(from Land Rover Press Release) Range
Stormer is a high performance, sports tourer SUV concept car, which
showcases a future design direction for Land Rover and the company’s
increasingly bold approach to new technologies.
It is also the first-ever Land Rover concept to preview a new production
model, one that will enter a fresh market segment for the company. This
will be an additional model line in the Land Rover portfolio.
‘The supercharged V8 Range Stormer gives a taste of our forthcoming new
entrant in the booming high performance SUV segment,’ says the managing
director of Land Rover, Matthew Taylor. ‘The production vehicle that
follows will share many of its styling and technical innovations.
‘Range Stormer is a modern, striking, high-technology vehicle,’ he adds.
‘It is very much conceived to be an on-road, high performance machine,
as well as class-leading off-road like all Land Rovers. Breadth of
capability is one of its many strengths.’
Future technologies previewed with the concept include an all-new
platform that will be the basis for future full-size Land Rover models.
This advanced, fully integrated platform, unique to Land Rover, will
provide the underpinnings for the production vehicle inspired by Range
Stormer.
Another major innovation is Terrain Response. This smart and
simple-to-use new Land Rover technology delivers the best possible
on-road and off-road composure and control, by optimising the entire
vehicle set-up including suspension, powertrain, throttle response and
traction control. The driver simply selects the appropriate Terrain
Response setting from the six available on Range Stormer, varying from
‘dynamic’ for high speed work to ‘deep ruts’ for extreme off-roading.
‘You’ll be seeing an increasing amount of innovative technology in our
future vehicles,’ says Matthew Taylor. ‘But technology that makes the
driver’s task simpler not more complicated, such as Terrain Response.
You select the terrain. The car then helps you conquer it.’
MUSCULAR AND MODERN
DESIGN
The Range Stormer concept car is the
sportiest looking vehicle ever to wear a Land Rover badge.
‘The challenge was to translate fundamental Land Rover design values
into a concept for a high performance machine that looks powerful,
muscular and edgy,’ says design director Geoff Upex. ‘We certainly want
to challenge established views of our vehicles and yet Range Stormer is
clearly an authentic Land Rover’.
He continues: ‘It has classic Land Rover design language, such as the
clamshell bonnet, “floating roof”, castellated corners on the hood, the
straight waistline and short front overhang. Take one look at the
vehicle and it’s obviously from Land Rover, and obviously has strong
Range Rover genes.’
The pillars are slim to aid visibility – another typical Land Rover
quality – and the roof is glass, giving a light and airy feel to the
cabin. Less traditional Land Rover cues include the low roofline, power
bulge in the hood and the huge 22-inch forged alloy wheels.
The design is peppered with interesting and practical ideas. The doors
are a two-piece type: the upper half hinging up and forwards, while the
lower half drops to provide a step to the cabin. The doors are
electrically powered.
The two-piece tailgate is electric, the upper half lifting and the lower
dropping behind the bumper to give optimised access into the loadspace.
Floor compartments rise and lower electrically for improved additional
stowage. Fitted leather 'his and her' bags are also neatly incorporated
into the side walls.'
Headlamps feature ‘crushed ice’ glass lenses and throw out an excellent
light spread from the Bi-Xenon bulbs. These diamond-like lights also
swivel with the steering wheel to help the car to ‘see’ around corners.
Side-mounted LEDs also illuminate at appropriate steering wheel angles,
further improving the driver’s ability to see where the car is heading.
The design lines of the interior are very structural - simple rather
than ornate. The dash and centre console flow around the occupants, to
deliver a sporty cockpit. Yet there is still the traditional ‘Command
Driving’ position, a result of the big glass area and comparatively high
driver’s seat.
The interior features four distinctive individual seats. Their radical
design is inspired by the concept of the Möbius strip, the deep brown
saddle leather facings being cut from a single hide.
‘The saddle leather not only looks fantastic but it is very hard
wearing,’ says Geoff Upex. ‘That reflects Land Rover philosophy. Our
cars are renowned for their toughness and longevity.’
Natural materials dominate in the cabin, with leather and oak wood
alongside aluminium. As well as covering the seats, dark saddle leather
is also used on the top roll of the dashboard and centre console. For
contrast, the lower facia, door inners and headlining are all finished
in ivory leather, and even the floor is covered in a softer, grained
leather.
The seat frames, a striking part of the cabin design, are aluminium, as
are many of the switches. Others are swathed in leather. Instruments are
back-lit, with aluminium faces. The fuel gauge is especially novel.
Instead of a needle, a level of liquid drops as the fuel tank empties.
There are two DVD screens in the rear, and one in the front that swivels
away when not in use, for the sophisticated information and
entertainment systems.
‘The cabin is very simple in its design,’ says Geoff Upex. ‘It is very
modern and there is clear lineage to the very structural lines of the
Range Rover. But it’s more cocooning than any current Land Rover
product, which we think this is very appropriate for a more sporting
vehicle.’
BOLD NEW TECHNOLOGY
Range Stormer showcases a variety of
advanced new technology, much of which will be seen in future Land Rover
production models.
The concept car is designed to preview Land Rover’s new integrated
platform, which will not only form the basis of the Range Stormer-based
production vehicle, but a future generation of full-size Land Rover
models. It combines the torsional rigidity and strength of a monocoque
with the advantages and versatility of a body-on-frame chassis.
‘This new platform is unique to Land Rover,’ says Matthew Taylor. ‘It is
highly advanced and will offer excellent safety, strength and
adaptability, in addition to exceptional on-road and off-road driving
capability.’
The suspension is by height-adjustable air springs, and is fully
independent – for a comfortable ride and responsive handling, plus
unmatched off-road versatility. The height adjustment not only improves
on- and off-road handling, but also helps entry and exit.
Another important advance from Land Rover’s engineering and design
centre at Gaydon, England, is Terrain Response. It is designed to
deliver the best vehicle performance in all types of on-road and
off-road driving conditions, tuning the entire vehicle set-up for
optimum composure and control,
With Terrain Response on the Range Stormer, an aluminium rotary switch
allows the driver to choose one of six terrain settings: · dynamic, for
high speed or winding tarmac roads · normal, for day-to-day driving ·
grass /gravel/snow, for slippery conditions · sand · deep ruts · rocks
Terrain Response controls the engine (including engine mapping),
gearbox, air suspension (ride height and firmness), driveline controls
(such as differential settings), traction control functions (including
Dynamic Stability Control and Hill Descent Control) and the brakes (ABS
and Electronic Brakeforce Distribution). The car’s advanced electronics
select the optimal programmes to conquer the appropriate terrain.
‘Terrain Response is technology that makes driving simpler, not more
complicated, and is a major advance for optimum vehicle performance both
off-road and on-road,’ says Matthew Taylor. ‘The special “dynamic”
setting reflects the high-performance, on-road bias of the Range Stormer,
for example. But in all programmes, the driver always retains overall
control.’
The sporty, high performance SUV concept features a supercharged V8,
specially developed for Land Rover from the renowned Jaguar engine used
in the high performance XJR and XKR models. As well as dedicated power
and torque outputs, the engine has been engineered to meet Land Rover’s
particular and exacting requirements, including the ability to run
smoothly at acute fore/aft and side angles and waterproofing, for safe
wading.
The engine delivers power to all four wheels by a smooth-shifting ZF
six-speed electronically controlled automatic gearbox. Like all Land
Rovers, the four-wheel drive is engaged permanently and
electronically-selectable low-range is available for tough off-roading.
