Range Rover Evoque: Made in BRAZIL from early 2016

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Land Rover has announced that the Range Rover Evoque will be built at its new plant in Itatiaia, Brazil alongside the new Discovery Sport from early 2016.

Land Rover has been building cars in China for a year, although the JLR Plant there is a co-owned facility, and now it’s about to start building cars in South America, at its new plant in Itatiaia, Brazil, which will be making both the new Land Rover Discovery Sport and the 2016 Range Rover Evoque for the local market, with first cars rolling out in early 2016.

JLR is investing £240 million over the next five years to supplement UK production of Land Rovers by 24,000 units a year in Brazil, and the plant in Itatiaia is the first wholly owned production facility for JLR outside the UK – and the first for a UK car maker in Brazil.

JLR’s Latin America MD, Terry Hill, said:

Since its introduction, the Range Rover Evoque has sold more than 20,000 vehicles in Brazil and we are delighted to confirm that the Range Rover Evoque will be built at our facility in Itatiaia.

Brazil and the surrounding regions are very important to Jaguar Land Rover. The introduction of the Range Rover Evoque to our factory in Itatiaia highlights our long-term commitment to the Brazilian market.

As long as JLR continues to grow, production of cars outside the UK will do no harm to the UK car industry. But if sales falter – or recession looms – it’s hard to see how JLR will resist the temptation to cut UK production and boost it in markets where costs are lower.