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Freelander name making jump from old Land Rover model to new EV brand

The Jaguar Land Rover House of Brands is about to grow by one. JLR signed a Letter of Intent to license a new brand called Freelander to its Chinese joint-venture partner of 12 years, Chery. For those who missed it, Land Rover sold a compact four-wheel-drive model called the Freelander or LR2, depending on market and generation, from 1997 to 2015. The Freelander didn't get the best press, but that didn't stop it from being popular because, before the Evoque, it was the least expensive way to get into something bearing the green oval. The moniker's rebirth will also apply to "mainstream" products, this time pure-electric vehicles outside of JLR's or Chery's current lineups. What's more, the Freelander range won't be limited to China, although JLR wouldn't say how long it would be before international markets could expect Freelander arrival.  They new cars will be designed by teams from both automakers and sit on Chery's E0X battery-electric architecture. Car News China reports that the E0X can support an 800-volt architecture, Level 3 autonomous driving, and air suspension setups. The platform also plays nice with range-extended EVs, a powertrain type enjoying the same upswing in popularity over there as in other markets. Autocar writes that extended-range EV sales from January 2023 to September 2023 rose 157% over the same span in 2022. Chery's Luxeed R7, above, sits on E0X bones. The Luxeed R7 EV comes in single- and dual-motor variants from 288 horsepower to 489 hp, and offers a maximum range of 531 miles on the Chinese cycle. Previous to this new announcement, Chery said it would also share its M3X platform with the Chery Jaguar Land Rover collaboration, the vehicle structure said to have been developed with Magna International. The M3X is suited to internal combustion and PHEV powertrains. JLR's press release specifies that for now, Freelander will be "an advanced portfolio of electric vehicles," so it's possible future Freelanders will expand powertrain options once the electric lineup gains momentum, or the M3X might be applied to a different set of products.

Jaguar F-Pace SVR to debut this week at New York Auto Show

It should come as no surprise that the folks back in England have been working on a hot new version of the Jaguar F-Pace. Today, just ahead of the 2018 New York International Auto Show, the British automaker confirmed that the Jaguar F-Pace SVR will debut this week. The new Jaguar I-Pace and Range Rover SV Coupe will make their North American debuts alongside the F-Pace. All we know about the F-Pace SVR is that it will be the fastest and most powerful version of Jaguar's best-selling product. We don't even have a teaser photo, as Jaguar Land Rover loves to play things close to the vest, so we're sharing some spy photos that we think might be the new model. Expect some version of JLR's 5.0-liter supercharged V8. We're hoping it's the 575 horsepower variant from the refreshed Range Rover Sport SVR. Expect 0-60 mph times in the low-4-second range and a top speed of at least 155 mph. The I-Pace and Range Rover SV Coupe both debuted earlier this month at the 2018 Geneva Motor Show. The I-Pace is an all-electric crossover with an estimated 240 miles of range. The SV Coupe is a limited-production two-door variant of the full-size Range Rover. It's meant to be a throwback to the original two-door Range Rover Classic. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Jaguar Land Rover calls in handful of vehicles over suspension bolts

With most recalls seemingly affecting mass-market vehicles, it'd be all too easy to assume, consciously or otherwise, that higher-end automobiles never face such issues. But the main reason we don't see the NHTSA recalling more luxury automobiles isn't because of their quality, we'd postulate: it's because of their relative scarcity.
Take Jaguar Land Rover, recalls of whose vehicles we only seem to have cause to report about once a year. So if you're figuring they're about due, here you go. The Indian-owned British auto group has just announced two recalls, both regarding suspension components: one affecting Jaguars and another concerning - you guessed it - Land Rovers.
First up we have a recall for 2013 to 2014 model year Jaguar XJ, XF and XK models - a whopping 297 of them - which have been found to have problematic toe links. Separation of the toe link from the rear sub-frame could result in impaired stability and control over the vehicle's direction, so JLR is calling them in to replace the nuts and washers on the rear toe links.