There’s a new Land Rover in town and it’s going to enter production soon. The LRX concept has been shown at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show and it looks like the car maker has decided to start producing it. The LRX will not be available however until 2011 but at least we know we can get this baby at some point in the future.

We don’t have all the hot details about the insides of the LRX so we’ll just have to believe Land Rover when it says that this new SUV will be “the smallest, lightest and most efficient vehicle the company has ever produced.” Current rumors about the LRX mention things like all-wheel-drive hybrid powertrain or electric motor for the rear wheels. With that in mind we’ll just have to keep waiting for Land Rover to reveal everything there is to know about the LRX.

via Press

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The Jaguar Land Rover Auto Trade Company Ltd. in China has recalled over 214 Discovery 3 cars due to defective brakes and engines. About 1,069 Discovery 3 cars have been reportedly sold in the mainland between June 2007 and May 2008 where the issue was traced to a problem in the diesel engine that may catch fire at the worst possible scenario.

For their part, Jaguar Land Rover has announced that they will be replacing the defective parts of all issued models free of charge. Car owners who have purchased this model should immediately bring their car to the nearest maintenance center for check-up and possible replacement if necessary.

(Source) China CSR

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Tata Motors kicks off one leg of its new found business, launching the Jaguar and the Land Rover in India. The re-branding prowess of Tata Motors starts by unveiling the two luxury car brands in Indian waters, launching three models of each brand.

Jaguar will be unveiling the XF, XFR and the XKR sedans while Land Rover will start its business with Discovery 3, Range Rover Sport and Range Rover sport utility vehicles. Being fully imported models, all the six cars carry a heavy price tag starting Rs 63 lakh and going up to Rs 92 lakh.

“The launch of Jaguar and Land Rover is something that is quite memorable in the context of our history and heritage of Tata Motors. This is a company that belongs to us and we are proud of it.”

While the economy is still in turmoil for most parts of the world, no sales forecasts were unveiled by Tata Motors just yet. Right now, all they can do is stay optimistic, similar to what most business are banking on today.

(Source) Business Standard

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Land Rover America lauded two retailers who will be receiving the Land Rover Pinnacle Club Retailer. The two retailers were Land Rover North Dade and Land Rover South Dade. The award is given to retailers who have demonstrated a commitment to excellence and the Land Rover brand.

The criteria for the award was based on customer satisfaction and sales performance for the year. Getting the award is quite an achievement for retailers considering that they have over 173 retailers across the United States.

“The Pinnacle Club award is awarded to 16 top Land Rover retailers who excel in serving customers and delivering the Land Rover experience. We recognize these retailers for being leaders in their communities, and in our company, by providing a great sales and service experience for customers driving the most capable SUV’s in the world,” says Chris Marchand, Executive Vice-President, Marketing and Sales, Land Rover North America.

(Source) Press

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Land Rover has come forth and announced that they will be giving their Defender a make over with the Fire & Ice limited editions.

The Defender Fire & Ice editions will be getting Recaro bucket seats, all sorts of leather and Alcantara trim, alloy wheels, “color-coded heat and tail lights”, a glass sunroof panel and running boards. The Fire edition will come with a beautiful “Vesuvius Orange Metallic paint” while the Ice edition will get an Alaska white paint with both models getting Santorini black accents.

Of course this is all going to cost you with Autoblog reporting that the special edition Defenders will cost upwards of €68,400 or about $95,000, yikes.

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Tata has plans to take Land Rover and Jaguar into the Indian market, hoping to tap a whole new customer base. When Tata purchased Jaguar-Land Rover, they promised that none of the vehicles from either brand would be built in India but, how that works into the new plans to tackle the Indian market with its range of luxury cars and SUVs is anybody’s guess. Importing the cars will certainly make them even more expensive on the Indian market.

Jaguar Land Rover CEO, David Smith, commented on the importance of the Indian market to the company’s competitive position in the global market. “We are delighted to be formally entering the Indian market, an economy which is still growing appreciably, and able to offer our premium products to a whole new group of customers,” said Smith. “It is an important strategic move for Jaguar Land Rover and will enable us to realise our competitive potential in this significant market.”

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2010 Range Rover

The dash of the upcoming 2010 Range Rover will come with some interesting technical gadgets such as finger-control satellite navigation, DVD playback, an audio system and the best of all, dual view. Capitalizing on the “Parallax Barrier Technology” the system allows the driver and passenger to view the screen from different angles and can get different views of the screen.

In other words, while the driver may see navigation information on the screen, the passenger could be watching a movie on the same screen. The instrument panel in this SUV gets a 12-inch TFT display and even the dials get realistic and graphic.

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2010 Range Rover

For those of you who love the Range Rover experience of genuine off-roading surrounded by a luxurious cabin, you will be delighted by the latest generation of Land Rovers flagship model. The 2010 possesses technology you can’t find anywhere else. Its base model will have the 5.0-liter V-8 designed by Jaguar Land Rover.

The supercharged version has 510 bhp, the standard 375 hp. Estimations put 0-to-60 times at 7.2 for the Rover and a speedy 5.9 for the Supercharged. Both will use a revised ZF six-speed automatic. The styling has been redone inside and out, with delicate changes to the front end that make it look cleaner and also make it more sleek. Pricing has not yet been announced but you know it won’t be cheap.

