It seems that Land Rover is developing yet another vehicle for BMW to worry about. First, it was the new Discovery which will be a very serious BMW X5 contender when it finally makes its debut. Now, though, the British brand has another car for the Bavarians to fear — the Range Rover Velar SVR.
We’ve seen other Jaguar/Land Rover SVR products before, such as the Range Rover Sport SVR and Jaguar F-Type SVR. However, this new Velar SVR will likely be the most deadly to the BMW brand. The reason for that is that the Velar is more on-road oriented than any of its Ranger Rover siblings. While still highly capable off-road, the Velar is the stylish and sexy Range Rover, filled with tons of cabin tech and flashy looks. So it’s the car that more BMW X6 M-style customers will be interested in.
The Range Rover Velar SVR will get new aluminum weight-saving measures that will allow it to shave its weight down to around 1,800 kg (3,968 lbs). While that’s still quite heavy, it’s lighter than the BMW X6 M by about 450 kg (around 1,000 lbs) give or take a few. Combine that with a 542 hp supercharged 5.0 liter V8 and the Velar SVR should be good for 0-60 mph in under 4 seconds. That’s properly quick for a 4,000 lb SUV.
Land Rover will also be fitting it with a proper track-tuned suspension, as it’s be tuned for the Nurburgring. While no Velar SVR owner will take their car to the track, just like almost no BMW X6 M owners do, it’s nice to know it can go if they wanted to.
When we first heard about the Velar, we commented that customers are going to love it. Its stylish new looks, nice size and high-tech cabin will gain it a lot of fans, especially in America. Throw in a shiny new SVR version with a big V8 motor and Americans will eat it up. That gives BMW another pesky Brit to worry about.
[Source: Autocar]
