-litre turbodiesels of 150 and 190 PS and a 2-litre turbocharged petrol of 240 PS. A nine-speed ZF automatic was revealed at the Geneva Motor Show, its first gear deliberately low for off-road work and towing. Land Rover later developed its own Ingenium engines to meet EU6 rules, in three 2-litre forms: the eD4 150 PS diesel with two-wheel drive and a manual gearbox, the TD4 180 PS diesel with permanent four-wheel drive and the nine-speed automatic, and the Si4 240 PS petrol with the same transmission.

Design and features

• LRX styling: clamshell bonnet, floating roof and a raked roofline carried almost unchanged from the concept.
• Compact footprint: the smallest model to wear the Range Rover name.
• Terrain Response: grass, gravel, snow, mud and sand modes plus sport and eco.
• Four-cylinder only: the single four-cylinder model in the Range Rover range.

Range Rover Evoque versions

• Five-door Evoque (2011): the main production body.
• Evoque Coupé (2011): three-door version, dropped early in the 2016 model year.
• Evoque Convertible (2016): open version built until 2018.
• eD4, TD4 and Si4: the later Ingenium-engined models.
• Second generation (2018): the L551 successor.

The Evoque took over from the Freelander as the compact Land Rover and sits below the Range Rover. More cars are in the Land Rover collection.

Sources

• Range Rover Evoque, English Wikipedia: development, bodies, engines