logo
#

Latest news with #Ingenium

JLR spruces ‘Land Rover' Defender up once again inside and out
JLR spruces ‘Land Rover' Defender up once again inside and out

The Citizen

time28-05-2025

  • Automotive
  • The Citizen

JLR spruces ‘Land Rover' Defender up once again inside and out

Introduction of new tech and exterior changes hasn't come with any price increases following the initial line-up refresh in January this year. Having refreshed its line-up back in January, JLR South Africa has introduced yet more upgrades to the Defender range, this time externally and inside than mechanically. New outside Applicable to all three bodystyles, 90, 110 and 130, the exterior revisions consists of 22-inch diamond turned dark grey alloy wheels, a tinted finish for the restyled taillight clusters, a dark oval badge on the grille, new headlights and a gloss black finish for the grille bars across all variants. ALSO READ: JLR approves pricing for updated Defender, including new diesel Redesigned front and rear bumpers in Silicon Silver or Carpathian Grey, gloss black Defender wheel caps and textured bonnet and side vents round the aesthetics tweaks off, together with two new colour options; Borasco Grey and Woolstone Green. Changes inside Underneath, no alterations have been, however inside, all Defenders receive a slightly revised centre console, upgraded materials and a new 13.1-inch Pivi Pro infotainment system. Biggest arrival is the new 13.1-inch Pivi Pro infotainment system. Image: JLR On the technology front, Adaptive Off-Road Cruise becomes an option for the first time, while somewhat controversially, a new Driver Attention Alert monitor has been fitted atop the steering column similar to many current Chinese vehicles. OCTA bespoke Besides the regular Defender range, the hardcore OCTA has not been omitted from the changes despite having only made its world debut in July last year. Flagship Defender OCTA has also benefitted from the same changes as its siblings despite being less than a year old. Image: JLR Centring on its exterior as it benefits from the same interior and tech updates as its siblings, the OCTA gets textured graphite trim, Phosphor Bronze outer edging on the Defender bonnet script, bumpers and side vents, optional carbon fibre accents and four colours for the 20-inch forged alloy wheels. The final change is a revised choice of colours with only Charente Grey and Petra Copper being carried over. OCTA gets new bronze exterior detailing, plus four colour choice for the inside of the 20-inch alloy wheels. Image: JLR New, therefore, is Borasco Grey, Sargasso Blue and Patagonia White Matte additionally furnished with a matte protective film. Nothing new up front Up front, the unchanged engine line-up consists of the 3.0-litre Ingenium straight-six turbodiesel in the D250 and D350, the mild-hybrid Ingenium 3.0-litre straight-six turbo in the P400, and the 2.0-litre Ingenium four-cylinder turbo-petrol paired to an electric motor and battery pack in the plug-in hybrid P400e. For the former pair, outputs remain at 183kW/570Nm and 257kW/600Nm while the P400, without the electric hardware factored in, develops 294kW/550Nm. Woolstone Green debuts as a new colour option on all models bar the Defender V8 and OCTA. Image: JLR In combined form, the plug-in hybrid P400e outputs 297kW/640Nm and, according to JLR, will travel emissions-free for 59 km. At the range's summit, the venerable AJ-V8 5.0-litre supercharged V8 soldieries on with outputs of 386kW/626Nm in the simply titled Defender V8. Unique to the 130 is an integrated air compressor not available on the 90 or 110. Image: JLR The OCTA, meanwhile, makes use of the mild-hybrid BMW-sourced 4.4-litre twin-turbo producing 467kW/750Nm. As before, all engines are mated to the ZF-sourced eight-speed automatic transmission. Price Price-wise, no changes have been made since the January updates. This also includes the standard five-year/100 000 km maintenance plan and eight-year/100 000 km battery warranty on the P400e. Defender 90 D250 S – R1 639 600 D250 S County – R1 681 900 D250 X-Dynamic SE – R1 699 700 D350 X-Dynamic HSE – R1 870 700 D350 X – R2 108 600 P400 X-Dynamic HSE – R1 897 600 P400 X – R2 126 600 V8 – R2 924 300 Defender 110 D250 S – R1 669 100 D250 S County – R1 711 400 D250 X-Dynamic SE – R1 732 400 D350 X-Dynamic HSE – R1 904 600 D350 Sedona Edition – R2 060 200 D350 X – R2 179 900 P400 X-Dynamic HSE – R1 929 300 P400 X – R2 210 200 P400e X-Dynamic HSE – R2 261 200 P400e X – R2 337 500 V8 – R3 054 100 Octa – R3 449 100 Octa Edition One – R3 749 100 Defender 130 D350 Outbound – R2 029 100 D350 X-Dynamic HSE – R2 062 200 D350 X – R2 327 700 P400 Outbound – R2 032 900 P400 X-Dynamic HSE – R2 055 300 P400 X – R2 348 100 V8 – R3 165 400 NOW READ: Hardcore off-road suited Defender OCTA officially revealed

