Tag Archives: Land Rover

Tuning

Defender 130 Valiance based on the Defender 130

After revealing the Valiance Convertible, a soft-top Land Rover Defender 90 earlier in the year, now Dutch company Heritage Customs has revealed its latest project called the 130 Valiance (Pickup Defender) based on the Defender 130.

This 5.35-meter-long car is equipped with a roof rack with additional LED lights, on which a spare wheel is placed, specially designed off-road tires, and the third-row seats have been removed from the cabin. The tuner gives customers the opportunity to customize their car according to their wishes by choosing body elements, rims/tires, colors and materials for the cabin.

Land Rover product program chief Stuart Frith said last year that he would like to see the Defender in a pickup version as well, which would mean a continuation of the tradition. The same was the case with the previous generation of one of the most famous off-road cars of all time.

Heritage Customs has not released information about the powertrain, but it should be noted that the current Land Rover Defender 130 is powered by a 3.0-L inline 6 engine with 296 hp (221 kW), paired with an 8-speed shiftable automatic transmission that sends power to all wheels.

When it comes to the price, the car with the upgrade costs 155,000 euros.

Source: Heritage Customs

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EV

First all-electric Range Rover

In 1970 British Leyland launched the first generation of 4×4 luxury SUV, the Range Rover. Since then, 54 years have passed, and five generations of this model have been produced, and now the time has come for the British company to present its first all-electric Range Rover.

After testing in desert conditions, the car is currently on the snowy roads of the north, where it faces temperatures of minus 40º Celsius in the Arctic zone. In the same conditions, new traction and braking control systems were tested, and the British car company announced that the electric Range Rover will be built on the MLA platform and based on an 800-volt system.

This model should be the British manufacturer’s response to the all-electric Mercedes G-Class revealed at the beginning of the year. At first glance, without camouflage, the electric SUV shares the same design with models powered by internal combustion engines.

When it comes to the powertrain, there are no details yet, but rumors say that an unknown number of electric motors will deliver around 500 hp (373 kW). This means that the SUV will not be far behind the current Range Rover in terms of power. As a reminder, the Range Rover is powered by a 4.4-liter biturbo V8 engine with 530 hp (395 kW) and 553 lb-ft (750 Nm) of torque.

The date and place of the official debut of the first all-electric Range Rover is currently unknown.

Source: Land Rover

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First all-electric Range Rover
News

Nissan and JLR Group will use Formula E technology

The use of racing car technology in road legal cars is nothing new, but many manufacturers are choosing this way to increase the performance of their new electric models. One of them is Nissan and the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) Group, which, using the experience from their Formula E teams, are trying to keep up with the growing competition in the electric vehicle segment.

Formula E is ideal for the development of electric mobility, and it should be noted that Formula E cars start each race with only 60% battery capacity, and the rest must be generated by braking. This forces manufacturers to develop more efficient systems and better software to improve performance and autonomy.

The Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) Group is investing £15 billion in the production of electric vehicles, and will use silicon carbide inverter technology. This solution was primarily developed for their Formula E cars, but will also be used to improve efficiency in future premium electric models. JLR has already used the knowledge gained from managing battery temperatures to improve the range of the Jaguar I-Pace by 20 kilometers.

Nissan also plans to produce 19 all-electric models over the next two years, and Nissan Formula E team boss Tommaso Volpe said their race car’s software was originally based on that of the Nissan Leaf.

Source: Reuters