Land Rover could share Jaguar's new alloy platform

Will Land Rover build a new model to slot in somewhere between Freelander and Discovery, employing the aluminium architecture that will also underpin two new Jaguar mid-size models?

Jaguar's C-X17 show car is an SUV, sized to fit a slot between the two Land Rovers, but it will be much more road-orientated – in the manner of Jaguars – than the two bush-bashing wagons.

The fundamentals of the aluminium architecture would, however, likely meet the durability needs of Land Rover, were the SUV manufacturer to need such a car. And many of the Jaguar's mechanicals would presumably be common to Land Rover as well.

So with production of the C-X17 a foregone conclusion – albeit one not officially announced yet – Land Rover could build a similar car that just happens to be more 'Rover' in character, less 'Jaguar'. The two cars could even run down the same production line at the Land Rover production facility at Solihull.

It's much more likely, however, that any Land Rover model based on the Jaguar's architecture will be physically smaller to avoid cannibalisation of sales across the two brands and accusations of badge engineering. Depending on how the new Jag platform has been engineered, it could be resized up or down one 'standard deviation' from its current 'norm'.

While Jaguar executives admit the platform could well form the basis for a Jaguar XF successor, the XJ limousine would be too large they say. But scaling down, the architecture could eventually be employed for future generations of Land Rover Freelander and Range Rover Evoque.

Asked whether the new iq[AI] platform for the C-X17 would eventually migrate across to Land Rover models, John Edwards, Global Brand Director for Land Rover, diplomatically left the door open.

"Absolutely what we will do in the business is continue to look across all of our architectures and components, and think about how best to deploy those in a sense. But the other bookend to that is there are absolutely no plans to badge-engineer any products across brands. We have very clear visions and understanding of what a Land Rover is, or what it needs to be to be a Land Rover – and likewise a Jaguar.

"So of course, we're one company and we'll share components, we will share architectures... but there's no firm plans to do anything [with the C-X17's architecture]."

If the iq[AI] architecture were adopted for future Freelander and Evoque, it would mean that the east/west platform inherited from Ford would be dropped in favour of a platform developed for a rear-wheel/all-wheel drive application – and engine mounted longitudinally, or 'north/south' to use the vernacular.

Edwards says that Freelander and Evoque buyers are unconcerned that their four-wheel drives have the engine pointing sideways rather than to the front. With the question flipped (would they feel equally unconcerned about north/south engine mounting?), Edwards had this to say: "I like to think that part of my role is the voice of the customer... and actually I think the consumers don't mind whether it's north/south or east/west, provided that it delivers what it needs to deliver.

"How it delivers is pretty much irrelevant to them. It's more of an issue for us on what impact that has on crash [safety] and design and front overhang, and and and...

"It doesn't even register on the radar as an issue."

If Rover does adopt the Jaguar platform though, it may be some time before we see the fruits of that collaboration, since it's firmly believed that the next-generation Freelander will remain on a steel monocoque, with just some aluminium panels to reduce the vehicle's overall weight.

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