A lightly camouflaged prototype of the new long-wheelbase Range Rover has been spied in the UK.
The seemingly production-ready test car gives us our clearest look yet at the stretched version of Range Rover’s new flagship luxury SUV ahead of its official unveiling later this year.
CarAdvice’s spy photographers say the Range Rover LWB sits on a wheelbase that is roughly 150mm longer that of the standard Range Rover.
The result is a more spacious cabin with extended rear-seat legroom – a popular characteristic in China and Russia, and one that is also expected to attract buyers in Land Rover’s largest market, the US. Bespoke interior appointments like reclining rear seats and unique trim elements are expected to feature.
With the conventional Range Rover measuring 4999mm long and its wheelbase 2922mm, the LWB version will grow to over five metres from nose to tail while its wheelbase will stretch to approximately 3070mm – giving it similar dimensions to the Mercedes-Benz GL-Class.
The Range Rover LWB becomes the third wheelbase length developed on the British manufacturer’s new all-aluminium PLA platform, joining the standard Range Rover and the even shorter Range Rover Sport.
The flexibility of the platform simplifies both the development and manufacturing processes, with all three models to run down the same production line at the company’s Solihull factory in England’s West Midlands.
Our spy photographers say the car in these images is powered by Jaguar Land Rover’s supercharged 250kW/450Nm 3.0-litre V6 petrol engine. Petrol and diesel V8s and a diesel-electric V6 hybrid are also expected in different markets around the world from its late-2013 launch.
