Tata-Land Rover joint SUV in the works

Tata Motors bought Jaguar Land Rover in 2008, and how on the cards is a sub Rs 20 lakh SUV with Land Rover underpinnings and a Tata badge.

The current Freelander 2 platform is soon to be discontinued in favour of the Discovery family range, will be used in the new SUV, which will replace the floundering and out-dated Safari. It’s not known whether the SUV will be a five- or seven-seater but it will probably sport a tuned version of Tata’s 2.2-litre VariCor diesel which does duty in the Aria and Safari Storme.

However, since the engine is mounted longitudinally in these SUVs while the Freelander’s LR2 platform is meant for a transversely mounted engine, re-engineering will be necessary. Tata is bringing the Land Rover platform to India as the Freelander is sold via the CKD route. A JLR insider has told Economic Times that the SUV will be 50 to 85 per cent different from the Freelander though it will have the Land Rover genes.

Tata will need to indigenise parts to keep costs down. Tata’s Aria is reputed to be a sensational improvement over its current crop of vehicles but its high price has hindered sales. The new SUV is being jointly developed by Tata and its subsidiaries and is expected to hit the roads by 2017.