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It looks like the rumored sale of Volvo is once again in the works as reports have it that the company has moved closer to selling the Swedish auto brand. Ford, grappling with the deepest downturn in U.S. auto industry sales in 27 years, is considering a sale of the business. It has already sold the rest of its premier auto group, Aston Martin, Jaguar and Land Rover.

“We’ve had contact with a number of parties who’ve expressed interest concerning the future of Volvo. Ford’s been pleased with the number and quality of those parties,” John Gardiner, Ford’s European director of strategic communications said, citing a message sent to Volvo employees earlier on Wednesday.

“We’ve had preliminary discussions to determine the level of interest in the Volvo business that they have and we’re now talking in more detail to those parties about the future for Volvo,” he added.

Last month a source with direct knowledge of the matter said Chinese carmaker Chery Automobile had held talks with Volvo cars. Citigroup and JPMorgan are advising Ford.

(Source) Reuters

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In a move which is seen to benefit both groups, Intrawest and Land Rover North America have agreed to form a new strategic partnership along with three of the premiere mountain resorts in Colorado-Copper Mountain, Winter Park Resort and Steamboat Ski & Resort Corporation.

Intrawest’s resort guests will have the opportunity to experience Land Rover’s breadth of capability through a series of special promotional activities that include driving the latest vehicle line-up off-road.

A key highlight of the partnership will focus on “Land Rover Experience Days” which will provide an opportunity for resort guests to learn safe driving tips and drive off-road with a Driving Instructor on a specially constructed course. Land Rover Experience Days are scheduled to take place at Winter Park Resort over two weekends: Saturday, March 28 – Sunday, March 29, 2009 and Saturday, April 4 – Sunday, April 5, 2009.

(Source) Press

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Land Rover LRX

Land Rover announced that it plans to move forward on a production version of the stylish LRX concept. The attractively detailed and proportioned LRX, designed under the direction of former Lincoln design chief Gerry McGovern, is a jazzy three door. McGovern says the LRX, which is based on the Land Rover LR2 platform, could become a production vehicle with a few cosmetic changes. “The three door version would like be the entry-level model, while the five door would compete with Mercedes-Benz GLK, Audi Q5 , and BMW X3 This will be a small, lightweight vehicle with a very efficient powertrain,” says Land Rover North America sales and marketing chief Chris Marchand. “it will set us up for the future.”

Marchand insists the production Range Rover version would be off-road capable. “We need to have the best capability in the segment,” he says. Land Rover is expected to confirm production of the “baby Range Rover” later this year, and Marchand says a market launch here in the U.S. is likely two years away.

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Haldex has secured AWD orders from Land Rover, strengthening its position as an AWD partner. Land Rover is Europe’s foremost manufacturer of jeeps that satisfy meticulous demands in terms of off-road characteristics. Haldex received its first Land Rover order for an AWD system in 2004. The new order reflects Land Rover’s continued confidence in Haldex’s leading-edge expertise in the field of advanced AWD.

The annual order value is estimated at SEK 100 million and the order represents a 100-percent increase in Haldex’s existing annual volume from Land Rover.

“As a result of the order, Haldex strengthens its position as an AWD partner with Land Rover and thus also within the expansive Tata Group. Tata Motors Ltd currently manufactures several all-wheel drive car models and the fact that it is located in the heart of one of the world’s most expansive regions represents a considerable advantage”

(Source) Haldex

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Similar to the setup of Ford in the much celebrated big three auto bailout, Jaguar Land Rover of Britain announced that they do not need government bailout. Rather, like Ford, they would need credit flowing again either from direct lending or state-backed loans.

The company, part of India’s Tata Motors , axed 450 jobs last week due to falling demand.

“We are clearly in very difficult times, in difficult trading conditions,” Chief Executive David Smith told Sky News.

Smith said he would also like the government to consider short-term funding to subsidise layoffs similar to those being requested in the Netherlands by Tata’s Anglo-Dutch steel production unit Corus .

Tata bought Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford in June last year for about $2.3 billion (S$3.4 billion). The company has four sites in the West Midlands region and one at Halewood, northwest England.

(Source) Asiaone Motoring

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The Tata Xover, a sort of cross from the popular Land Rover now owned by Tata, was spotted at a shakedown test. The ride height is hitched right up on this prototype and it’s equipped with winter tires to prevent Ratan’s latest model sliding into a snowdrift.

It’s a 2.2-litre turbodiesel developing around 140bhp and 240lb ft. Drive is sent to two or all four wheels – making this an unusually cheap alternative to a Land Rover Discovery.

While Tata is obviously trying to associate and make a cross between the two brands, it looks like a lot of work has to be done to make it happen.

(Source) Car Magazine

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Eleven automakers: BMW Group, Chrysler, Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi Motors, Porsche, Toyota and Volkswagen which generate about 77% percent of all vehicle sales in the USA are organized under the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. The Alliance has a “role in shaping meaningful public policy on the federal, state and even global levels,” according to its President and CEO Dave McCurdy. Jaguar Land Rover is the new member to join the Alliance. How will that benefit them? We might see an increase in sales aren’t we?
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