Land Rover has defended the styling and direction of its upcoming Discovery, adamant that the next-generation vehicle will be more off-road capable than any of its predecessors.

In the wake of the elegant Discovery Vision Concept being unveiled by the British brand this week, there are concerns the venerable off-roader will lose its edge away from the bitumen when a new model is revealed next year.

The concept shares strong styling parallels with Land Rover’s sister brand, Range Rover, particularly in the softer nose treatment and lavish interior. According to design director Gerry McGovern, the concept’s “jewel-like” appearance will be a strong influence in the design of the final production model.

However, Land Rover design studio director Richard Woolley says the production version won’t lose its legendary off-roading ability, thanks to unprecedented technology.

“It will actually be better off-road, we’ve found new ways to improve the car’s capability including clever electronics that help adapt the vehicle to different terrains but also technologies that help the driver feel more confident,” he said.

“The Discovery has to be versatile and versatile can mean all sorts of things. It means interior space, it means off-road ability and it means increased aerodynamic performance – which is becoming increasingly important because of emissions

standards and the like – and more versatile on the road as well.

“The Discovery is broadening its versatility.”

One such technology could be a freshly conceived traction system developed in-house by Land Rover.

According to the brand’s product creation and delivery director, Bob Joyce, the technology will virtually make Land Rover’s cars unboggable.

“Essentially, it’s a very clever algorithm and one that works for both four-wheel drive and two-wheel drive,” he explained.

“The system brakes and sends torque to single wheels, but it’s not in big movements, it actually pulses the wheels individually.

“It makes a hell of a noise, but it works on every type of terrain - snow, ice, sand and mud.

“It works every time, it’s never failed.”

Under a freshly conceived new family structure announced on Wednesday, Land Rover will represent ‘versatility’, Range Rover will represent ‘Luxury’ and Defender will stand for ‘capability’.

It’s understood the upcoming Discovery will be built on aluminium underpinnings and could inherit Land Rover’s upcoming range of four-cylinder petrol and diesel engines, marketed as the ‘Ingenium’ family.

The Discovery Vision Concept on display at the New York motor show also previews a range of futuristic technologies including a smart glass application that “can work in conjunction with eye-tracking sensors and the vehicle’s sat-nav system to identify that, for instance, a passing landmark is being observed by one of the vehicle’s passengers – and displays relevant information, such as navigation or tourist data, to that passenger.”

Joyce said each of those technologies were conceived with the aim of one day making them standard production specification.