The first Land Rover model designed and built by car giant Ford has rolled off the production line in the UK.

The Freelander 2 is being made at Jaguar’s Halewood Factory on Merseyside and the success of the model is seen as vital to the economy of the region.

Ford, which bought the brand in 2000, is relying on the car to boost sales.

Ford’s UK brands are under threat after its US parent – which reported a £3bn third-quarter loss – warned it could not support underperforming brands.

Widening losses

The US carmaker has recently insisted that apart from Aston Martin, its UK brands – such as Jaguar and Land Rover which are held by its Premier Automotive Group (PAG) – are not for sale, despite predicting the group would not see profits in 2006.

However, the declaration came ahead of its latest results which showed that losses at the US group had widened once again.

News that losses were almost 30 times higher than at the same time last year prompted new chief executive, former Boeing executive Alan Mulally, to declare the results “clearly unacceptable”.

Ford’s woes prompted Mr Mulally to warn that the group would no longer support its UK brands unless they showed signs of improvement.

Since the news, speculation has been widespread that the US group could sell off its Warwickshire-based luxury brand Aston Martin.

Ford – like its US rival General Motors – has suffered from lower sales, as higher petrol prices have led consumers to opt for more fuel-efficient Japanese cars.

Uncertain future

Professor David Bailey of Birmingham Business School also warned that the future of the UK division of Ford was “hanging in the balance”.

“Unless they improve dramatically they (Ford) can’t guarantee that they can hang onto the UK brands,” he told the BBC.

“Behind all of this is Ford’s enormous restructuring problems – sales are down enormously in the North American market, they are looking to cut costs massively over they next two years.

“Really there’s a question mark over whether Ford has enough cash themselves to actually hang onto Land Rover and Jaguar,” he added.

However, Professor Bailey added that Land Rovers tend to fare well in the European market and the new model could take sales away from BMW.

The decision to manufacture the Freelander at Halewood marks a massive turnaround for the plant which once lost 300 days of production a year through strikes.

Eddie O’Hara Labour MP for Knowlsley South – which includes Halewood – told the BBC the area was confident that the new Freelander was a “winner” and would be in production at Halewood for at least nine years.

Roger Maddison of union Amicus said the launch marked “a great day for Halewood and for the UK car making industry which needs some good news”. “The Freelander has been designed and will now be built in the UK and so is extremely important for the UK’s car manufacturing capability as well as the future of Land Rover in the UK,” he added.

(this article was taken from BBC.co.uk)

Land Rover today launches its marketing campaign for the 2007 Range Rover with ”Extraordinary Perspective” as its central theme.

This will be the third installment of Land Rover”s highly successful “Designed for the Extraordinary” marketing campaign, which debuted in February 2006. The latest series of communications – which includes TV, print, outdoor and web creative – presents the idea of an elevated perspective that is showcased within the cabin of a 2007 Range Rover on California”s central coast.

The premise revolves around inspiring pieces of art created in the sand on the beach at Point Conception, California. From sea level, these complex extraordinary works of art are virtually
unnoticeable; however, from an elevated viewpoint, the sand art becomes strikingly apparent. Typically created with only a piece of wood found on the beach, a rake, and no measuring tools, the art resembles fluid, natural shapes and spans several hundred feet.

“The ”Designed for the Extraordinary” campaign has demonstrated each of our vehicles in unique and fascinating ways. In the first spot, Range Rover Sport drove beneath the city of Tokyo through spectacular underground aqueducts. In the second spot, LR3 successfully navigated a plane from Nice to Corsica. This third iteration of the campaign focuses less on a physical demonstration, and more on emotional aspects of beautiful scenery, stunning one-of-a-kind artwork and the ability of our flagship Range Rover to elevate your perspective and see things differently,” said Sally Eastwood, vice president, marketing, Land Rover North America.

The Art

Sand art began in the late 1960s with a group of artists who found a limitless natural canvas in, among other things, sand. The California coastline lends itself to some of the most beautiful natural canvases for such artists. The canvas becomes a clean slate every day after the tides wash away the creations.

The Range Rover For 2007

Last year, the flagship Range Rover benefited from two new engine options, including a 400 bhp Supercharged V8. This year, a thoroughly redesigned cabin brings major gains in convenience, enhanced climate control, added comfort, and a refined interior appearance. Land Rover’s exclusive Terrain Response™ system, first introduced on the LR3 is now standard on all Range Rover models.

Land Rover North America”s “Designed for the Extraordinary” marketing campaign showcases actual events, not dramatizations. The documented Range Rover event is the third chapter of a multi-phase campaign created in liaison with Young & Rubicam Brands, Land Rover North America”s advertising agency.

