Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is preparing for future electric vehicles with advanced lightweight composite research that will help deliver increased range, greater performance and a more dynamic drive.

The Tucana project is a four-year programme to make the UK a world leader in low-carbon technology, helping prevent 4.5 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions between 2023 and 2032 by accelerating mainstream use of electric vehicles (EVs) and making vehicles lighter to both decrease tailpipe emissions and reduce energy consumption of electrified powertrains.

The research will allow JLR to develop lightweight vehicle and powertrain structures by replacing aluminium and steel with composites capable of handling the increased torque generated by high-performance batteries, while improving efficiency and reducing CO₂ impact.

JLR aims to increase vehicle stiffness by 30%, cut weight by 35kg and further refine the crash safety structure through the strategic use of tailored composites, such as carbon fibre. Reducing the vehicle body weight will allow the fitting of larger batteries with increased range – without impacting CO₂ emissions.

Advanced composites offer significant reductions in vehicle weight, and by 2022, JLR expects to have developed a fleet of prototype Tucana test vehicles. The consortium, led by JLR, brings together world-leading academic and industry partners including the Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG), Expert Tooling & Automation, Broetje-Automation UK, Toray International UK, CCP Gransden and The Centre for Modelling & Simulation (CFMS).

Lightweight body structures
Marcus Henry, JLR research manager, said: “The development of new lightweight body structures to complement the latest zero-emissions powertrains will be key as the electrification of our vehicle range continues. This project will allow the true environmental credentials of EVs to be realised by enabling wider adoption of the technology and will propel JLR and the UK supply chain into a world-leading position in low-carbon technology.”

Ian Risk, CFMS CTO, said: “Tucana shows how new technology development can be optimised and accelerated with digital engineering. Using new digital design, development and manufacturing tools helps to deliver emissions reduction faster, so the UK economy can reach zero emissions quicker.”

The continued electrification of JLR vehicles is part of a commitment to make societies safer and healthier through innovative technology.

Jaguar has completed the electrification of its PACE family with the P300e plug-in hybrid powertrain offered on the new Jaguar E-PACE and P400e for Jaguar F-PACE alongside the all-electric Jaguar I-PACE.

Similarly, the new Range Rover Velar is now offered with the P400e, completing the hybrid options available across the Range Rover family.