Land Rover Working On Small SUV Based On Tata Harrier’s Platform

Land Rover L860

The Land Rover L860 could be based on the Omega Arc platform and will go on to become the entry-level Land Rover

Reports suggest that Land Rover is planning to introduce a new entry-level off-roader, which is internally codenamed L860. Currently, the most affordable car to be offered by Land Rover is the Discovery Sport, which retails at a starting price of Rs 44.68 lakh (ex-showroom) in India.

The L860 will go on to become the most affordable model in the history of the brand and is expected to have a base price of around £25,000, which converts to Rs 23.25 lakh when it is launched in 2021. Since the Tata Harrier is based on a re-engineered version of the Jaguar Land Rover D8 platform, called the Omega Arc platform, Land Rover might as well use the latter to develop its entry-level luxury off-roader.

The Omega Arc platform uses input from Tata Steel, which helps the brand to minimise modification costs, without compromising on quality. The said platform can also be equipped with a battery pack, which means that the manufacturer could also introduce a plug-in hybrid variant of the upcoming car.

2020 tata land rover defender front
2020 Land Rover Defender

The L860 will be heavily based on the upcoming Land Rover Defender inside out, although the former will get a shorter list of equipment and features, and will be smaller in size than the latter as well.

The L860 will likely be powered by a 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbocharged Ingenium engine and a PHEV, along with a front-wheel-drive configuration. A four-cylinder option with all-wheel-drive configuration is also a possibility but might undercut the Land Rover Discovery.

land-rover-discovery-sport-landmark-05

On the other hand, Land Rover is also working on a range-topping version of the Defender, called the Defender Sport. The car will likely be the first fully-electric vehicle sold by the manufacturer and will be more luxurious than the car it is based on. The long-wheelbase ‘110’ version of the Land Rover Defender is slated to go on sale in India late next year and is expected to be priced at around the Rs 70 lakh mark.

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