Discovery's 35th celebrated further with new special edition models
Discovery's 35th celebrated further with new special edition models

The Citizen

time16-05-2025

  • Automotive
  • The Citizen

Discovery's 35th celebrated further with new special edition models

Newly introduced models pay carry name that homage to internal codenames of previous Discovery generations. Having celebrated its 35th anniversary last year, JLR has introduced another pair of special editions to the aging Discovery range ahead of the model's rumoured discontinuation before the end of the year. Following the commemorative 35th Anniversary Edition, the new variants carry the Gemini and Tempest designations as step ups for the S and flagship Metropolitan variants. Gemini For the Gemini, which gets its name from the internal moniker used for the 2.5 Tdi engine in the original Discovery, the added visual enhancements include 21-inch diamond turned silver seven-spoke alloy wheels, the gloss Narvik Black roof, a Gemini graphic on the B-pillar and an Atlas Grey finish around the grille and on the Discovery name script. ALSO READ: Discovery celebrates 35 years with tribute Anniversary Edition Not stopping there, the Gemini further receives gloss black detailing, first-time availability of the Sedona Red paint option previously reserved for the Defender, tri-zone climate control and a cooled centre console glovebox. Tempest The step-up from the Metropolitan as mentioned, the Tempest takes its name from the internal development code given to the second generation Discovery, with a more extensive array of bespoke changes both inside and out compared to the Gemini. Available in three colours, Carpathian Grey, Varesine Blue and Charente Grey, the Tempest gets Petra Copper and tinted gloss black lacquer 22-inch diamond turned alloy wheels as standard, along with a Petra Copper gloss or gloss Narvik Black roof, a unique Tempest decal on the B-pillar and Petra Copper detailing. Unique inside fittings consist of the extended Ebony Windsor leather upholstery and so-called shadow aluminium inserts. Diesel only Otherwise unchanged from their respective sibling on the specification front, underneath, both the Gemini and Tempest retain the 3.0-litre Ingenium straight-six turbodiesel engine – the sole option across the entire Discovery range as the previous P360 straight-six petrol has been dropped entirely. Fitted with 48-volt mild-hybrid assistance, the unit develops 257kW/700Nm and is again paired to an eight-speed automatic transmission as standard. Price Now available, both the Gemini and Tempest, as with the rest of the Discovery range, are covered by a five-year/100 000 km maintenance plan. Discovery D350 S – R1 824 700 Discovery D350 Gemini – R2 038 800 Discovery D350 Dynamic HSE – R2 136 800 Discovery D350 Metropolitan – R2 260 600 Discovery D350 Tempest – R2 351 200 NOW READ: Improved Land Rover Discovery out to disprove its critics

Ingenium and Veolia North America Forge Partnership to Secure Hazardous Waste Treatment Capacity For Industrial Growth
Ingenium and Veolia North America Forge Partnership to Secure Hazardous Waste Treatment Capacity For Industrial Growth

Business Wire

time15-05-2025

  • Business
  • Business Wire

Ingenium and Veolia North America Forge Partnership to Secure Hazardous Waste Treatment Capacity For Industrial Growth

