TOUR DE FORCE

WE REVEAL PRODUCTION SECRETS OF THE ALL-NEW ELECTRIC RANGE ROVER FACTORY AT HALEWOOD

- Phil McNamara

THE Halewood factory has churned out nine million cars: some fabulous (the Mk1 Ford Escort), some derided (the Jaguar X-Type), some both (the Ford Capri). But none of them powered solely by electricity.

All that will change in 2026, when an all-new midsize Range Rover starts rolling out of a brand-new body facility. Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is overhauling its Liverpool production hub with a £500million staggered investment, and Auto Express has ventured inside for a sneak preview.

Planning to introduce a new Electric Modular Architecture (EMA) began four years ago, triggering Halewood's transformation into a hi-tech digital factory building a unique electric Range Rover. The new 4x4 will be similar in size to the existing Velar, but stands apart due to its long wheelbase, low roof and zero-emissions running.

Assembling today's petrol/hybrid Velar will continue at the Solihull plant, embodying JLR's "parallel production" philosophy as it overhauls its vast industrial footprint. So the EMA's e-motors will be made alongside Ingenium petrol engines in Wolverhampton, and Solihull will also make flagship Range Rover EVs and hybrids, while Halewood merges its smaller EV with venerable 4x4s.

Daniel Ford, director of global manufacturing engineering, is at the heart of Halewood's rebirth. His team is spending 30,000 hours a week on the project, with the paint shop already refitted, robots and heavy plant shipped up from the former Jaguar factory in Castle Bromwich for reuse, and a new 32,000m² body-assembly building finished.