Land Rover Discovery SVX 2018 revealed in Frankfurt

Land Rover’s skunk works department, Special Vehicle Operations (SVO), has wheeled out one of its most explosive creations with a 386kW supercharged V8 Discovery that is claimed to go off-road like never before.

Unveiled this week at the Frankfurt motor show, the Discovery SVX will also be more than a showroom concept with production starting next year and Australia in sight by late 2018.

Land Rover describes the SVX as “the most extreme Land Rover yet” with features including larger-diameter wheels for increased ground clearance and greater wheel articulation aided by body and suspension lift kits.

The Discovery, launched in its fifth-generation guise in 2016, was seen as a perfect base for the SVO product because of its strong, safe and light aluminium architecture.

The SVX will be the only Discovery available with Jaguar Land Rover's 5.0-litre supercharged V8 petrol powertrain, tuned to deliver 386kW peak power and 625Nm torque, along with suspension modifications to enhance driver confidence when tackling the toughest terrain.

SVO has also added new features for the Discovery with a specially tuned version of its Terrain Response 2 off-road system and Active Roll Control that controls ride and handling on bitumen.

The Hydraulic Active Roll Control (H-ARC) is new to Discovery on SVX and gives increased wheel articulation and improved body control. This returns extreme off-road traction while also reducing body roll for smooth and more confident on-road driving.

Over the standard Discovery, the SVX has improved approach, departure and breakover angles, achieved by raising both the lightweight aluminium monocoque architecture and the four-corner air suspension system.

It has long-travel dampers and revised knuckles, larger 815mm diameter 275/55 R20 Goodyear Wrangler all-terrain tyres with higher side-walls to reduce contact pressure, and forged aluminium alloy wheels.

Discovery SVX is also equipped with active centre and electronic rear locking differentials which work with the specially tuned Terrain Response 2 system to optimise traction on all surfaces.

The show car has an exclusive satin Tectonic Grey paint finish, a unique colour and material combination of Lunar and Light Oyster with Rush Orange accents inside, and 'X' logo perforations on the SVX-branded seats.

The eight-speed automatic transmission has unique software calibrations and is connected to a two-speed transfer box. The electronics include hill descent control, electronic traction control (ETC), adaptive dynamics, dynamic stability control (DSC), All-Terrain Progress Control (ATPC) and variable ratio electric power-assisted steering.

It also features a model-first pistol shifter in place of the drive select rotary shifter to offer the driver optimum control of gear selection in off-road manoeuvres.

Externally, the SVX has been designed to reflect its robustness and off-road ability with styling features borrowed from the company’s previous off-road challenge vehicles such as the Camel Trophy and G4 Challenge editions.

The SVX displayed at the Frankfurt motor show has unique front and rear bumpers with protective skid plates and exposed Rush Orange-finished metal recovery eyes which are each rated to more than six tonnes. It also has an anti-glare bonnet finish and an integrated rear-mounted electric winch system.

The show car has an exclusive satin Tectonic Grey paint finish, a unique colour and material combination of Lunar and Light Oyster with Rush Orange accents inside, and 'X' logo perforations on the SVX-branded seats.

Unique Narvik Black side vents with V8 badging, a Narvik Black dynamic grille, silver roof rails and a roof-mounted unit with two additional light pods for improved low-light visibility complete the transformation.

The SVX will also be the first Land Rover to be assembled by hand at the SVO technical Centre when production begins in 2018 and will share limelight with two other SVO offerings, the Range Rover Sport SVR and Range Rover SV Autobiography.

No price has been disclosed yet, but Jaguar Land Rover Australia said it will release prices late this year before the ordering process starts.

Is the Land Rover Discovery SVX on the radar as your next off-roader? Tell us what you think in the comments below.