Land Roverβs New Velar Trades V8 Roar For Electric Muscle

- The Velar EV may borrow some tech from the full-size Range Rover.
- A pair of electric motors could allow it to out-muscle the supercharged V8.
- Land Rover isnβt expected to lift the veil on the latest Velar until next year.
The market for premium all-electric SUVs is continuing to swell and with BMW, Mercedes, and Audi already selling multiple, the folks over at Jaguar Land Rover simply had to respond. In addition to working on an electric version of the full-sized Range Rover, the smaller Range Rover Velar is getting an electric overhaul and itβs already being tested on the Nurburgring.
This prototype may be covered in camouflage, but itβs clear that the overall shape of the Velar EV will be similar to the existing ICE-powered model. Given that the current model is already quite good-looking, Land Rover (wisely) chose not to mess with its design too much.
As such, the front end looks very familiar, complete with thin headlights and blacked-out areas where the front grille and air intakes sit on the combustion Velar.
Read: The Electric Range Rover Is Getting A Little Brother
Itβs unclear whether Land Rover will make any major changes to the SUVβs front end. Since electric vehicles donβt need an engine to cool, a traditional grille and large air intakes are largely unnecessary, yet the prototype suggests a grille of some sort will remain, likely a solid black panel. At the center sits a small forward-facing camera, used by the vehicleβs safety and driver-assist systems.

Thereβs also some interesting stuff going on with the rear half of the prototype. There are some lumps and bumps around the C- and D-pillars, but we expect a more refined rear for the production model.
Powertrain Predictions
Little is known about the EVβs powertrain. We know the larger Range Rover EV will have a massive 117 kWh battery pack, but thatβs far too big for the smaller Velar. Instead, something in the range of 85 β 100 kWh seems more likely.
Itβs also safe to assume itβll utilize two electric motors in order to sport all-wheel drive. Thereβs even a possibility it could out-muscle the current SVAutobiography Dynamic, which uses a 5.0-liter supercharged V8 and has 542 hp and 502 lb-ft (681 Nm).