Yes, it's a Land Rover all right; although you could be forgiven for wondering.

It slots into a world beyond the current and even the next generation Freelander, Disco, Range and Range Sport; a world where the availability of petrol is not a given, where the height of your car is a political issue and where the weather can frequently and suddenly turn a bit nasty.

A Land Rover for your children, then - if you're on your way back from the maternity ward today, that is.

A lightweight, aluminium-framed hybrid-powered Land Rover of the sort the company - probably the hottest car brand on the planet right now thanks to the Range Rover Sport and new Discovery - will be offering 10-15 years from now.

These images are a first glimpse behind the high-security door of LR's advanced design department, set up two years ago under British design legend Gerry McGovern.

They're not real cars yet. For now, they are themes that embrace what McGovern is calling 'Premium Utility' - a new, less in-your-face but still tough look that showcases the high-tech edge Land Rover wants to make its own.

McGovern has worked closely with Land Rover's engineers on this, something he's keen to stress in interviews. The message is clear; this isn't pie-in-the-sky dreaming.

The release of the images and of an engineering model, the 'land_e' is evidence that Land Rover is embarking on an unprecedented process of reinvention that's set to call the bluff of the anti-SUV movement and see the company that invented the SUV maintain its dominant and enviable position among SUVs - first and best.

At the motor show in London this July, where the new, softer Freelander 2 makes its debut, the company will announce the next step in the land_e programme with news of a production-ready hybrid system for the second-generation Freelander.

Land Rover is not the first maker of SUVs to tackle the 'environmental issue', but it is the most convincing - so read on.

McGovern arrived back at Land Rover two years ago after a stint working for Ford's luxury Lincoln division, back in the days when Ford had money and ambitions to make Lincoln an American Audi. McGovern's concept work for Lincoln was outstanding; a sleek, JFK-era retro-futurism derived from months of legwork and research.