Even Europe Has No Use for a Range Rover Evoque Three-Door

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

The most attainable Range Rover, and easily the least desirable, will no longer be offered sans rear doors. While the five-door Evoque soldiers on for the 2019 model year alongside its ridiculous convertible sibling, the automaker says there will no longer be a three-door available anywhere on the planet.

It’s just the latest evidence that automakers aren’t interested in shelling out for seldom bought body styles just to satisfy a handful of nonconformist buyers.

Hold on, you’re thinking, hasn’t Jaguar Land Rover already deep-sixed the three-door Evoque? You’re correct, but that decision only affected the North American market, where the Evoque three-door disappeared for the 2018 model year. In Europe and elsewhere, 2019 brings a lineup devoid of anything that could accurately be referred to as a “coupe.”

Actually, if you happen to be one of 999 ultra-wealthy buyers, there technically is a coupe (the SV Coupe) on offer in 2019, but the model’s extreme exclusivity means you won’t find it on many shopping lists.

News of the three-door Evoque’s demise, arriving via Autocar, comes as the automaker readies a second-generation of the compact SUV for a global launch. That model appears next year as a 2020 model, and it seems certain there’ll be no three-door variant. Autocar cites sources who claim 95 percent of the Evoque’s sales came from the traditional five-door model.

“From the 2019 model year, Land Rover has rationalised its Range Rover Evoque bodystyle offering to concentrate on the five-door model and convertible, which account for the majority of sales,” a company spokesman told the publication.

In a land awash with unibody utility vehicles, Range Rover’s long-in-the-tooth Evoque — which appeared in late 2011 as a 2012 model — saw a U.S. sales peak in 2015. Over the first five months of 2018, Evoque sales slipped 45.6 percent in the United States.

[Image: Jaguar Land Rover]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

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  • Dal20402 Dal20402 on Jun 08, 2018

    One less variant of yappy Shih Tzu to afflict the roads.

  • Big Al from Oz Big Al from Oz on Jun 08, 2018

    I view the Range Evoque as Range Rovers Cadillac moment. The only people who buy them are the most insecure wannabe nickel millionaires around. The Evoque is not a Range Rover, no where's near one. You can buy a Kia or Hyundai CUV that is more desirable. Even the RAV4 is more desirable.

  • Olivehead The Honda Civic wins on looks and interior material quality and style. The Civic looks like a scaled down "real" car (i.e., midsize) while the Corolla never lets you forget what it is-a compact car, harkening back to the Tercel, etc. No comparision either in the interior materials of the Civic (a notch below Acura level) and general layout. There too, the Corolla comes off as a compact runabout. The Civic hatchback is especially cool.
  • Mike Beranek While the product may appear to be "better", only time will tell. The American automotive environment can chew a car up and spit it out. Will these Chinese EVs survive like a quarter-century old Cavalier, or will they turn out like VinFast's "cars"?
  • Mike Beranek This police vehicle will be perfect for when the State of Florida starts tracking every pregnancy.
  • Dave M. The Highlander hybrid, a larger, heavier vehicle, gets better mpgs. Why? Also, missed opportunity - if Toyota had made this a hatchback, they could have scooped up the "want a Tesla S but not ready for a full EV" crowd, however small or large they may be....
  • TheMrFreeze Difficult call...the more the mainstream automakers discontinue their more affordable models and only sell crazy overpriced EVs and trucks, the more appealing the idea of letting in cheap imported cars becomes with the buying public. If the government is going to impose tariffs on Chinese vehicles, at the same time they need to be getting with the Big 3 and telling them to fill the void with affordable models and not use the tariff as an excuse to simply raise prices. Otherwise, public pressure could see the tariffs withdrawn.I seem to recall the last administration put a 25% tariff on Chinese steel, at which point the US manufacturers immediately used the opportunity to raise their prices 25%...that needs to not happen.
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