Automaker Jaguar Land Rover announced that it will soon be developing a new electric-capable modular platform that will power a large SUV and premium sedan.
Announced at its recent Investors Day, the company indicated that the large SUV will be a Range Rover and that the sedan will replace the Jaguar XJ. The two will release in 2021 and 2020, respectively.
Nick Rogers, head of product engineering for JLR, said that the Modular Longitudinal Architecture, MLA for short, will be adapted for pure electric, plug-in hybrid, and mild-hybrid drivetrains. It will also be implemented for the current platforms that the company currently uses.
“(The MLA) will drive margin improvement driven by new products and cost improvements,” he said.
The sedan replacement will release initially as electric but follow with a six-cylinder gasoline option thereafter.
Its electric version will have a range of 292 miles and is designed to rival the Tesla Model S as well as the Porche Taycan and Audi e-tron GT, both of which also are set to release in 2020.
An electric Range Rover will soon be followed by a Range Rover Sport both on the MLA platform. Each will have plug-in variants as well as one of the Range Rover four pillars being converted to the MLA option.
At present, the company already offers plug-in models of the current Range Rover and Range Rover Sport, but on its D7U platform. JLR is readying a plug-in hybrid version of its Evoque, which uses an updated version of the D7A platform.
Jaguar Land Rover is following the lead of many other automakers in forming a static base for its electric lines to help aid in efficiency, reduce price, and expedite its time to market.
Plummeting sales in China set the brand back a record $4.6 billion in losses for the previous fiscal calendar year and the cost cutting with the MLA could be a rapid way to balance those loses.
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