Marton Pettendy•7 Sept 2012

NEWS

Alloy future for Range Rover

Aluminium all-important and a taste of things to come for Sport and Discovery

Land Rover’s all-new Range Rover will be just the first in a series of landmark models to be underpinned by the company’s revolutionary new all-aluminium monocoque structure.

With huge investment in the car's new alloy platform and the factory in which it will be built, the range topper is now sure to be joined by alloy-rich Sport and Discovery models in the next few years.

Jaguar Land Rover CEO Ralf Speth announced prior to last night’s exclusive media reveal of the fourth-generation Range Rover in London that the British firm has invested £1 billion (about $A1.62b) to bring the all-new model to market. Of that, £370 million was invested in the Solihull factory (near Birmingham) that will build it, making it the world’s largest automated aluminium car plant.

Solihull now has annual capacity of 100,000 vehicles – including at least 30,000 Range Rovers.

“This outstanding new Range Rover symbolises our commitment to investing in Britain and exporting around the world, delivering class-leading performance, agility, quality and luxury in a model that enjoys iconic status in almost every market,” said Dr Speth.

“As the UK's leading automotive investor in R&D, we are proud of the work that has gone into developing the new technologies and innovations to make the new Range Rover possible. Through a £370m investment in our manufacturing facilities we have been able to build the world's first SUV with lightweight all-aluminium construction -- a car that is 20 per cent lighter, with fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions reduced by 22 per cent.”

Vehicle Line Director Nick Rogers confirmed to motoring.com.au that the new Rangie won't be the only vehicle to be built at Solihull. In doing so, it's clear next year’s redesigned Range Rover Sport and the subsequent Mk4 Discovery will also switch to a version of the new Range Rover’s unitary alloy platform.

So far this year Land Rover sales are up 46 per cent on its record-setting sales year of 2011, and the company set a new rolling 12-month sales record of about 280,000 vehicles in July. It says global SUV sales are up 45 per cent since 2009, but expects them to increase a further 40 per cent by 2020.

The fourth new Range Rover since 1970 is a key part of Land Rover’s growth and will be sold in 170 countries worldwide. As such, Land Rover says advances were made in every area, including efficiency, durability, refinement, off-road capability and on-road dynamics.

Land Rover expects the Mk4 Rangie (which it says continues to offer the widest breadth of on and offroad ability of any vehicle) to surpass the outgoing model as the most popular ever, by ‘conquesting’ more buyers of other SUVs and brands than ever before.

Full details of the new Range Rover have now been released three weeks ahead of its world public debut at the Paris Motor Show on September 27. And it's aluminium that is the key to many of its breakthroughs.

Redesigned from the ground up with more than 3500 new components, the Range Rover is built using a similar process to Jaguar’s all-aluminium construction technique, which joins pressed aluminium panels together with boron steel rivets to aerospace levels of accuracy.

No spot welds are required to make the world’s first all-aluminium monocoque SUV (the original MkI Defender of 1948 wore an aluminium body made from recycled aircraft bodies), which also saves power in the manufacturing process.

The result is a 420kg kerb weight saving in base form, with the new entry-level TDV6 now weighing 2160kg – down from 2580kg for the TDV8 it replaces.

DESIGN: SIMILAR FOOTPRINT, MORE SPACE

The new Rangie has a similar footprint to the model it replaces, riding on a 2922mm wheelbase that is shorter than that of the Mercedes-Benz GL and Audi Q7.

At 4999mm long overall it is just 27mm longer than before but remains shorter than an Audi A8. In the metal it looks smaller than before thanks to rounder front and rear-ends, a ‘faster’ windscreen and a slightly lower roof.

These changes also improve aerodynamics, to 0.34Cd for the base TDV6 (10 per cent better than before), rising to 0.36Cd for the 5.0L supercharged petrol flagship.

Iconic Range Rover design cues continue, including the ‘floating’ roof (via gloss-black pillars), ‘clamshell’ bonnet and horizontally split tailgate, but shorter overhangs, a rising shoulder line and wedge-shaped glasshouse make the new Rangie look altogether sportier and less boxy. Despite this and new surface details like the wrap-around headlights and tail-lights – and the side gills that move from the front guards to the doors – the new Rangie remains instantly recognisable.

Other new design features include LED tail-light strips, camera lens-style bi-xenon headlight beams, contrasting roof colour options for the first time, a full-width LED stop light hidden beneath the subtle roof spoiler, a hidden rear wiper and what’s claimed to be the world’s largest panoramic roof (including a tilt/slide front panel) on an SUV.

Both the upper and lower sections of the tailgate are now powered and the height of the lower door is reduced but is still designed to be used as: “a standing platform for outdoor events”.

Land Rover says it invested more than 40,000 man hours to perfect quality, which is evident in the near-flush glazing, soft-close door mechanisms and narrow, consistent panel shut lines.

Inside, the new Rangie presents an all new, simplified but more luxurious cabin that is dominated by a strikingly elegant horizontal dashboard intersected by a vertical centre stack and features 50 per cent fewer switches.

