Recent market wobbles induced by a combination of Brexit and dieselвЂ™s sudden catastrophic reputation have led to the first perceptible dip in JLR production for years вЂ“ the company is certainly not alone in this respect.

These arenвЂ™t the only wrinkles in the VelarвЂ™s blemish-free image. Inside and out, the Velar has the aesthetic sensibility of a high-end smartphone With 21вЂќ or 22вЂќ wheels the car is transformed into a sleekly desirable object.

Set against the smooth cliffs of the VelarвЂ™s flanks, the standard wheels (which are still not exactly small) look lost in the wheel arches, and the carвЂ™s carefully conceived system of proportion collapses. Just a few streets away thereвЂ™s a humble base model with the default option of 18вЂќ 15-spoke wheels. A word of warning вЂ“ you have to be very careful how you kit out this car. It delivered plenty of power, with huge wheels that made the most of the carвЂ™s seamless bodywork (with its pop-out door handles and millimetre-perfect panel gaps) and a lavishly trimmed interior, replete with two touch screens and an agreeably logical interface. It also meant learning to love (and judge) the sheer physical size of this machine along narrow urban roads.ДЄlthough our recent drive was undertaken before the new engines arrived, the model Wallpaper* borrowed, the R-Dynamic HSE D300, still sits at the top of the line. Our recent experience was mostly on road rather than off, although the Velar casually ploughed a meaty furrow as it surmounted a steep, muddy grass verge, conditions that would have stranded most other vehicles. Yet driving around what passes for rush hour in northern Norway, in between being distracted by helicopter trips to Michelin-starred island restaurants, on the VelarвЂ™s launch is a very different prospect to two weeks of urban ownership in the traffic-choked UK. One of our familiar laments is that cars are getting larger, and the Velar doesnвЂ™t scrimp on size. Range Rover recently installed a few new engines into its design flagship, the Velar. Meridian DSP loudspeakers offer refined interior sound

But with a new Evoque and flagship Range Rover due soon, is the magic of design starting to wear rather thin? ThereвЂ™s also the new two-door model, a mountain-conquering luxury coupe/SUV/crossover thatвЂ™ll predictably have buyers clamouring from Moscow to Manhattan thanks to its strictly limited production run of 999. Hefty investment, canny model positioning and that ever-important emphasis on design has kept the company buoyant ever since. The Velar is spiritually close to the original Evoque, the fashionably svelte urban SUV that helped transform JLRвЂ™s fortunes when it was launched in 2011. Gerry McGovern, the companyвЂ™s well-tailored design boss, has made much capital of a design-led model strategy, setting out a compelling case for desirability being the pathway to profit.

Although in the strict financial hierarchy of Range Rover models, the Velar sits comfortably in the middle, the carвЂ™s extremely chic, svelte and smooth appearance effectively trumps the rather more gauche and brutish charms of its near rival, the Range Rover Sport. Unveiled fully formed, not previewed by a concept or teased for 18 months, the Velar is a premium SUV with the cultural cachet and aesthetic sensibility of a high-end smartphone. Few cars embody the evolution of contemporary car design better than the Range Rover Velar.

Range rover velar review