PRODUCT RESPONSIBILITY
WE’RE CONTINUALLY DEVELOPING NEW WAYS TO REDUCE THE ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACT OF OUR PRODUCTS
REDUCING OUR ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
Our most significant environmental impact comes from our products. The good news
is that this is also where we can make the most significant improvements.
This is why we are investing heavily in research, engineering and manufacturing to
deliver innovative solutions that will reduce the environmental impact of our vehicles
throughout their entire life cycle.
Life cycle thinking
When we design a new vehicle, we have one aim: to make it even more sustainable
than its predecessor. To achieve this we examine every aspect of a vehicle – from its
design to the end of its life – to identify ways we can reduce its overall environment
impact, whilst increasing the vehicle’s performance and capability. We call this the
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). It’s an approach that’s leading to a new generation of
efficient vehicles. For example, the latest Range Rover features a 3.0 litre V6 engine,
which, coupled with our lightweight aluminium technology, delivers the same
performance as the outgoing V8 model.
Using more sustainable materials
By using Life Cycle Assessment up front in the design process, we can understand
what material choices are most sustainable over the lifetime of the vehicle. Naturally,
we aim to select materials such as leather, natural rubber, wood and cotton from
sustainable sources. And we are also researching new types of natural fibres that
could reduce the weight and life cycle impact of vehicle components compared to
plastic.
Reducing weight, increasing efficiency
By reducing the weight of a vehicle’s body and components, we can make our cars
more efficient, while delivering the outstanding performance our customers expect.
Which is why a number of our vehicles are now made using revolutionary all-
aluminium bodies that significantly reduce their weight. So we have created a new
lightweight modified aluminium alloy that allows for a higher proportion of recycled
content and uses 95% less energy to manufacture and produces less waste than
virgin material.
Designing for fuel efficiency
Typically, over 80% of a vehicle’s lifetime carbon footprint will come from its use.
Therefore designing fuel-efficient vehicles is key to reducing our impact on the
environment and delivering cost savings for our customers. As well as improving the
efficiency of our conventional powertrains, we are also investing in hybrid and electric powertrain technology,
and introducing intelligent Stop/Start Technology that can reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by 7%.
These are just some of the steps we are taking to enable us to create more efficient
vehicles that meet the needs of our customers now and long into the future.