Overnight Land Rover and Chery took the covers off Concept 97, which previews the primary model from the newly spun-off Freelander brand.
Named after the 12 months the unique Land Rover Freelander that went into the production in 1997. The concept’s design is clearly patterned on the first-generation Freelander, with some styling elements from the second-generation thrown into the combo.
The Concept 97’s upright, boxy silhouette is a call back to each the first-generation Freelander and Defender.
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Design elements taken from the unique Freelander include the circular wheel arch protectors finished in gloss black plastic, and the flat sides punctuated by a rounded shoulder line.
The look of the rear quarter windows, that are bisected by the D-pillar, is cribbed from the first-generation three-door model. This shape, in a stylised form, is the “brand’s signature”, and appears in various places throughout the concept’s interior, in addition to the front and rear lighting signature, and alloy wheel caps.
Reverse-hinged, or suicide, doors are employed on the concept to make ingress and egress easier. Nonetheless, leaked images from a crash test show the production version could have conventionally-hinged rear doors.
Each the production model and concept have a screen running from pillar to pillar at the bottom of the windscreen, in addition to a big central infotainment touchscreen with an array of physical buttons underneath.
Among the concept’s other interior components, similar to the lounge-like third row seats, may not survive the transition to production, though.
Chery Land Rover didn’t reveal any details in regards to the automotive’s drivetrain. More details are more likely to come to light when the production version of Concept 97 is unveiled in June this 12 months.
The production version is widely thought to ride on Chery’s T1X platform, and the automotive can be offered with each plug-in hybrid and pure electric drivetrains.
Qualcomm will supply the chips powering the infotainment and other systems, the advanced driver assistance systems will come from Huawei, and the battery packs can be sourced from CATL.
The Freelander brand will go on sale in China through a network around 60 stores in 50 cities situated across the country. Although the marque’s overseas plans have yet to be revealed, the corporate said Freelander is reinventing “the trail for Chinese automobiles to go global”, in addition to how a “century-old brand thrives in a brand new era”.
It also said Freelander will “not compete in days or months, [it will] compete over a century”.
Launched in 1997, the unique Land Rover Freelander took the brand into the segment created by the Toyota RAV4 just a few years earlier. Just like the Toyota, the Freelander had a car-like unibody structure, transversely mounted engine, and all-wheel drive.
Due to its attractive boxy styling, high seating position, spacious interior, and more off-road ability than most owners ever considered using, the Freelander was a runaway success.
In 2024 Jaguar Land Rover and Chery confirmed they were reviving the Freelander name for a brand new standalone SUV brand to be inbuilt China. Production of recent Freelander models will happen on the three way partnership’s Changshu plant, where they may replace locally made versions of varied Jaguar and Land Rover products.
This Article First Appeared At www.carexpert.com.au
