Range Rover Evoque

The wait is finally over! This is the first official picture of the Range Rover Evoque, the production version of the LRX concept which debuted at the Detroit Motor Show in 2008.

Bearing a striking resemblance to the original LRX concept, the newcomer is the smallest and lightest Range Rover ever made. Design boss Gerry McGovern describes the car as “a modern and relevant execution of the familiar Range Rover design language.”

Land Rover has also confirmed that the new car will be named Evoque – a name that, according to Land Rover, “implies exclusivity and arouses emotions.”

The Evoque will also become the cleanest Land Rover when it goes on sale in the UK next summer. Available in both two and four-wheel-drive, the greenest version will emit less than 130g/km of CO2.

The car will be sold in over 160 countries worldwide. So getting the styling right is key to the car’s appeal, and crucial for Land Rover’s plans to make the Range Rover brand appeal to more people.

SsangYong e-XIV Concept

Ssangyong has released the first official images and details of the latest model in its XIV concept family – the Ssangyong e-XIV – ahead of its unveiling at the 2012 Paris motor show later this month.

The e-XIV, short for ‘electric exciting user interface vehicle’, is the third concept in the series, following the four-door Ssangyong XIV-1 from the 2011 Frankfurt motor show and the Ssangyong XIV-2 soft-top, which debuted the year after at Geneva.

Unlike the previous two petrol- and diesel-powered vehicles, the Ssangyong e-XIV concept features a more advanced plug-in hybrid range extender powertrain.

A small petrol engine acts as a generator to top up a battery pack to drive an electric motor, delivering a long driving range and low fuel consumption and emissions. A solar cell mounted on the roof expands the e-XIV’s green credentials.

At 4160mm long, 1790mm wide, 1575mm tall and riding on a 2600mm wheelbase, the Ssangyong e-XIV concept is, for comparison’s sake, 195mm shorter, 175mm narrower and 30mm lower than the Range Rover Evoque, with which it shares some basic design themes.The e-XIV evolves the styling of the earlier concepts, with aggressive LED headlights and running lights, huge alloys within muscular wheel arches and sharp, flowing lines around the pillars and rear bumper.

The Ssangyong XIV concept family is set to spawn a whole range of next-generation urban SUVs from the South Korean manufacturer, which is expected to roll out around the middle of the decade.