Land Rover says the driving position is even higher than before and at least 90mm higher than its most direct rivals, despite a roof height that is 20mm lower. Rear legroom increases by 120mm, with rear knee room up 50mm.

Depending on the market, there is the choice of seven real wood trims harvested from sustainable forests. The PR blurb says “low-carbon” leather trim from Bridge of Wier in Scotland is used. Three Meridian sound systems -- including a “world’s best” 1700-Watt unit with no fewer than 29 speakers -- are offered and the choice of a four-seat “executive” interior with twin rear fully-adjustable bucket seats separated by a full-length centre console is a new option.

Top-spec Autobiography models come with semi-aniline leather with twin-stitching, leather headlining and wheel sizes up to 22-inch.

No less than 22 exterior paint colours brings to more than 18,000 the number of possible combinations of interior and exterior options.

TECHNOLOGY: ALUMINIUM HEAVY

The biggest technical change with the new Range Rover is its all-aluminium bodyshell, which at 180kg is 39 per cent lighter than the steel monocoque construction it replaces. Featuring the world’s largest one-piece aluminium bodyside, Land Rover says it is 85kg lighter than the Audi Q5’s body and 23kg lighter than the BMW 3 Series’ body, yet stiffer than before.

Because it is riveted together rather than spot-welded, the Range Rover's construction requires 75 per cent less power, while 50 per cent of its aluminium and 31kg of its interior plastic is recycled. Of the 420kg shaved off the base model, 180kg comes from the move to the new alloy body, 120kg is saved in the switch from TDV8 to TDV6 and rest is reduced across the vehicle.

An eight-speed ZF automatic transmission (with low-range transfer case) is standard across the range and idle-stop for the TDV6 also lowers fuel consumption. So too do Rangie’s first electric power steering system, electric cooling fans, smart regenerative battery charging and low rolling resistance tyres.

The new entry-level 3.0-litre V6 turbodiesel delivers 190kW at 4000rpm and 600Nm at 2000rpm, sprints to 100km/h in 7.9 seconds and consumes 7.5L/100km – 22 per cent less than the TDV8 it replaces at base level while matching its performance.

The mid-range 4.4-litre V8 turbodiesel offers 250kW at 3500rpm and 700Nm between 1750-3000rpm, charging to 100km/h in 6.9 seconds – one second quicker than before – while consuming 8.7L/100km.

Topping the range is the 5.0-litre supercharged petrol V8, which produces 375kW at 6000rpm and 625Nm between 2500-5500rpm, consumes 13.8L/100km and can hit 100km/h in 5.4 seconds on its way to 250km/h when fitted with 22-inch wheels. At 322g/km, CO2 emissions are seven per cent lower.

Land Rover says that although the Range Rover has no direct rival it used the outgoing Rangie as a baseline and benchmarked a number of other luxury SUVs to deliver 17 best-in-class attributes in areas including weight, aerodynamics, efficiency and safety. It conducted 1.5 million computer-simulated tests and built more than 300 prototypes that were tested in temperatures ranging between -40 to +52 degrees C.

New double wishbone front, and multi-link rear suspension systems are mounted in alloy subframes for the first time in a Land Rover, producing 30 per cent stiffer attachment points and delivering wheel articulation of up to 597mm – more than the Mercedes-Benz GL (480mm), VW Touareg and Audi Q7 (465mm), and BMW X5 (390mm). Most sedans offer about 200mm of travel.

Fifth-generation air suspension is fitted at all four corners and, combined with continuously variable damping, is claimed to improve ride quality by 20 per cent and handling by 25 per cent. Body roll is vastly reduced, says the company, due to the fitment of the Range Rover Sports Active Lean Control, with the addition of independent front/rear control.

Braking is via Brembo six-piston aluminium front callipers, 380mm ventilated front discs and 365mm rear rotors, while wheel sizes range between 19 and 22-inch.

Although the new SUV’s breakover angle is slightly reduced at 28.3 degrees, all other off-road performance statistics are up, including a 34.5-degree approach angle, 29.5-degree departure angle and maximum ground clearance of 296mm (up 13mm; rear axle clearance is 310mm). Wading depth has been increased a massive 200mm to 900mm!

The upgraded Terrain Response 2 all-wheel system still features five drive modes, but adds a fully automatic setting, which measures a range of parameters 100 times per second to deliver optimum traction. Offroad capability is claimed to have improved in all areas including on wet grass, dirt roads, mud/ruts and rocks, but particularly on snow/ice and soft sand.

Towing capacity is best-in-class at 3500kg and the Rangie features a full electric deployable towbar for the first time.

Land Rover says wind, road and engine noise and harshness levels have all been reduced, making the Rangie quieter inside at 160km/h than all but the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, including the Porsche Cayenne (by 29 per cent), BMW X5 (by 16 per cent) and Audi Q7 and A8.

Land Rover claims road noise at 120km/h is lower than the Cayenne, X5 and Q7, as well as some of the world’s finest luxury limousines like the Lexus LS600, Mercedes S350 and Bentley Continental Flying Spur.

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Alloy future for Range Rover

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