Used test: Audi Q8 vs Range Rover Velar costs

Buying and owning

Costs, equipment, reliability, safety

As mentioned, the Q8 starts off with the performance advantage in this used test as it's a 3.0 V6 version, whereas the D240 Velar has a more parsimonious four-cylinder 2.0-litre under the bonnet. 

Not surprisingly that means that bought as here at three years old the D240 Velar is cheaper than the Q8 by around £3000, which is a useful saving. We reckon the more powerful 3.0-litre V6 D300 version of the Velar would cost you in excess of £50,000 at the moment, which is more than the Q8 tested here. The real headline news is that you can save a wholesome £18,000 on the price of a new Velar and a very respectable £16,000 on the price of a Q8 by buying at this age. 

 A further advantage of the Velar's smaller engine is that it should be the cheaper to insure and to service, by roughly £200 and £800 respectively, according to our three-year running cost data. Its fuel bills should be smaller, too. According to the official NEDC test figures that were prevalent when these two cars were new the Q8 averages 43.5mpg against the Velar's 41.5mpg, and in our Real-World tests, it achieved 35.2mpg against the Q8's 33.5mpg.

All in, given that the Velar came from new with more standard kit, and that it should cost you less to buy and a lot less to run, it’s actually relatively good value here.

Reliability-wise, Audi as a brand finished in 18th place out of 30 manufacturers in our 2021 Reliability Survey, while Land Rover ended up in a miserable 29th place. The Velar finished fifth out of nine cars in the luxury SUV class, while the Q8's sibling, the Q7, finished in second place in the same category. 

The Velar achieved an excellent five-star Euro NCAP safety rating, as did the Q8.

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