Smacking their foreheads and uttering, ‘We could have had a V8!’ Land Rover is apparently considering an LR2 Sport of sorts, according to Edmund’s Inside Line. Why not, when you already have a V8 engine like the Yamaha 4.4-liter V8 from the Volvo XC90/S80 in the corporate warehouse? The plan is feasible as the engine swap would be pretty straightforward. The Freelander 2 LR2 shares many subplatforms with the Volvos. Of course, even though it would be relatively simple doesn’t mean it would be cheap. As we told you recently, pricing on the LR2 will start around 35 large. That would mean a V8 could be bumping up to the half century mark. ‘It is a question of, if we did it, how many could we sell and could we extract the cost of the development,’ Inside Line quoted Richard Beattie as saying. Beattie is executive vice president of marketing and sales for Land Rover North America. ‘What could we sell it for? Fifty-thousand?’ He also noted that at those prices, customers might look elsewhere. We wouldn’t argue with that, although the thought of a 311 hp mini ute with LR’s off-road capabilities and luxurious interior would surely snag a few buyers even at those prices. Winks and grins by LR higher-ups seem to prove this is more than idle speculation on Edmund’s part.
[source: Edmunds & Autoblog]
