When the chic new Freelander 2 appears at next month’s London Motor Show, buyers will learn there’s a higher price to pay for an entry level Land Rover. Jesse Crosse wonders which way the once quintessentially British Land Rover brand is heading.
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Want to follow Hippos along the banks of the Lower Zambezi? Then you may not choose a Land Rover Freelander 2 for fear of scratching the paint. When the drapes fell away from Land Rover’s new baby the other week at the firm’s Warwickshire headquarters, what stood before us emphasised just how far the brand has shifted from its agricultural origins.
During the last 10 years, Land Rover’s image has drifted steadily away from that of go-anywhere workhorse to that of the ultimate accessory. The latest version of the Range Rover has consolidated its position as the first choice for executives who prefer to ride high. The stalwart Discovery, its trademark external spare wheel now banished forever, has assumed the boxy lines of an American van. Versions equipped with tinted windows no doubt look completely at home on L.A.’s Highway 110 but a tad out of place yanking a recalcitrant Rice horsebox from a muddy field.
Now Land Rover’s “design language” has been transferred to the new Freelander 2 which has grown-up to such an extent it gives the immediate impression of being introduced to Range Rover Junior. It is as if every effort has been made in the design studio to lose that wholesome English look so beloved of British upper middle class, in favour of something far more chic, more at home on the streets of New York or Monaco than soggy Oxfordshire.
The Land Rover brand is shifting gear and continuing to move further up-market. It is no accident that the Freelander 2 was benchmarked not against some of the more rugged 4x4s on the market, but the executive BMW X3, which incidentally, does not pretend to be a serious off-roader and is intended mainly for road use. There’s no puny entry-level engine to risk devaluing the brand. You can buy the new Land Rover only with a transverse mounted, 233PS, 3.2-litre straight-six petrol engine developed in conjunction with Volvo, or a 160 PS, 2.2-litre common rail diesel.
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By GlobalDataThe diesel comes with a manual at first with an auto-option to follow next Spring. The petrol, though, is available only as an Auto. Hello? Baby Land Rover with no manual gearbox? Time was when a Land Rover had more levers in its cockpit than a Jumbo Jet, but now it is simply not necessary, say Land Rover transmission specialists. If you want to change gear manually, the Aisin Warner AWF21 auto lets you do that using the Command Shift lever. Hardly the same though, is it?
Truth is, L.A. drivers don’t want manual gearboxes and when it comes to the US market, the Freelander 2 ticks all the boxes. Abandoned along with the manual gearbox, is a low entry-level price tag. There is no longer a three-door option for the Freelander only a five door and so the cheapest version will move up to around £22,000 from £16,995. Land Rover justifies this hike saying that very few Freelanders were ever sold at that price and most customers specified their cars to at least the £20,000 mark.
So has Land Rover abandoned its roots? In terms of image, to some extent. In terms of ability, certainly not.
Land Rover is clear that its vehicles must remain the best off-roaders in the world and invited us to its Proving Ground to, well, prove it. We saw the Freelander 2 three-wheeling around a high-speed circuit, climbing over massive chunks of local stone, wading though deep water and dragging a lead-filled trailer up slippery slopes. OK, OK, Land Rover. We believe you. The pretty new Land Rover will undoubtedly look good accessorising Beautiful People on urban streets, but it can still cut the mustard when it counts.
Essentially though, Land Rover’s clever strategy has taken its products where the money is. It offers design chic backed up with the usual technical excellence and beneath the shiny exterior, still lives up to core brand values. It is seeking out new, wealthier owners but hasn’t abandoned the traditional ones, because let’s not forget that for the really rough stuff, you can still buy the iconic Land Rover Defender.
And with nine different body styles and three wheelbase options it is perfect for exploring the banks of the Lower Zambezi until the Hippos come home.
Jesse Crosse
See also:
UK: Land Rover reveals all-new Freelander 2
UK: ANALYSIS: Freelander 2’s Volvo connection
