Jaguar Land Rover Has Its Eye On The Tesla Model X

There seems to be many different ways luxury carmakers are going in order to cut fuel consumption and improve emissions. While big companies like BMW and the VW Group are going in every which way, Jaguar Land Rover is hedging its bets mostly on some kind of electric propulsion.

In an interview with Autocar, JLR's engineering head Wolfgang Zeibart said he's interested in how the Tesla Model X crossover turns out, and indicated that could sway his company's decision in making a totally electric Jag or Land Rover.

We can't neglect any segment, and if a segment gets stronger and shows momentum, we would have to react. But we have not made a decision about an EV model.

Furthermore, Zeibart thinks a hybrid setup will be dominant among its "upper class" cars as emissions requirements get more stringent. I take that to mean JLR isn't planning many tiny turbos in its future.

Land Rover has already used a string of hyrbidized Range Rovers to prove they're as tough as the conventionally powered vehicles. But there hasn't been a big push for these vehicles by the company, including the fact they aren't going to be offered in the U.S. anytime soon.

Still, it also means that there probably won't be a full-sized Range Rover with a four-cylinder engine or a three-cylindered Jaguar XJ. And a totally electric Range Rover could happen.

That could be interesting.

Photo: Land Rover