GENEVA MOTOR SHOW: Range Rover to launch Porsche Macan rival

Range Rover will launch a sporty new SUV at the Geneva motor show next month that will go head-to-head with Porsche's Macan.

Claimed to be the "most radical-looking" Range Rover in the British car-maker's history, the new model will be called the 'Velar' (Italian for 'veil' or 'cover'), says Autocar.

The choice of its unusual name revives the name Land Rover first gave to the Range Rover prototype back in the late 1960s.

Originally, it was the thought the SUV coupe might be positioned above the current Range Rover Sport but, according to the British mag, the new Velar is closely related to the Jaguar F-PACE, sharing its JLR IQ platform and priced to match the Porsche Macan.

From our recent spy pictures, we already know the Velar will have a BMW X6-style coupe-like profile.

As far as size goes, our spies suggest the Velar will measure in at around 4.7m long which makes it longer than an Evoque and a tad short than a Range Rover Sport.

Justifying its expected $80,000 price tag, the Velar will come with an all-aluminium construction which should mean it's lighter than its rivals.

All models will come with all-wheel drive, although since it will share powertrains with the F-PACE, the British Macan rival is likely to miss out on a low-ratio gearbox.

Under the bonnet the latest Range Rover will, initially, share the same four-cylinder and six-cylinder petrol and diesel line-up as the Jaguar SUV.

Later on, the V6 engines will be dropped and be replaced by JLR's 'Ingenium' straight-six cylinder engines, says Autocar.

A plug-in hybrid will also feature that will potentially combine a small Ingenium petrol engine with at least two electric motors and a large lithium-ion battery pack.

Later on a pure-electric version could also be introduced that could borrow its guts from the forthcoming Jaguar I-PACE.

In the future, a high-performance SVR version of the Velar may also be offered, which might see JLR's 405kW supercharged 5.0-litre V8 shoe-horned into its engine bay.

Following its expected reveal at Geneva, the Velar is set to go on sale in Europe later this year and arrive Down Under by early 2018.