In all, three pieces of sand art were created for the campaign. The campaign”s primary communication methods will focus on TV, print and outdoor, complemented by a Land Rover microsite, accessible by visiting www.landroverusa.com. The microsite houses “behind-the-scenes” footage that shows the making of the advertisements as well as a virtual showroom experience that enables users to browse through the outstanding key features on the 2007 Range Rover.

(this article was taken from deumotori.com and the image was taken from Range Rover 2007′s website)

Land Rover has launched a security tracking system for all its models.
The new system operates across Europe and meets the top category for security systems – Thatcham Category 5 accreditation. Whilst car crime has fallen in recent years, statistics show an increase in car-jacking and home burglaries to obtain vehicle keys – which means vehicles are now most likely to be stolen using their original keys, bypassing alarm and immobiliser devices.

Any unauthorised movements of a vehicle are sensed by Land Rover Watch and reported directly to the system’s monitoring service, which then contacts the owner to confirm whether a theft has taken place. If confirmed, tracking starts immediately using GPS and GSM technologies and the police are informed to activate retrieval. The system has its own power source, so will work even if the battery is disconnected.

The price is £999 including one year’s subscription for pan-European cover and an international SIM card (including roaming across UK domestic networks).

(this article was taken from reuters.co.uk)

Coventry, England – Land Rover is offering the new Range Rover in a special ‘Armoured’ version including side blast, under floor grenade protection and runflat tyres.

The vehicle complies with B6 ballistic level protection that can withstand gunfire and hand grenades triggered from underneath the car.

Among the extras are tinted windows, anti-tamper exhaust and intercom systems.

The Range Rover Armoured is powered by a 4.4 litre V8 engine with an output of 225 kW/305 hp. The price has not been released by the manufacturer and is subject to the granting of an export license by the British government.

(this article was taken from monstersandcritics.com)

Range Rover’s new flagship diesel version will be the first production car to have a special system built in to prevent drivers filling the tank with petrol instead of diesel.

With modern diesel cars behaving more like petrol-powered vehicles than ever before – and more drivers making the switch to diesel – many are being caught out at the pump. Motoring recovery groups have reported a sharp increase in call-outs due to this problem, and it seems that writing the word DIESEL in great big letters on the filler cap just isn’t doing the job.

The Range Rover TDV8 now has a petrol fuel guard system incorporated into the vehicle’s diesel filler head that automatically activates a mechanical shutter if a petrol nozzle is inserted. Rather simply, the system distinguishes between petrol and diesel nozzles because thinner unleaded petrol dispensers go deeper down the neck of the vehicle’s fuel tank, thus activating the shutter.

The AA reported that in 2005, more than 100,000 cases of mis-fuelling were reported, with diesel vehicles being filled with petrol in error. The associated costs are significant, often amounting to several thousand pounds if the incorrect fuel enters the engine during ignition.

(this article was taken from pocket-lint.com)

This week heralds a very busy end to the month of September for Land Rover, with the National and World Ploughing Championships taking place in Tullow, Co Carlow until Saturday and the Paris Motor Show until Friday.

National & World Ploughing Championships

The all-new Freelander 2 will be available in dealerships from November 2006. Irish prices will start from €41,990. Detailed pricing and specifications for Ireland will be announced at the Ploughing Championships. Also on show for the first time in Ireland will be the 2007 Range Rover.

The Land Rover Terrapod off-road driving experience comes to Ireland for the first time to thrill visitors at the event.

Land Rover is also the official courtesy vehicle supplier to the National & World Ploughing Championships. If you are visiting the event, you’ll find the Land Rover stand at Row R, Stand 303 with the Freelander 2 and the Range Rover for 2007.

Paris Motor Show

At the end of this busy week, Land Rover will also be at the Paris International Motor Show to present the new Defender for 2007 and the Range Rover Sport TDV8.

(this article was taken from athloneadvertiser.ie)

The 2007 model year Range Rover Sport will start from £35,665 for the entry-level, 2.7-litre TDV6 S, and will be available from 1 November at Land Rover dealerships throughout the UK.

Following its world debut at the Paris Motor Show last month, the 2007 model year sees the introduction of a powerful, state-of-the-art TDV8 diesel fourth engine to the Range Rover Sport, with prices for this derivative starting at £53,120 for the HSE specification when it goes on sale in January 2007.

The TDV8 Range Rover Sport offers power and torque over 40% greater than the TDV6 turbocharged diesel engine, and achieves 25.5mpg (combined cycle) while class-leading refinement helps emphasise the V8 acoustics. Prices rise to £63,225 for the petrol V8 Supercharged Range Rover Sport HST.

(this bulletin was taken from easier.com)