Starting with Evoque, "over the next few years we'll be changing the entire lineup. Next year, a new Range Rover, then more models. A very, very active next four years," says Kim McCullough, Land Rover's U.S. marketing chief.
Evoque is Land Rover's first new vehicle since the 2008 LR2 and will be the smallest, lightest, most fuel-efficient -- and arguably most stylish -- Land Rover model. It's aimed to begin drawing an entirely new crowd for Land Rover, which India's Tata bought, along with Jaguar. from Ford in 2008.
Evoque, not due in showrooms until September or October, i's off to a good start. More than 70,000 people have requested information on it and 85% are new to Land Rover, says McCullough.
Range Rover models are the flagships; models tagged LR, or Land Rover, are less premium and cheaper. The four-door Range Rover Evoque hatchback, the company calls it a five-door, will start at $43,995 with shipping. A two-door hatch, called a coupe, is $44,995. The least-costly Land Rover is the LR2, $36,550.
Evoque's success, or lack of it, may be a harbinger of the fate of the new-generation Land Rover lineup. Expect significant marketing for Evoque, and attractive lease deals, to get fast traction.
But Land Rover perennially lands near the bottom on third-party quality surveys and will have to overcome that, too, to broaden its appeal.
"We've looked at repair data for the last four or five years and it shows that quality has improved significantly across the board, though it still ranks below the industry average," says Jesse Toprak, analyst at researcher TrueCar.com, so Evoque needs to hit the market just-so. "With a brand-new model, starting from scratch, there's no room for error."
Toprak figures Land Rover, thus, has been extraordinarily careful with Evoque and predicts "far fewer" problems than has been typical.
Land Rover says the U.S. is its biggest market, but it remains a bit player here. Its 32,000 sales last year are about what Kia sells here in a month. New York City is its biggest single market in the U.S. — an irony for vehicles famous for their off-road capabilities.
Evoque will take a different direction, however:
Evoque plays to a genteel strength: It lacks the low-range crawler gear of other Rovers and emphasizes high style and high-tech features.
"It's meant for mainly urban driving," Toprak says. "That's the right direction" to keep Land Rover healthy.
The Evoque's smaller size isn't necessarily playing to "green" or downsizing trends, McCullough says.
Rather, a growing number of affluent young people are starting families and want a vehicle Evoque's size with the Range Rover panache. "It's practical," she says.
Still, the new Rover fits what automakers see as a big move to well-furnished, premium small vehicles.
"From everything we're seeing, the compact side of the utility market is growing over the next few years," she says.
Evoques for the U.S. market will have a 240-horsepower turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline engine and standard all-wheel drive Mileage ratings are 19 miles per gallon in the city, 28 mpg highway and 23 combined. That's roughly 30% better than the next-best model, the LR2.