BOSTON & ESCONDIDO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ingenium and Veolia North America announced a strategic partnership providing guaranteed access to Veolia's new high-temperature treatment facility in Gum Springs, Arkansas. Opening in 2025, this state-of-the-art facility will address the growing industry demand for waste treatment capacity. The agreement also ensures Ingenium access to guaranteed capacity at Veolia's existing thermal, landfill and fuel blending facilities in the US. Share The agreement also ensures Ingenium access to guaranteed capacity at Veolia's existing thermal, landfill and fuel blending facilities in the US. Veolia's facility at Gum Springs will set a new industry standard for the safe, efficient and reliable treatment of waste materials, and the agreement with Ingenium – which comes months before the facility opens – will help both companies meet the needs of the market. The agreement takes effect immediately. As part of Veolia's Green Up strategy, and in alignment with both companies' sustainability goals, Veolia's new facility will employ advanced operational and power generation technology, including waste heat recovery and on-site solar power generation to reduce environmental impact. 'This strategic partnership with Veolia North America is a significant step forward for Ingenium and our commitment to providing sustainable waste management solutions. Securing guaranteed access to Veolia's state-of-the-art facilities, particularly the new Gum Springs location, ensures we can meet the demand for hazardous waste treatment while upholding our dedication to innovation and integrity,' said Heather Johnson, Chief Executive Officer, Ingenium. 'This partnership between Veolia North America and Ingenium is yet another example of environmental leaders collaborating to maximize the limited thermal treatment capacity in the US for the benefit of our nation's growing industrial base. Ingenium's strong presence in the western US makes them a key strategic partner and we look forward to working together,' said Bob Cappadona, President and Chief Executive Officer of Veolia North America's Environmental Solutions and Services business. 'This collaboration is also fully aligned with Veolia's GreenUp strategic plan, in which the management of hazardous waste is seen as a critical enabler of U.S. reindustrialization—by providing essential infrastructure to support sustainable industrial growth while advancing environmental stewardship.' ABOUT VEOLIA NORTH AMERICA A subsidiary of Veolia group, Veolia North America (VNA) is the top-ranked environmental company in the United States for three consecutive years, and the country's largest private water operator and technology provider as well as hazardous waste and pollution treatment leader. It offers a full spectrum of water, waste, and energy management services, including water and wastewater treatment, commercial and hazardous waste collection and disposal, energy consulting and resource recovery. VNA helps commercial, industrial, healthcare, higher education, and municipality customers throughout North America. Headquartered in Boston, Mass., Veolia North America has more than 10,000 employees working at more than 350 locations across the continent. ABOUT VEOLIA GROUP Veolia group aims to become the benchmark company for ecological transformation. Present on five continents with 215,000 employees, the Group designs and deploys useful, practical solutions for the management of water, waste and energy that are contributing to a radical turnaround of the current situation. Through its three complementary activities, Veolia helps to develop access to resources, to preserve available resources and to renew them. In 2024, the Veolia group provided 111 million inhabitants with drinking water and 98 million with sanitation, produced 42 million megawatt hours of energy and treated 65 million tonnes of waste. Veolia Environnement (Paris Euronext: VIE) achieved consolidated revenue of 44.7 billion euros in 2024. ABOUT INGENIUM Founded in 2006 and based in Escondido, California, Ingenium is the leading provider of sustainable waste management solutions and is known for its innovation, accountability and uncompromising integrity. We provide a broad range of waste management services specializing in packaging, transportation, recycling and disposal of hazardous, non-hazardous, biological, universal and radioactive waste. Our management established Ingenium with the dual goal of offering sustainable recycling methods to an otherwise traditional hazardous waste environment along with a commitment to be a trusted partner to our clients.

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Episode 5: Exact release date, time and more
My Hero Academia Vigilantes Episode 5: Exact release date, time and more

Hindustan Times

time03-05-2025

  • Entertainment
  • Hindustan Times

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Episode 5: Exact release date, time and more

The release date for My Hero Academia: Vigilantes Episode 5 has been officially announced, and fans are eager to see what's next after the action-packed previous episode. Viewers watched as Kuin Hachisuka unleashed another Instant Villain into the city, only to be stopped by Knuckleduster. Meanwhile, Koichi had a key moment of growth after meeting pro hero Ingenium, who helped him refine his sliding technique. In return, Koichi stepped up to assist Ingenium's team in apprehending a villain. Also Read: Beyoncé faces 'Monday deadline' amid shocking legal troubles over Cowboy Carter tour As confirmed by the official website, My Hero Academia: Vigilantes Episode 2 is set to premiere on Monday, May 5, 2025, at 11 a.m. JST. The episode will be available to watch simultaneously around the world, giving international fans the chance to tune in as it airs in Japan. Since release times differ depending on location, viewers should consult the official time zone schedule to find out exactly when the episode will be available in their region. The latest episode of the anime will be available on local TV networks such as Tokyo MX and Yomiuri TV first, followed by its broadcast later on BS NTV. The series will also be available on platforms like ABEMA, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, a Anime Store, and Lemino, among others. For international audiences, the show will be available to stream on Crunchyroll. Also Read: Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are burning 'their morning calories' together, just not at the gym Episode 5 of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, titled Judgement, is set to delve into Pop Step's backstory, offering a glimpse into her first encounter with Koichi Haimawari. According to the episode preview, the two characters had crossed paths even before the events of the series began. The story will then shift back to the present, where a new villain appears in the city. As the Crawler steps in to confront the threat, a mysterious figure with a blood-stained blade is expected to intervene. Though it's unclear whether this individual is a hero or a vigilante, their arrival hints at a potentially dangerous twist.

