Chaps, now I have a young dolphinbaby, and with my 2004 L322 approaching 200,000 miles, I have been wondering about the best (most cost effective) way to get another Rangie and achieve "peace of mind" motoring.

Option 1: Basic spec D180 Velar: 3 yr PCP is £2700 deposit and £450/month (inc. Vat) for up to 10,000 miles per year - Total cost over 3 years £19,000
Advantages: Latest tech and spec, No MOT, full warranty, single service cost. Peace of mind if anything goes wrong. NO butt clenching moments (hopefully!)
Disadvantages - It's not an FFRR!! smaller, poorer spec.

Option 2: buy L322 2012 FFRR at £25,000. value after 3 years??? c. £10-12,000??? total cost £15,000 + Warranty, repairs, MOT, Yearly servicing - Probably looking at c.£20,000.
Advantages: Its an FFRR! Better Spec and bigger.
Disadvantages : could be a cash sinkhole if it goes wrong, repairs could be expensive.

To me it seems as if the Velar could be the best option (although I will be downgrading from the FFRR obviously!) in terms of having a reliable car with latest tech etc.

Thoughts?

Interesting... After reading JAYBOYS post ref first years depreciation Leasing the Velar seems a no brainer!

Have you had an extended test drive in one? If you can’t get an extended test, i know that Jag will allow 24hr tests of the F Pace (same thing ish)

With the FF don't you get to call it your own and not be over a barrel after three years?

The velar might be nice but unless you are in a position too keep enjoying PCP's dont you have to give it back or find many 000's just to own the damn thing? This makes PCP nothing more than car hire in my book. With the demands of a mini dolphin it might be paying effectively dead money becomes less justifiable.

Ive never done any kind of lease / hire / PCP (call it what you will) as it seems a lot of money just to borrow something for a few years.

Am I miss understanding the whole PCP thing?

FF route for me; and lets be honest a Velar might be nice but a 2012 4.4TDV8 VSE or SC AB is nothing to be sniffed at.  405 AB exec seats Baltic and Cirrus
93 RR Classic efi

Remember it's easier to get forgiveness than permission!

Gone in order:
4.4 TDV8 SE - gone to a good home
93 Classic hard dash Plymouth Blue
03 L322 Oslo Blue
2000 Disco TD5 ES Epsom Green
98 P38 Rioja Red
89 Classic Cairngorm Brown

Interesting - but obviously its entirely down to what you value in your life. I love being in the FF - and given that I spend a lot of time in it doing 15k miles or more a year its important to me that its where I want to be. My brother in law has a new top spec Mondeo that was about the same purchase price. His running costs are much lower, but his depreciation much higher. Its a nice enough car but nothing special. With the Velar you'll obviously not become Mondeo man - its currently cool and new enough to arouse interest. But its built down to a price so it only has a fraction of the sense of occasion of a FF. I'm guessing the Bentayga and Urus owners may think the same of us FF drivers - its all relative.

So your choice is really about your appetite for risk. The way you've worded the post suggests that you prefer the FF over the Velar and your cost estimates suggest only marginal differences over 3 years. What you see as different is that you're bullet proof in a new (albeit as yet unproven) renter and highly vulnerable in purchased FF. Is there a sensible way to mitigate that risk? Buy a warranty? If not and an unforeseen £10k bill would wipe you out then you might be at the stage of your life when you need to play it safe for now and come back to the fold when your appetite for risk can be a little higher....

....or get a 2009 4.2SC with <100k on it and keep the saved £10k in the bank in case something happens Mike - MPx

2017 5.0 V8 Supercharged SVAutobigraphy Dynamic SVO Palette Grey (2021-...)
2012 5.0 V8 Supercharged Autoboigraphy Orkney Grey (2017-2021)
2007 4.2 V8 Supercharged Vogue SE Tonga Green (2012-2017)
2002 4.4 V8 Vogue Bonnatti Grey (2008-2012)

There’s a lovely Westminster on here that looks like a good car 2016 SDV8 Autobiography
And several others previously.

Do neither.

A D180 Velar is no FF replacement and there’s every chance you’ll hate it, long before the PCP has run out. You’ll also have much less space and a need to keep everything in perfect cosmetic condition against the day that it has to go back; neither of those will be great with a young one around.

