RANGE Stormer is a high performance, sport tourer SUV concept car, which showcases a future design direction for Land Rover and the company's increasingly bold approach to new technologies. It is also the first-ever Land Rover concept to preview a new production model, one that will enter a fresh market segment for the company. This will be an additional model line in the Land Rover portfolio, joining Range Rover, Discovery, Freelander and Defender. 'The supercharged V8 Range Stormer gives a taste of our forthcoming new entrant in the booming high performance SUV segment,' says the managing director of Land Rover, Matthew Taylor. 'The production vehicle that follows will share many of its styling and technical innovations. 'Range Stormer is a modern, striking, high-technology vehicle,' he adds. 'It is very much conceived to be an on-road, high performance machine, as well as class-leading off-road like all Land Rovers. Breadth of capability is one of its many strengths.'

Future technologies previewed with the concept include an all-new platform that will be the basis for future full-size Land Rover models. This advanced, fully integrated platform, unique to Land Rover, will provide the underpinnings for the production vehicle inspired by Range Stormer. Another major innovation is Terrain Response. This smart and simple-to-use new Land Rover technology delivers the best possible on-road and off-road composure and control, by optimising the entire vehicle set-up including suspension, powertrain, throttle response and traction control. The driver simply selects the appropriate Terrain Response setting from the six available on Range Stormer, varying from 'dynamic' for high speed work to 'deep ruts' for extreme off-roading.

'You'll be seeing an increasing amount of innovative technology in our future vehicles,' says Matthew Taylor. 'But technology that makes the driver's task simpler not more complicated, such as Terrain Response. You select the terrain. The car then helps you conquer it.' The Range Stormer concept car is the sportiest looking vehicle ever to wear a Land Rover badge. The production model that follows will also offer new levels of performance from Land Rover.

'The challenge was to translate fundamental Land Rover design values into a concept for a high performance machine that looks powerful, muscular and edgy,' says design director Geoff Upex. 'We certainly want to challenge established views of our vehicles and yet Range Stormer is clearly an authentic Land Rover'. He continues: 'It has classic Land Rover design language, such as the clamshell bonnet, "floating roof", castellated corners on the hood, the straight waistline and short front overhang. Take one look at the vehicle and it's obviously from Land Rover, and obviously has strong Range Rover genes.'