Range Rover Velar
Range Rover Velar

Yahoo

time24-02-2025

  • Automotive
  • Yahoo

Range Rover Velar

The Range Rover Velar may not be the industry-typical image of a mid-sized, mid-level SUV, but it is precisely that for JLR's luxury SUV arm - which tells you as much about Range Rover as a modern sub-brand as it does about the car itself. Now in middle age as a first-generation model, the car is a high-style alternative to the likes of the Mercedes GLC, BMW X3 and Audi Q5 - and its latest update, though a fairly mild one, turns up the dial on its designer SUV credentials just a little. Having been introduced to UK showrooms in 2017, the Velar was the model with which Land Rover really focused on style. JLR design supremo Gerry McGovern seized the opportunity of a blank canvas to create a car not simply to plug the hole in the model range between Evoque and Range Rover Sport, but to explore the potential of the Range Rover brand to appeal to customers looking for a really standout design - and who would value that design every bit as much as Range Rover's more traditional values of space, capability and luxury. It has sold well, and integrated within the Range Rover model range equally well, as its sibling models around it have themselves picked up a little of its reflected design star quality. Now, JLR has taken the opportunity to refresh its exterior a little, to improve its powertrain options slightly, and to reappraise its interior and infotainment technology rather more extensively. Under the skin, the Range Rover Velar remains unequivocally 'car based'. Its predominately aluminium platform is the same architecture used by the Jaguar XE and Jaguar XF, while the Jaguar F-Pace is an even closer blood relative. Naturally, four-wheel drive and Land Rover's Terrain Response system are both standard, even at the base of the line-up – but so, too, are four-cylinder engines, coil suspension, and a fairly low ride height (for a Range Rover, at least). At the other extreme of the derivative range, however, six-cylinder turbocharged engines promise plenty of Range Rover typical power, refinement and capability; adaptively damped, ride-height-adjustable air suspension adds plenty of dynamic versatility; and a petrol-electric PHEV version offers tax efficiency for fleet users. The Range Rover Velar line-up at a glance The UK-market Velar model range has been cut down a little, to two petrol and two diesel models, plus a four-cylinder petrol-electric PHEV. The P250 uses Land Rover's turbocharged four-cylinder Ingenium petrol, while the D200 use a similarly split 2.0-litre diesel motor. The D300 and P400 have latest-generation turbocharged straight-six Ingenium engines, while the P400e mixes an electric motor with a four-pot petrol engine. Trim levels kick off with the Velar S, progressing upwards through Dynamic SE, Dynamic HSE and Autobiography; and the car's richest items of equipment and more lavish cabin materials are reserved for the last two. Car makers tend to talk a lot about identities and design languages: but even if JLR had done neither, you'd have known that the Velar was a Range Rover like none before it when it first emerged in 2017. It had that unmistakable, super-sleek, show-car-with-numberplates look - and now, JLR has done little to interfere with a winning recipe. So in 2023, you could call the car's exterior design update pretty reductive, ironically enough. There are new headlights and tail-lights, a new radiator grille, reshaped bumpers, and some fresh exterior paint options - but the overall impact is subtle. This is the kind of update you might notice on a car you're following, or being followed by, after dark - but it'll take a keen eye otherwise. On the technical side, most of the Velar's engine range is all but unchanged. A fairly broad choice of mild-hybridised four- and six-cylinder combustion engines - both petrol and diesel - remain part of the car's armoury. The four-cylinder petrol-electric P400e plug-in hybrid, meanwhile, gets a larger drive battery, and a boost in tax-liability-defining electric range. Technically, the Velar is an entirely logical extension of the Range Rover line-up: more rugged than an Evoque, but less so than the Range Rover Sport or full-fat Range Rover. The mostly aluminium monocoque it sits on is the same as the Jaguar F-Pace's. There's a longitudinal engine in the front, driving through a ZF eight-speed gearbox to all four wheels. Predominantly, the driveline is the same as in Jaguars, so the Velar is a rear-drive car first and foremost, with a clutch at the gearbox that can push power to the front wheels as and when necessary. Which, in a car like a Range Rover, is a lot more than it ought to be necessary in 'lesser' off-roaders. There's no low-ratio gearbox, but there is plenty of ground clearance (up to 251mm), and Range-Rover-typical approach and departure angles and wade depth too, on cars with Land Rover's height-adjustable air suspension (which our Dynamic SE test car had fitted as an option). All of those numbers are worse than a full-sized Range Rover's but also superior to any other car in this sector. What you won't find on a big Range Rover, mind, but you will here, is a four-cylinder, mild-hybrid