Land Rover To Launch Range Rover Evoque Convertible By Mid-2017

The 2017 model of the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque has been recently been launched in the country. While we were happy with this news, Land Rover has gone ahead and decided to introduce the soft-top version of this SUV - the Evoque Convertible on its website. The car will be launched in India by mid-2017. What Land Rover claims to be the world's first 'premium compact SUV convertible' is quite literally an 'over the top' attempt to give the rich a weekend toy to play with. Nonetheless, it looks fantastic and still manages to retain its luxury and off-road capabilities. 

From the waist down, the Range Rover Evoque retains the looks of its hard-top sibling, except this one has only two doors (based on the coupe). Look above the rising shoulder line and you will notice the absence of the B- and C-pillars, and a carpet for a roof. Other than the above-mentioned absentees, you still get the long list of exterior features which are present on the hard top. The list includes things like heated rear screen, tyre pressure monitoring system, dynamic side sills, and exterior mirrors with memory function and auto dipping in reverse gear. 

The Evoque convertible will be powered by the 2.0-litre four-cylinder Si4 petrol engine which will be mated to a nine-speed automatic. This drivetrain, in the standard Evoque, will be launched next year in January. This mill has a power output of 240PS and a max torque figure of 340Nm. This combination gives the SUV a top speed of 209kmh and a 0-100kmph time of 8.68 seconds. The intelligent Stop/Start feature is also part of the package. Other mechanical details include four-wheel drive configuration, LR's Terrain Response System, Hill Descent Control (HDC) and torque vectoring. 

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Inside the cabin, you get the same setup as the 2017 Evoque. It includes a 10-inch touchscreen which runs the InControl Touch Pro system. Connected to this system is a Meridian sound system with an output of 380W via 10 speakers plus a subwoofer. In terms of safety, the SUV has five airbags (driver airbags and knee bolster airbag; front passenger airbag and seat mounted side airbags with head protection), deployable rollover protection device, Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS), Dynamic Stability Control (DSC), Traction Control System (TCS), Emergency Brake Assist (EBA) and Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD).

Expect the Evoque Convertible to come to the country in the second quarter of 2017 with a sticker price of about Rs 75 lakh. For that amount of money, you could also get a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited whose roof can also be removed (manually) and is a hard-core off-roader. So, the choice is yours!