In case you haven’t heard, gas prices are rising. Welcome back to society – we hope you’ve enjoyed your time living in a cave. It seems that $3.00-per-gallon gasoline is here to stay, with some suggesting that paying $4.00 per gallon is a distinct possibility in the not-too-distant future. That’s bad news for most everyone except ExxonMobil executives and their friends in Washington. It’s also a real downer for car companies with lineups consisting almost entirely of large, petrol-addicted SUVs – companies like Land Rover.

Buyers are gradually shifting, or at least considering a shift to smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles, which makes it the perfect time for Land Rover to release a more desirable and competitive small SUV like the LR2. There are a number of premium and luxury SUVs on the market – the Lexus RX 350, Acura RDX, and Volvo XC90 are just a few examples – though the LR2 might trump them all in terms of off-road capability. It’ll need to – none of the competitors have the Freelander to wash from buyers’ minds.