Compare the2023 GMC TerrainVS 2023 Land Rover Range Rover Velar

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Terrain are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Range Rover Velar doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Terrain SLT/AT4/Denali offers an optional Surround Vision to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Range Rover Velar only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

Compared to metal, the Terrain’s plastic fuel tank can withstand harder, more intrusive impacts without leaking; this decreases the possibility of fire. The Land Rover Range Rover Velar has a metal gas tank.

Both the Terrain and the Range Rover Velar have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems and rear cross-path warning.

For its top level performance in all IIHS frontal, side, rear impact and roof-crush tests, and its standard front crash prevention system, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Terrain the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2017, a rating granted to only 233 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Range Rover Velar has not been tested, yet.

GMC’s powertrain warranty covers the Terrain 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Land Rover covers the Range Rover Velar. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Range Rover Velar ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 8 times as many GMC dealers as there are Land Rover dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Terrain’s warranty.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Terrain’s reliability 16 points higher than the Range Rover Velar.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Terrain third among compact suvs in their 2022 Initial Quality Study. The Range Rover Velar isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that GMC vehicles are better in initial quality than Land Rover vehicles. J.D. Power ranks GMC above average in initial quality. With 31 more problems per 100 vehicles, Land Rover is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that GMC vehicles are more reliable than Land Rover With 92 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks GMC higher than Land Rover.

On the EPA test cycle the Terrain gets better mileage than the Range Rover Velar:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the GMC Terrain uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Range Rover Velar requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Terrain has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Range Rover Velar doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

A nine-speed automatic is standard on the GMC Terrain, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the Range Rover Velar.

The Terrain has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Range Rover Velar doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Terrain Denali AWD handles at .79 G’s, while the Range Rover Velar pulls only .77 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Terrain Denali AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.1 seconds quicker than the Range Rover Velar (27.5 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 28.6 seconds @ .57 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Terrain w/17” wheels’ turning circle is 1.8 feet tighter than the Range Rover Velar’s (37.4 feet vs. 39.2 feet).

The GMC Terrain may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 700 to 750 pounds less than the Land Rover Range Rover Velar.

The Terrain is 6.6 inches shorter than the Range Rover Velar, making the Terrain easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The front grille of the Terrain offers available electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Range Rover Velar doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Terrain uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Range Rover Velar doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

The Terrain has .9 inches more front headroom, .6 inches more front legroom and 2.5 inches more rear legroom than the Range Rover Velar.

The Terrain has a larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Range Rover Velar with its rear seat folded (63.3 vs. 62.7 cubic feet).

The Terrain’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Range Rover Velar does not have an oil pressure gauge.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Terrain has standard extendable sun visors. The Range Rover Velar doesn’t offer extendable visors.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the GMC Terrain Denali has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The Range Rover Velar doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

The Terrain offers an optional 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Range Rover Velar doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Terrain Denali’s optional Automatic Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling speed with the brake pedal. The Range Rover Velar doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

The Terrain is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Range Rover Velar doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Insurance will cost less for the Terrain owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Terrain will cost $4660 to $8045 less than the Range Rover Velar over a five-year period.

The Terrain will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Terrain will retain 48.41% to 52.67% of its original price after five years, while the Range Rover Velar only retains 46.61% to 47.97%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the GMC Terrain will be $28256 to $34137 less than for the Land Rover Range Rover Velar.

The GMC Terrain outsold the Land Rover Range Rover Velar by over 10 to one during 2022.