Tata Motors’ Land Rover Based Q501 SUV Could Look Like This

Tata Motors is working on not one but two new luxury SUVs that will sit at the very top of its passenger vehicle line up in India. Code-named Q501 and Q502, both these vehicles are said to be based on a Land Rover model, in this case the Freelander2, which will soon be replaced globally by the Discovery Sport. It must be noted that the Discovery Sport isn’t based on an all-new platform, but on a heavily modified Ford EUCD platform, which underpinned the Freelander2. With the older platform now in disuse as far as Land Rovers are concerned, Tata Motors is likely to put the rugged Ford EUCD platform to good use on its upcoming luxury SUVs.

In terms of design, the Hexa concept could be a trailer of what we can expect from the Tata Q501 and Q502 SUVs. Ace rendering artist Theophilus Chin has already conjured up a trio of renders, depicting the design direction that the upcoming Tata luxury SUVs could take. The front of the render derives inspiration from the Hexa concept, which was recently showcased at Geneva, and that will be launched in India during the first quarter of 2016. 5 and 7 seat options on the cards for the Q501 and Q502 code-named Tata vehicles, which means that varying wheelbases are likely to be used. Propulsion options could come from Fiat, Tata Motors’ engine supplier and joint manufacturing partner.

With the Jeep Patriot/Compass replacement to be built in India, at Fiat’s Ranjangaon factory that the Italian automaker jointly runs with Tata Motors, the 2.0 liter Multijet turbo diesel motor seems primed for production from 2016. This very engine is tipped to be used on the likes of the Q501 and Q502 codenamed SUVs. Given the multiple state of tunes the 2 liter Multijet turbo diesel motor is available in (110 Bhp-260 Nm to 192 Bhp-380 Nm), finding a powerful state of tune is a given. On the other hand, Tata Motors could also help itself to the 2.2 liter-4 cylinder Peugeot designed turbo diesel motor, which is standard on the current Land Rover Freelander2.

Both options look probable on the new crop of sports utility vehicles from the Indian automaker. Manual and automatic gearbox options are expected to be on offer along with the turbo diesel engines, along with a four wheel drive option. 2017 is when the new flagship vehicles from Tata Motors could make their India debuts. Until then, the automaker has a slew of options lined up for the sports utility vehicle buyer in India, from the Safari Storme Refresh to the Hexa, to the Nexon compact crossover. Here’s the full story.