Getting into a Range Rover currently costs around $52,000. That figure is about to rise substantially. JLR has confirmed that the Evoque and Velar — the brand’s most affordable new car options — will end production in mid-2027, with sales continuing only in selected markets through that year. No direct replacements are planned. The incoming Range Rover GT, an electric-first model expected to start around $90,000 in the U.S., is set to become the new entry point. For buyers considering either outgoing model, the window is closing.
What’s Actually Happening to the Evoque and Velar
Two models, no successors — JLR is making this disappearance a deliberate brand decision, not a quiet phase-out.
Both models served as the accessible end of a premium lineup, offering Range Rover ownership to buyers who couldn’t stretch to the Sport or full-size. Range Rover managing director Martin Limpert told Autocar that both vehicles are approaching the end of their lifecycles and that new generations are not in development. JLR will shift manufacturing — currently based at Halewood — to next-generation vehicles. These weren’t reluctant retirements driven by poor performance; they reflect a calculated move toward a tighter, higher-priced lineup.
Here’s what the numbers look like:
- Evoque current U.S. starting price: approximately $52,000; Velar: approximately $64,000
- Range Rover GT expected U.S. starting price: approximately $90,000
- GT expected UK pricing: approximately £100,000 (electric); hybrid versions may start near £90,000
- GT platform: JLR’s EMA architecture — electric-first, but designed to support hybrid powertrains later in the lifecycle
- Expected post-2027 core lineup: full-size Range Rover, Range Rover Sport, and GT
The GT Is Not a Like-for-Like Replacement
Lower roofline, higher price, and a fundamentally different character set the GT apart from the SUVs it effectively succeeds.
The GT is expected to sit below the Sport and full-size Range Rover, but it is not a compact SUV. According to Autocar, it is a road-focused, low-roof model that JLR itself describes as the most car-like Range Rover yet. Its electric version launches first on the EMA platform; hybrid variants may follow, potentially bringing UK entry pricing down toward £90,000.
That still leaves a substantial gap — roughly $38,000 between the Evoque’s current U.S. starting price and the GT’s expected floor. JLR said production ends “as facilities transition to next-generation vehicles,” per Car and Driver — measured corporate language for what amounts to a deliberate upmarket repositioning. Defender and Discovery models could be considered by some buyers seeking a more affordable cars from luxury brands option, though the brand has not formally confirmed either as a substitute for those priced out by the GT’s expected starting point.
What This Means If You’re Shopping Now
Buyers weighing an Evoque or Velar should track regional inventory and order deadlines before final-year stock disappears.
Watch for market-specific order cutoffs and remaining stock. Where the Evoque and Velar remain available through 2027, inventory may move quickly as awareness of the discontinuation grows. Buyers for whom the GT’s expected price sits well above their budget should monitor the Defender and Discovery lines — though their official role as alternatives remains unconfirmed by JLR.
Range Rover is consciously narrowing its lineup: fewer models, higher prices, electric-first priorities. Buyers for whom the Evoque or Velar represented a budget ceiling will find little overlap in JLR’s forthcoming range — a clear signal that the brand is intentionally narrowing its addressable market. The $1,000 car payment reality makes that plain enough.
