BMW and Jaguar-Land Rover already tied the knot to work on next-generation electric powertrains, but the two are reportedly keen to go further.
According to a report from Autocar last Friday, the two companies may be looking into sharing engines. Specifically, BMW would provide gasoline, diesel, and hybridized internal-combustion engines for Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles. Given that Land Rover just debuted its new inline-6 this year, there seem to be a few loose ends to this theory. However, it's still possible. JLR could simply want to focus on electric powertrains and source internal-combustion powerplants from a partner. We also heard in 2016 that JLR was possibly interested in sourcing V-8s from BMW.
2019 Land Rover Discovery Td6
This latest report doesn't put the anonymous source on record talking about BMW V-8s. Instead, it says BMW would provide JLR with inline-4 and inline-6 engines with and without hybrid capabilities. Under the terms of the current partnership, both automakers will collaborate on electric powertrains, but they will not share production. Each company will also tweak the drive units to match their respective brand characteristics.
Like any partnership involving electrification as of late, the overarching goal of the EV powertrain partnership is to reduce development time. The possible expansion of that partnership could allow JLR to save costs and perhaps lay off employees from its engine production lines.
What does BMW have to gain from sharing its engines with JLR? A lot. The deal would bolster the return on existing investments in traditional engines with expanded volume outside of just BMW, Mini, and Rolls-Royce.
If an engine deal does happen, it wouldn't be the first time Land Rovers housed BMW power, either. The third-generation Range Rover was developed by BMW and used BMW V-8 gasoline and inline-6 diesel engines from 2002 to 2006.