diesel engine from the JLR Ingenium line-up. It makes a pretty modest 201bhp, which isn't bad for a 2.0-litre diesel, but it motivates a car that's almost two tonnes at its lightest. It's the Velar's interior that's had the most attention as part of its mid-life update. Having originally come along before JLR started to roll out its latest Pivi Pro touchscreen infotainment system on cars like the Defender, Range Rover and Range Rover Sport, the Velar now becomes the first JLR product with a new-generation Pivi Pro console that takes in even more functionality than previously. Within its various menu screens, the system integrates the car's climate control console, audio system controls and its terrain response controls – and that, in turn, has allowed another major paring down and tidying up of the Velar's transmission tunnel design. However, the end result, while sleek, looks sparse to the point of bareness. The old car's physical volume knob and ventilation temperature controls have been junked and the secondary touchscreen panel, of which they used to be part, disposed of entirely, replaced by a storage area and wireless phone charger. The upshot, rather predictably, is some unwelcome complication of the Velar's human-machine interface - although a sensible home screen design for the infotainment system, with useful permanent shortcuts along its lateral extremes, mitigates the fallout. You can hop between climate control, navigation, audio system and other menus easily, with one prod of your finger; and 80% of the inputs you'll need, claims Land Rover, are the work of only two prods. They are finger prods that require your full attention, however – not a quick flick of your gaze. They plainly distract you from the road more than reaching for a temperature knob that is always where you left it, and turning it, would. They're also prods on a curved touchscreen display that - however well placed, responsive, and attractively rendered - gets grubby and smudgy much quicker than some, because (without a separate physical cursor controller) you've got little option but to poke away at it - and often. It may be considered folly, after all, for luxury cars to shed too many physical secondary cabin controls, because every one is an opportunity to make your car feel heftier, more expensive and better engineered than the next. The updated Velar's gear selector is one of very few such opportunities retained - and, haptically speaking, it's a little bit light and insubstantial. Elsewhere around the cabin, in our lower-mid-level-trim D200 Dynamic SE test car at least, material cabin quality was a bit up and down. Wherever the pudgy padded fascia materials drove up the perceived standard, you could find harder, cheaper fixtures and finishes not far away. In a broader sense, the Velar's front seats grant a relaxed, semi-recumbent driving position that feels tall if less commanding than in a big Range Rover, or a Range Rover Sport. Visibility is typically good to most, if not all, angles - with bulky B-pillars intruding a little. There's plentiful oddments storage, too, and although rear leg room is not much more than adequate in this class (in truth, adults can sit comfortably behind adults, and how much air do you need in front of your knees?), the payback is that the boot is notably bigger than in some mid-sized SUVs. Diesel engines of all sizes are dying a drawn-out death throughout most of the car market, while they hang on in certain corners of it - the Velar's being among them. And the Velar's entry-level, 201bhp four-cylinder diesel is no embarrasment to it. The D200 may only have modest performance, but responsiveness and drivability are both good, and so the car feels assured in day-to-day driving, and picks up useful pace in fairly low-effort fashion on a light throttle load. Previous versions of JLR's Ingenium 2.0-litre diesel had some slow-shifting characteristcs, and tended towards a rather treacly, protracted step-off when getting going, but those quirks are now long behind the latest mild-hybridised versions, which are slick, feel torquey and generally respond very well to roll-on performance demands. All-round mechanical isolation is good but not brilliant. Work the D200 hard - as sometimes you'd need to with any two-tonne, 201bhp car - and it does get a little noisy and breathless, but not problematically so. Drive more moderately, though, and a rather un-Range-Rover-like real-world 50mpg is deliverable. Outright performance on paper is stronger than in the D200, meanwhile, in both of Land Rover's petrol Velars, in the six-cylinder D300 diesel, and in the P400e (which dips as low as 5.1sec to 62mph, according to manufacturer claims), so there are plenty of options for those who want something pacier. Out on the road, the Velar gives a more consistent impression than in other departments. As before, six-cylinder models, PHEVs, and Dynamic HSE trim cars all get adaptively damped, ride-height-adjustable air suspension as standard – and you can have it on a lower-tier four-cylinder car as part of JLR's £2225 'Dynamic Handling Pack' (as our test car did). Thus equipped, the Velar driving experience has plenty of plushness and impressive