Land Rover is the talking point of the North American International Auto Show, but not because of its impending sale. Instead, it was the LRX concept that was making everyone’s tongue wag as it shows that Land Rover has a very bright future no matter who Ford sells it to.

The LRX has bold styling that is not so far removed from the company’s current cars and proves that Land Rover is serious about adding a sixth model to its existing line-up of SUVs. Any production car derived from the LRX is likely to be smaller than a Freelander 2 and even more biased towards on-road driving.

Land Rover has not confirmed if a new model would be based on the existing Freelander platform as the company is keen to move in a cleaner, greener direction. Managing director Phil Popham says: “The LRX is purely a concept designed to help us develop our thinking as well as gauge customer reaction, but this feels like a hugely exciting direction to take.”

The LRX uses an American-spec version of the Td4 2.0-litre turbodiesel engine that has been converted so it can also run on bio-diesel. The revised engine produces just 120g/km of carbon dioxide emissions, while lightweight materials for the body also help keep down harmful emissions.

As you would expect of a Land Rover, the LRX has full-time four-wheel drive, but the LRX shows off some new technology. There is the Electric Rear Axle Drive (ERAD) that allows the LRX to move under electric power at very low speeds in rough conditions. However, the LRX is not a hybrid-powered car and the ERAD retains mechanical drive to all four wheels, only supplying extra power to the rear wheels when required.

Land Rover says ERAD can work at up to 20mph without the petrol engine cutting in, when the Integrated Starter-Generator (ISG) fires up the engine. The ISG also recoups energy to charge the LRX’s battery when the car is slowing or braking.

As well as this new technology, the LRX also has Land Rover’s Hill Descent Control and Terrain Response systems so that it lives up to the company’s reputation for making superb off-road vehicles. However, the Terrain Response now also comes with two new modes, which are Eco and Sports for optimised fuel economy or for keener on-road reactions respectively.

Land Rover won’t be drawn on when an LRX-derived production model is likely to make it to showrooms, saying that a decision can only be taken when the sale of the company has been finalised.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 22nd, 2008 at 10:37 pm and is filed under Automotive. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.