The Range Rover Evoque is gearing up for a radical reinvention as an electric SUV that should be on sale by 2026, but it looks like Land Rover’s design is treating the current generation to a light nip and tuck to help keep it fresh until the EV is ready. These spy shots show an Evoque with a grille pattern borrowed from the full-size Range Rover and a new LED taillight graphic. It’s not that the current car is looking haggard, exactly. Land Rover’s happy problem is that the 2019 Mk2 Evoque was such a well-executed design that it still looks fresh and doesn’t need much fiddling with. Because it was quick to adopt the design template laid out by the Velar and only recently adopted by the rest of the lineup, including slim headlamps and flush-fit handles, it’s still very much in step with the current family look.

The one exception is the rear. The two bigger, newer Rangie models, the Range Rover and Range Sport, both feature hyper-clean tail designs with distinctive taillight signatures that are far more stylish and recognizable than the one on the current Evoque. And while the facelifted one pictured has a new LED pattern, we can see that the shape of the outer light units themselves appears unchanged. But it’s possible that they’re linked by a transverse light bar hidden under the disguise. So the exterior changes might not have existing Evoque drivers rushing down the dealership to upgrade to the new one, but should they bother to make the trip they’ll probably find a more user-friendly version of the Pivi Pro infotainment system first fitted to the baby SUV a couple of years ago.

 

But with an all-new car only a couple of years out, we’re not expecting huge changes to the powertrain offerings, which consist of 246 hp and 296 hp 2.0-liter petrol engines in the U.S. while other markets bolster that lineup with 2.0-liter diesels and a 1.5-liter PHEV that will probably get a modest EV range increase on the current car’s 61 km.

The third-generation Evoque, which is due mid-decade, will ride on a new EMA electric platform, though the architecture will also be able to accommodate hybrid ICE power. JLR is currently renovating its Halewood plant in England ready to produce the next generation of electrified vehicles.