THE Range Rover Evoque is getting a new look and a new engine making it the most economical Land Rover to date.

It's about to become the fourth model in the Jaguar Land Rover range to be fitted with the company's new Ingenium diesel engine and it turns the front-wheel-drive Evoque into an SUV rated at 68 miles to the gallon.

That's an improvement of almost 20 per cent on the original model which has racked up nearly half a million sales in the past four years making it the fastest selling Land Rover ever.

Not since the Beatles has Merseyside had such hot a property and the Halewood factory near Liverpool where the Evoque is built has recently expanded to the produce the new Discovery Sport which is now also Ingenium powered.

Replacing the Ford-sourced diesel Land Rover has used for many a year, the 2.0-litre Ingenium diesel is built at JLR's new £500 million engine plant at Wolverhampton and comes in two states of boost at 150 and 180ps.

The lower powered version is the eco star and in the three door Evoque coupe it slashes emissions to 109g/km, almost 20 per cent lower than before.

For business drivers it chops tax bills by some five per cent and Land Rover is making overall running costs lower by increasing service intervals to 21,000 miles.

The new Evoque is priced from £30,200 - an increase of £995 - and the range now tops out at £51,800 for a top specification Autobiography model with a nine speed auto box.

The stunning design of the Range Rover Evoque which turned the SUV world on its head when the car was first revealed has been made even more distinctive with a new look nose which features huge air vents in the bumper and LED headlamps.

Some of it is akin to the high performance Range Rover Sport SVR and that's a car which will set you back close on £100,000.

The new Evoque also has a more pronounced tailgate spoiler complete with two shark fin antenna allowing for Internet connectivity on the move.

Higher grade Dynamic versions also come with some sporty body kit including fluted vents on the bonnet which make the Evoque look very potent.

Inside, there's a new look to the instrumentation, new seats and new trim options while the car now features Land Rover's InConnect Touch app-based infotainment system.

There's even the option of massaging front seats, a head up display and a hands-free opening tailgate is standard on higher grade versions.

The five door model is slightly heavier but the economy improvements are still significant and in two-wheel-drive set up with a six-speed manual box it is now rated at 113g/km with an official fuel return of 65.6mpg - nearly 10 to the gallon better than before.

In ‘proper' Range Rover 4x4 configuration the Evoque comes with the 180ps engine yet the switch to the Ingenium block sees CO2 output cut to 125g/km which works out at 59.5mpg for the manual and 134g/km (55.3mpg) for the five door auto.

A 2.0-litre 240ps petrol engine remains in the line up priced from £43,000 in HSE Dynamic trim but is a relative gas guzzler at 36.2mpg.

Not surprisingly the diesel engine powers the bulk of the new Range Rover Evoque line up and both on and off the road it passes muster in no uncertain fashion.

At the rocky Les Comes Land Rover Experience Centre in northern Spain both two and four-wheel-drive variants showed their mettle without compromise - each model covering the same demanding course which included wading through water up to the Evoque's 20-inch depth limit.

The 4x4 version comes with Land Rover's latest electronic off road system which has now been enhanced to include All-Terrain Progress Control which is quite remarkable.

Dial in a speed anywhere up to 19mph from the cruise control buttons and the vehicle will move ahead without issue.

All the driver has to do is concentrate on steering and we managed to complete the bulk of the Les Comes route controlling the Evoque purely from the steering wheel. In poor conditions back in the UK, especially wintry weather, the system will be invaluable.

On the road the Evoque remains a classy performer. The new engine has plenty of go about it and is much quieter than previous version making the car even more refined.

Top speed is 124mph for the manual 180ps model with a 0 to 60 acceleration time of 10 seconds while the 150ps engine manages 113mph and 0 to 60 in 11.3 seconds.

On the economy front we saw an average of 35.3mpg from the four-wheel-drive automatic and 45.5 for the manual, front-wheel drive version - nowhere near the official figures but still respectable for an SUV with genuine go-anywhere ability.

Off road the heavy duty demands increase consumption considerably and in the case of the two-wheel-drive Range Rover Evoque, which lacks the sophisticated Terrain Response control systems it returned just 10mpg on the demanding tracks.

However, few will ever venture into such territory and in regular use the Evoque will stay a cut above the rest, styled to impress in every way.

To denote its new-found eco credentials the two-wheel-drive model is now not just badged eD4 but has a blue Evoque motif on the tailgate to demonstrate what Land Rover is calling E-Capability - a feature which will appear on its most fuel efficient models.

The sportier TD4 Dynamic versions have their badges in red - a classy touch for a classy vehicle which looks set to continue as Land Rover's top seller.