versatility. Choose Comfort mode and the car floats along gently and with a cocooning waft. Go for Dynamic mode instead and there's more weight about the controls, leaner and crisper responses to inputs and an understated sort of driver appeal in evidence that's easy to like. At all times, however, the Velar feels luxurious and supple. It doesn't have quite the mechanical or ride isolation of the latest-generation Range Rover and Range Rover Sport, but it's still cosseting - and it can clearly be an SUV you'll enjoy driving, as well as simply travelling in. It's easy enough for a keener driver to buy into this car's raison d'être after all, because in dumping the heavy off-roading hardware that most owners don't need in any case, Land Rover made way for a Range Rover that's better to drive on the road. And, while it clearly isn't a lightweight, the Velar does follow through. It's buoyant, cushioned and fairly quiet over the ground, but somehow in touch with the road and under constant and discreet control of its body movements at all times. Even on standard-fit M+S-type hybrid off-road tyres, it also has precise, incisive, medium-weighted steering and a strong and well-balanced grip level. In respect of both ride and handling, the Velar is very good, in short. In Comfort mode, it copes well with bigger intrusions at town speeds and feels genuinely luxurious. At A-road pace and on more uneven B-roads, it combines comfort and body control best when left in Auto driving mode, introducing the occasional shimmy of head toss and shudder of complaint from the body structure over really broken Tarmac in Dynamic mode. There's certainly an improvement in handling response and body control when you do select the suspension's Dynamic setting, though, because it allows the Velar to rein in its mass cleverly and to feel pleasingly crisp and rewarding when you hurry it along. And at no point does the suspension suffer from the noisy, hollow ride that you can find in air-sprung cars. It's not quite on the level of the bigger Range Rover and Range Rover Sport models for ride isolation, but still sets a competitive mark versus its rivals. The relatively languid directional responses and gathering body roll that have become hallmarks of the Range Rover driving experience over decades are present in the Velar's, too, when you drive it hard. Had JLR created a car without either, it probably wouldn't have felt like a Range Rover at all. But the Velar keeps a closer check on its body movement than its bigger siblings do and preserves a surprisingly well-balanced chassis for longer as you lean on it through corners. Both feats make it feel more like a driver's car and less like a tall, heavy, go-anywhere SUV. In Dynamic mode, there's certainly more than enough precision and poise here to prepare the Velar well for fast road use. Get to the limit of grip and you'll find the torque-vectoring system keeps it on line very faithfully as you power out of corners and its M+S tyres hang on to dry Tarmac surprisingly well. That the Velar is comparatively expensive ought to surprise no one. It opens for business as a four-cylinder P250 petrol well above £50,000, and you'll be paying north of £70k for a fairly well-equipped P400e PHEV - in a market segment where BMW X3s and Audi Q5s can still be snapped up for prices that start with a four. Strong residual values ought to make monthly finance deals on the car at least a little more palatable than those showroom sticker prices might suggest, though. This car remains clearly a product positioned at a premium even among 'premium SUVs', and for the style-led desirability on which it trades, as well as the on-board luxury, JLR will argue that it's value, and perhaps not entirely unreasonably. The Range Rover Velar is undoubtedly a car with more of the luxury star quality of its larger Range Rover siblings in some respects than it has in others. The impact and effectiveness of JLR's latest changes to it are a little debatable. In a context in which interior functionality is moving ever more wholesale onto touchscreens industry-wide, the Velar's changes in this respect are fairly well handled and don't create significant usability problems. But they do make for some secondary controls that are more distracting than they used to be. In terms of outright material quality, and in lower-level trim as tested, the car leaves a little to be desired for the richness you'd expect of a full-sized Range Rover. But dynamically first and foremost, and also in how it looks, it remains an SUV that stands out from its rivals in readily apparent ways. Its critics may claim it is an entirely superficial car, symbolic of everything that a Land Rover traditionalist might dislike about the new JLR. But, in more ways than one, they'd be wrong to do so. The Velar plainly has the luxurious air, the air-sprung comfort and the highly accomplished ride and handling to be considered superior to the premium-branded medium-sized SUVs whose proportions it roughly matches. In all three respects, it goes some way to justifying its very high price. And if you like the way the Velar looks, 'some way' may well be far enough. ]]>

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store