Cheapest & smallest Range Rover SUV drives into India

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) India on Friday launched the Evoque sports utility vehicle (SUV) here. This is the cheapest and smallest in the Range Rover series of SUVs. Even before its global launch on July 1, 2010, at Kensington Palace, London, JLR had received 30,000 worldwide bookings for it.

Although JLR India officials were unwilling to comment on the exact numbers, they said the initial Evoque units in India had been spoken for, and that they were still recording bookings for the car.

The Evoque has been launched at an interesting price point — the base diesel model costs Rs 45.48 lakh (ex-showroom, Mumbai). This places the Evoque between cars like the Audi Q5, which is of a similar size and is priced at Rs 39 lakh onwards, and the BMW X5, which is significantly larger and costs Rs 54 lakh onwards (all prices are ex-showroom, Mumbai).

 

JLR India, thus, seems to be trying to create a new niche in the luxury SUV market. The Dynamic and Prestige trims in the diesel variant cost Rs 53.38 lakh and Rs 54.36 lakh, respectively, while the petrol model in the Dynamic trim costs Rs 59.47 lakh.

The Evoque, a futuristic and sleek design that seems destined to become a modern classic, looks more like a sports car than an SUV, and its looks are clearly the main selling point. In India, it will be available with a 2,197cc diesel engine and a 1,999cc petrol engine, in three different levels of trim – Pure, Prestige and Dynamic.

The diesel variant will be sold as a five-door model, in the trim levels mentioned above, while the petrol will be available as a three-door model, in the Dynamic trim only.

The Pure model strikes a balance between luxury and sportiness, the Prestige model is the most luxurious one available in terms of interior trim, and the Dynamic model is the most aggressively styled and is the sportiest one of the lot. All the trim levels come with high-end features as standard, such as a touch screen interface, Bluetooth connectivity, an 11-speaker audio system, cruise control, a panoramic sunroof and steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters.

Rohit Suri, head of the premier car division, JLR India, said presently, there were no plans to bring in the Evoque as a completely knocked down (CKD) unit, a move which would reduce its price. But he said it could be a possibility in the future, depending on demand, and that manufacturing capacity was available at the company’s plant in Pune. The Land Rover Freelander 2, another SUV in the JLR portfolio, saw a price reduction of Rs 4-6 lakh when it was introduced as a CKD unit. Industry sources said in 12 to 18 months, the Evoque, as well as the Jaguar XF sedan, might be considered for CKD production.