2018 Land Rover Range Rover Velar Review: Photo Gallery
CARS.COM — You can never have too many SUVs in your modern American showroom, and being a luxury SUV brand naturally gives you an edge. Land Rover is filling out its lineup with the 2018 Range Rover Velar, a not-too-big, not-too-small Range Rover variant that slots between the Evoque and the Sport.
Appearing at the 2017 New York International Auto Show, it’s based on the Jaguar F-Pace platform but doesn’t look anything like its feline sibling, trading the muscular bodywork of the Jag for a sleek, urban look that keeps with Range Rover’s aesthetic.
More 2017 New York Auto Show Coverage
Inside, Range Rover has decided to get a little different with the Velar. A smooth, flat, black plastic panel that includes an integrated screen has replaced most of the switches and buttons. Some of the controls still have dedicated knobs, like the temperature selector knobs, but the Velar takes a page out of the (frankly failed) Ford and Cadillac idea book that this touch-panel idea is a good one.
The example on the floor of the New York auto show was completely smudged with fingerprints — ruining any pretense at sophistication — and despite the slick look of the panel and controls, they’ve proven unpleasant to use. We’ll have to see how the Velar works in the real world when we get some time to drive one.