If you want a decent car, some piece of mind and if your annual mileage really is that low, look at the costs of PCP’ing a 3 year old “Approved” FF, with 2 year’s warranty, easily extendable for a third year. Consider it as a 3 year test drive, with the option to buy at the end, if it’s gone well. Then run it for another 10 years to arrive back to where you are now!

Recently had this dilemma ( or very similar) and bought a 2011 VSE. Don't think anything else would keep me happy long term after having already driving 3.6 l322 for the last three years. Just my opinion. 2015 4.4 AB
GSXR 1000 K5
R1 1998

It seems to me a no brainer that a PCP or other finance deal is going to leave you worse off, as you are going to pay interest somewhere along the line.

Unless you’ve got £25,000 in the bank, there are going to be interest payments with or without PCP.

So, which is the greater waste of money, money spent on interest, or money spent on repairs?

There’s no right answer to that one, but at least interest payments are predictable.

I have to agree that a Velar 180 can never be compared with a full fat and unless you are very much in touch with your feminine side you'll hanker after what you should have bought in the first place. I would have no idea how the figures would stack up but red merles idea on the full fat should certainly be worth a look. 2016 SDV8 Autobiography
And several others previously.

If you consider options 1 and 2 to be about the same cost over 3 years the difference has to be the fact that with option 1 you have no asset when you hand the velar back whereas with option 2 you still have a car with a value of about £10k which you can chose to keep or trade on depending on circumstances at the time.
The cost of the Ffrr over 3 years will of course depend how you decide to finance it.
No brainier imo opinion, buy the ffrr and keep everything crossed.

A Velar is not "another Rangie". It is an F-Pace with RR badging. IMHO "there is only one Range Rover" i.e. Classic, P38, 322 or 405, whatever JLR do with the brand.

The Velar does look quite nice, the tech will be much more modern and you would have a new car with a warranty for three years. But it is much smaller and lower at the back, which might make loading of your child less convenient, plus there is less space for luggage and other passengers. I expect it will offer less refinement too. You will need to decide on image. As others have said, the thing to do is to have a long test and see if it is for you. A Disco 5 is basically a RR Sport with a more practical but less attractive back end and might be a better bet as a family car, plus LR say it is the best off road car they have made, if that is of value to you. It is of course not a RR either, and I was unimpressed with the quality of some of the finishes in a D5 HSE at the dealer recently. But I'd have a D5 before a Velar any day.

The 'peace of mind' side is of course difficult. My 2012 WM required no expenditure other than servicing and consumables between years 3 and 5, but has just needed a new starter motor and I do wonder whether it will now enter a 'money pit' phase like my 2004 car did after five or six years. The worry is, I am afraid, just part of having a RR and can probably only be avoided by those wealthy enough to just buy a new one if they get fed up. I'm not convinced of the value of warranties other than the new car one, but believe a recovery service is well worthwhile.

What about just keeping your existing car as long as it is running well enough, and then if/when it becomes uneconomic to repair seeing what the market has to offer? In the meantime you can set the money aside to cover any repairs and help with getting a replacement. Only Range Rovers since 1988

The Velar is not an F-Pace with a different badge at all. A little research would show that the Velar concept was all but finalised when Jaguar decided it needed an SUV in the range and it was a marketing decision to release the F-Pace first.

Neither is it a woman's car. It's a car. And quite a nice one too......I tried one on for size earlier today.

What it isn't is a Range Rover as many would see it i.e. an off-road vehicle given on-road refinements.

As to your dilemma, the essence of the quandary can be seen as a monetary one between (effectively) renting the Velar for and handing it back after three years or buy a L322 to keep.

Once on the PCP treadmill, it is may not be easy to get off which is one of the reasons car makers have such things.

I have a VULVA on loan at the moment and had had it for 5 days.
Its a car not a RR, very nice car but i couldn't live with one for more than a couple of weeks, All the new tech is a pain in the ass TBH, you have to stop the car to go into the different menus as you have to take your eyes off the road for to long.
I personally think LR are making a mistake with not having any buttons to press for off road use, its all on the new TV style screen.

FFRR all day long. I think the cars with proper buttons to press and move will be at a premium in a year or so.

Jay 2020 Porsche Panamera Turbo Hybrid (V FAST)
2017 Range Rover Autobiography 5.0 V8
2018 JCW Mini Cooper
2018 Skoda VRS

So Dolphinboy you know what you have to do ....................