The New Range Rover Evoque

The new 'baby' Range Rover was unveiled at a star-studded event at London's Kensington Palace in early July. Fashion icon Victoria Beckham was recruited to give the occasion that A-list touch, and is acting as a consultant on the car's interior design.

The production model appears little different from the LRX concept unveiled over two years ago in Detroit. Which is to say it's a great looker, muscular and richly detailed, with sweeping lines and a snout that will help it to stand out on well-heeled streets from Belgravia to Beverly Hills.

Light fantastic

The Evoque is presently a three-door car, though a five-door will definitely arrive later. It may be a Land Rover Freelander underneath, but it is all Range Rover on the outside and has a price-tag to match: £30,000 is likely to be just the start if you get excited by the options list.

Aside from the striking looks though the really important aspect is its relatively low weight and economy: the front-wheel-drive turbodiesel version will emit under 130g/km of CO2, and deliver over 50mpg. And since the launch party was jointly held with Vogue magazine, the car is also making an unashamed play for the female market. We haven't as yet been allowed to see inside - and no official interior photos have been released, although if it's anything less than luxurious we would be surprised.

The car will be built at Halewood on Merseyside and will create 1,000 jobs there. The car should be 'formally' unveiled at the Paris Motor Show at the end of September and go on sale in the summer of 2011.

Phil Popham, managing director of Land Rover said: "Today is a very special occasion for Range Rover, not only are we celebrating 40 years of the brand, we are also demonstrating our exciting future by showing the all-new Range Rover Evoque."

We think the new car looks awesome and makes rivals like the Audi Q5 and brand new BMW X3 look a bit dull in comparison, and we can certainly see those assertive looks steal many an aspirational sale from the Germans. But we must still see the interior, and for that it looks like we will have to wait for the Paris Motor Show at the end of September.

Check out our gallery for full on-the-ground imagery of the launch party, more shots of the car and more of the LRX concept from which this production model is derived.