Range Rover Velar SUV - Reliability & safety
Land Rover’s reputation is on the up, but there is still work to be done. At least it scored five stars for safety
The Range Rover Velar didn’t feature in the top 75 cars from the 2023 Driver Power owner satisfaction survey, but the mechanically-similar Jaguar F-Pace finished in a so-so 50th spot – a drop from the previous year, and one place behind the Land Rover Discovery Sport, which finished highest of any Jaguar Land Rover product in the survey.
We’d expect to see similar from the Velar, but similar strengths too, with F-Pace owners praising their cars’ ride and handling, as well as their engine and gearbox traits. Running costs weren’t rated quite as highly, nor was infotainment and connectivity – but with a PHEV powertrain and the new Pivi Pro screen, the Velar is in a good position to rectify its sibling’s shortcomings.
Range Rover Velar reliability
While there’s no data specific to the Range Rover Velar, as a brand, Land Rover has been climbing the ranks in our annual Driver Power survey in recent years, finishing 14th out of 32 in the 2023 manufacturer rundown. That matches the brand’s result in 2022 (out of 29 manufacturers), and is a big improvement on the previous year, when it came in 22nd spot.
However, a whopping 42.15% of Land Rover owners reported faults with their cars. Aside from Tesla, that was the highest of any maker in our survey.
Safety
The Range Rover Velar was tested by Euro NCAP in Autumn 2017 and received a reassuring five-star crash-test result. This was the result of impressive scores of 93% and 85% respectively in the adult and child occupant protection categories. The Velar also achieved an impressive 74% for pedestrian safety.
All Velars come with autonomous emergency braking and emergency braking assistance (that helps apply full braking pressure in an emergency stop scenario), adds blind spot assist, adaptive cruise control and high-speed emergency braking. Upgrade to the Driver Assist Pack (a hefty £1,600 on the entry model) and you’ll also get adaptive cruise control, blind-spot warnings and sensors designed to warn the driver of any passing traffic when reversing.
