Range Rover will retire both the Evoque and the Velar once their current production runs end later this decade, leaving the brand with a three-model line-up built around the full-size Range Rover, the Range Rover Sport and a new Range Rover GT.

Range Rover boss Martin Limpert confirmed to Autocar that the Evoque and Velar will keep being built through 2027 but that neither will be replaced once that point is reached, bringing roughly a decade of production for each model to a close. Neither car has a successor in development.

The decision reflects JLR's wider House of Brands strategy, which has turned Range Rover, Defender and Discovery into separate marques rather than sub-brands of Land Rover. With Defender and Discovery now set to cover more of the market - including a new entry-level Defender Sport - Limpert said Range Rover no longer needs to compete at the lower end, and can instead concentrate purely on premium, higher-priced models.

Taking over as the brand's new entry point will be the Range Rover GT, a road-focused, saloon-style model due in early 2027. Built in Halewood on the electric-first EMA platform, it will launch as an EV priced from around £100,000, with hybrid versions arriving later expected to bring the starting price down to about £90,000 - close to today's Range Rover Sport. The Defender Sport will share the GT's platform and Halewood production line, which is getting a £500 million upgrade for EV production. Discovery Sport output ends in December to free up space for the GT, with Evoque production likely to stop shortly before the Defender Sport arrives around a year later.

Limpert said the GT has drawn strong early interest from investors and dealers, with more than 80% of enquiries coming from buyers of rival, non-JLR brands. He dismissed suggestions that the GT was designed as a Velar replacement, describing it instead as an all-new model blending road manners with genuine off-road ability.

The Evoque, which starts under £40,000, and the Velar, priced from under £60,000, will have their price brackets absorbed by future Defender and Discovery models. The Evoque had been central to JLR's growth through the 2010s, once selling over 100,000 units annually, while the Velar never matched that success, peaking at roughly half the Evoque's volumes.

Limpert also confirmed no near-term facelift for the current Range Rover and Range Rover Sport, though future updates will push their designs further apart, and diesel power will continue to be offered.

Source: Autocar

If you missed it: 2027 Freelander 8 Review: British Design, Chinese Hybrid Smarts