Second-gen SUV maintains the stylish and dynamic proportions that made its predecessor highly successful on a global basis.
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!
That’s probably the case for the Range Rover Evoque. After recording global sales of more than 750,000 over the past seven years, the stylish SUV was deemed a hit.
Which is why the second-generation model, seen here in official pictures, maintains the stylish and dynamic proportions of its predecessor. A careful evolution, to put it bluntly.
In a bid to make the new Evoque as modern as possible, there are some design cues inherited from the bigger Velar such as the front and rear lights.
Although the overall length is basically the same as before, the wheelbase has been stretched by around 20mm to liberate rear legroom and boot capacity.
The interior has also been penned with Velar in mind, explaining the presence of those digital panels. Note that the rotary-style gear lever has been replaced with a conventional stick.
Has the Evoque been electrified?
Yes it has. Land Rover has taken the existing 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol and diesel engines and hooked them up with 48V mild hybrid for enhanced fuel economy.
There are three outputs for the diesel including 150hp, 180hp and 240hp; the petrol units consist of 200hp, 250hp and 300hp.
All come with nine-speed automatic transmission driving all four wheels. Only the most basic version is equipped with manual gearbox and front-wheel drive.
Later next year, Land Rover has confirmed a three-cylinder petrol variation with plug-in facility.
Which one is coming to Thailand?
With the exception of the manual variant, all versions can be suited for the Thai market to take on premium SUVs priced between 4-5 million baht.
However, there’s one particular variance that may be enticing for the local Land Rover importer when deliveries start before mid-2019.
The 150hp diesel is said to be capable of producing 149g/km (and 17.8kpl fuel economy) allowing it to undercut the 150g/km threshold of CO2 emissions in Thailand for 20% excise tax.
Of course, the plug-in hybrid would be in an even better position because it can attract 8% excise rate given to imported electrified vehicles emitting less than 100g/km.
In fact, Volvo is also set to take advantage of this special rate for the XC40 as a 1.5-litre three-cylinder hybrid with plug-in facility is in the pipeline. At the moment, the XC40 is offered with either 252hp petrol T5 or 190hp diesel D4.
