The Chery Jaguar Land Rover joint venture has brought back the Freelander, a name Land Rover last used on a compact SUV that ended production in 2014. The revival is not a Land Rover, though. The Freelander 8 First Edition launches as the first model of a new, China-developed brand, engineered and built locally with Jaguar Land Rover licensing the nameplate.
The hardware is entirely of the Chinese market. The Freelander 8 is a six-seat SUV around five metres long, using a range-extender (EREV) powertrain on an 800V architecture. A 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine producing 115 kW (157 hp) works only as a generator, recharging a 60.331 kWh battery co-developed with CATL for a certified 221 km of pure-electric range. The battery accepts up to 6C charging at a 350 kW peak. Underneath sits a serious off-road system with three differential locks, paired with Huawei’s i-ATS terrain software.
On the technology side it carries flagship-grade Chinese hardware: Huawei’s Qiankun ADS 5 driver-assistance platform with a roof-mounted 896-line LiDAR fitted as standard across the Pro, Max and Max+ trims, and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8397 cockpit chip. Pricing has not been confirmed, but the venture says it is aiming at the 300,000 yuan (about $44,000) segment.
The launch is a clear statement of strategy. Rather than localising European designs, Chery Jaguar Land Rover is reusing its manufacturing base for a homegrown brand built on Chinese batteries, chips and driver-assistance tech. It arrives in the same week the venture deeply discounted and began winding down the imported-design Range Rover Evoque L - the old approach making way for the new one.
