The Range Rover Sport EV is almost ready for launch
The electric version of the Range Rover Sport is being readied for showrooms this year.
As reported by Move Electric's sister title Autocar, the Sport EV will arrive as a high-powered rival to the likes of the Lotus Eletre and Porsche Cayenne EV.
One of six electric cars that JLR plans to launch by 2026 across its Land Rover and Jaguar line-ups, the Range Rover Sport EV has now been spotted testing in Spain, in prototype form.
The test mule has several key differences to its petrol-engined sibling. These include covers in place of exhaust pipes and a blanked-off grille with a pattern that is the inverse of the regular version’s.
Its battery pack can be seen set between the front and rear axles, and although it isn’t visible in the pictures, the charging port is expected to be sited behind the conventional fuel filler cap, as on the more luxurious Range Rover Electric that will arrive later this year.
The new EV comes as JLR revises its electrification plan to enable extra development time and cater to shifting consumer demand.
CEO Adrian Mardell said this will ensure the new cars arrive in the best form possible. He said: “We talked about six Land Rovers by 2026. The reality is we’re likely to have six JLR products by 2026."
He continued: "We’re taking our time to make sure we put the best vehicles we’ve ever developed into the marketplace with that new technology.” According to Mardell, the EV delays will not have a significant impact on JLR’s operations.
Under the revised plans, the four Land Rover EVs being launched by 2026 will be the electric Range Rover and Range Rover Sport – both based on the versatile MLA platform that underpins the current combustion models – and two smaller SUVs using the new EMA platform, which are thought to be replacements for the Range Rover Evoque and Range Rover Velar.
The Sport EV will use a four-wheel-drive powertrain that will give the same “go-anywhere” capability as the combustion Range Rovers – including the ability to wade at depths of up to 850mm.
It will also give straight-line performance that is “comparable” to today’s V8 (which tops out at 626bhp in the new Range Rover Sport SV) to give a 0-62mph time of just 3.8sec – almost as quick as the Aston Martin DB12.
The flagship Range Rover EVs will be built in Solihull in the UK, while their more compact siblings will come from Halewood, also in the UK, where work has begun to prepare for EV production by the end of the year.
