They’ve had a long-distance romance for a while, now their relationship is official: Bowler and Land Rover have signed an agreement that gives LR more presence in the hardcore off-road arena and gives Bowler direct access to parts and engineering. The move isn’t all that surprising: last year Bowler took on Steve Haywood, previously a chief engineer at Land Rover, to lead the production of its new vehicle.
While Bowler has been using Land Rovers as base vehicles for years, the company hasn’t made a big deal of it. From now on, though, Bowlers like the current EXR and street-legal EXR-S will wear “Powered by Land Rover” badging. The LR name will also appear in Bowler’s marketing materials, and we can probably expect to see Bowlers appearing at Land Rover events that include demonstrations of just what LR components can ultimately do off-road.
In return, LR engineers will work directly with Bowler on its products providing development support, and LR will allow those same engineers to “stretch themselves creatively and technically on an extreme performance-orientated programme.” That line carries a whiff of Skunkworks with it, granting official concession to the kinds of projects that the parent company wouldn’t have time for, but which could prove beneficial for everyone.
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