Range Rover Velar review

Category: Large SUV

Section: Introduction

Range Rover Velar 2022 front cornering
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 front cornering
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 rear cornering
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 interior dashboard
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 interior rear seats
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 interior infotainment
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 right tracking
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 front cornering
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 rear cornering
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 rear left tracking
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 interior front seats
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 interior detail
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 boot open
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 front cornering
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 rear cornering
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 interior dashboard
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 interior rear seats
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 interior infotainment
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 right tracking
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 front cornering
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 rear cornering
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 rear left tracking
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 interior front seats
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 interior detail
  • Range Rover Velar 2022 boot open
What Car?’s Range Rover Velar deals
New car deals
Save up to £1,555
Target Price from £53,037
Save up to £1,555
or from £624pm
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Nearly new deals
From £57,777
Leasing deals
From £664pm

Introduction

What Car? says...

The Range Rover Velar has a pretty odd name for a large SUV (or any type of car, really). Believe it or not, it’s not the result of Land Rover's brand experts playing with Scrabble letters over a few glasses of wine – there’s a history to it.

You see, when Land Rover developed the original Range Rover at the end of the Sixties, the firm wanted to conceal the model's identity, so it called it Velar, from the Latin word 'velare', meaning to cover or hide. This latest Velar inherited the name, but with its stylish coupe roof, it does little to hide from the crowd. 

Our road testers have driven the Range Rover Velar, rating it in all the important areas, and over the next few pages of this review, we’ll tell you all about its performance, handling, reliability, practicality and more. We'll also let you know which engine and trim are best.

If you've already been seduced by the Velar's sleek lines, or have another model in mind, you can find some of the best savings by searching our free What Car? New Car Deals pages. It's a good place to find the best new large SUV deals.

FAQs

  • Not particularly. Land Rover came second from bottom out of 30 brands featured in the 2021 What Car? Reliability Survey (only Fiat did worse). Indeed, the manufacturer has consistently produced some of the least reliable cars on the road. Focusing specifically on the luxury SUV class, only other Land Rover models – including the Discovery and Range Rover Sport – were found to be less dependable than the Velar. Read more here

  • You can’t buy an electric car version of the Range Rover Velar, but there is a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) model called the P400e. Officially, this can do up to 33 miles on battery power alone, and it’s surprisingly fast when its powerful petrol engine is helping out. Most of the other engines in the Velar range have mild-hybrid technology. This brings small fuel economy benefits but there’s no option to drive along using only battery power. Read more here

  • It depends. We reckon the Range Rover Velar D200 is the pick for those buying outright or signing up to a finance agreement. Performance is perfectly adequate and the 2.0-litre diesel engine is relatively quiet. If you’re a company car driver, it’s hard to look past the P400e PHEV model because of its low benefit-in-kind tax rate. Either way, we reckon S trim (plus a few choice options) makes the most sense. Read more here

  • HSE is the most luxurious trim level in the Range Rover Velar line-up and comes with more standard equipment than SE. Even SE cars come with loads of kit, though, including 20in alloy wheels, electrically adjustable leather seats and adaptive cruise control. HSE adds even bigger (21in) wheels, massaging front seats and some additional safety aids. If you’ve got one eye on value for money, we’d go for the cheaper S trim and add a few options. Read more here

  • All Range Rover Velars have a 10in touchscreen that controls the main infotainment functions plus a second 10in screen just below it that can display some useful information, such as the music you’re listening to. The Audi Q7 and BMW X5 both have better systems, but the Velar’s is perfectly good and includes Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring as standard. Read more here

  • You’ll get a big boot if you go for a regular petrol or diesel Range Rover Velar – bigger than in the rival Audi Q8. We managed to fit an impressive 10 carry-on cases below the parcel shelf. Luggage space is reduced in the P400e plug-in hybrid model – blame the drive battery under the floor – but not by enough to put off most buyers. Read more here

At a glance
New car deals
Save up to £1,555
Target Price from £53,037
Save up to £1,555
or from £624pm
Swipe to see used and leasing deals
Nearly new deals
From £57,777
Leasing deals
From £664pm
RRP price range £54,105 - £80,030
Number of trims (see all)4
Number of engines (see all)5
Available fuel types (which is best for you?)hybrid, diesel, petrol
MPG range across all versions 152 - 43.7
Available doors options 5
Warranty 3 years / No mileage cap
Company car tax at 20% (min/max) £906 / £5,754
Company car tax at 40% (min/max) £1,811 / £11,508
Available colours