London - The days of Range Rovers being the preserve of macho men and country types are long gone.
Now Jaguar Land Rover is tapping into the growing market for smaller four-wheel drives targeted at women.
The firm has created the world’s first compact 4x4 cabriolet – and it has already had 500 pre-orders in the UK since it was unveiled in November, many of which were from women.
A spokesman for the carmaker said: “It’s an incredible level of demand for the first Range Rover convertible from Land Rover – especially as the order books do not even open officially until the spring.”
Its popularity might be down to the fold-back soft top which has helped to make it a hit with a certain Bond girl.
Naomie Harris, who plays Miss Moneypenny alongside Daniel Craig’s 007, unveiled the Evoque Convertible at the Los Angeles Motor Show.
She said: “Moneypenny driving an Evoque Convertible? I think she has this kind of alter-ego which is really glamorous.
She’d absolutely love it. Driving around with the top down and the wind blowing in my hair, the sun shining, great music playing, I would be having a ball.”
Jaguar Land Rover says it has seen a much higher proportion of interest from women, a trend that started with the original, hard-top Evoque.
Women accounted for 40 percent of sales of that model – a significant shift for the firm away from its traditional rugged image.
The model should help drive the SUV market, which is forecast to grow by 20 percent over the next five years.
More than 500 000 Evoques have been sold globally since launching in 2011.
HERE IN TIME FOR SPRING
The Evoque Convertible is expected to reach South Africa during the third quarter of 2016.
Its folding roof is the longest and widest on any car available today - it stows away in 18 seconds and can be raised in 21 seconds at speeds up to 48km/h.
The quickest version is powered by a 177kW 2-litre turbopetrol engine that can accelerate from 0-100km/h in 8.6 seconds, but Land Rover is also offering two brand new 2-litre Ingenium turbodiesel engine choices for those with a more frugal mindset.
Although it is designed for the city rather than the countryside, the Evoque does come with Land Rover's permanent all-wheel drive transmission and Terrain Response system with wade sensing and all-terrain progress control.