I'm Duncan Brady, the newest and youngest member ofMotorTrend's editorial team. I recently moved out of my parents' house in Rhode Island and arrived in Southern California only three weeks ago. Not only am I crazy excited to be working withMT, but I'm also looking forward to getting lost in all of the mountains, deserts, and forests easily accessible within an hour or two of Los Angeles. Even though I walk to work and mostly avoid the infamous L.A. traffic, I still crave the isolation of camping in the middle of nowhere and a long road trip with friends. Upon completing my undergraduate education in May last year, I found myself in many tens of thousands of dollars of debt, so the transportation I'd actually buy myself would be less SUV and more reasonably priced Craigslist electric mountain bike, but if I did have some change to throw around, I know where I'd spend it: the 2019 Land Rover Range Rover Velar S P340.

2018 Range Rover Velar R Dynamic SE rear side 1

Yes, the name is long and cumbersome, but the Velar, the latest addition to automaker Land Rover's luxury line of Range Rovers, might be the sweet spot of the entire range. It's big enough to avoid the Evoque's unfortunate proportions and comfortably accommodate four people plus camping gear, but it's still small enough that it doesn't feel cumbersome to drive around town or off-road. Like any luxury vehicle worth considering, it has plenty of sound-deadening and comfortable seating to ease passengers on long rides. The new dual-screen infotainment system is worlds better than Jaguar Land Rover's previous efforts, and even the lower-tier 11-speaker Meridian audio system is more than adequate for podcast listening and the occasional impromptu new album listening party with my pals.

Spending my hypothetical money, I'd opt for a lightly optioned Velar S P340, which comes standard with Land Rover's 340-horsepower supercharged V-6 and all-important goodies like adjustable air suspension for 9.5 inches of ground clearance and minimal clench factor away from pavement, plus the aforementioned Meridian audio setup. To boost off-road capability, I would downsize to 18-inch wheels from the standard 19-inchers and avoid massive optional 22s to maximize sidewall. Smaller wheels with more sidewall will improve ride quality on- and off-road, and all that rubber would drastically reduce the chance of damaging a tire or cracking a wheel on a sharp rock 2 miles down a dusty road at Joshua Tree. Giant wheels and rubber-band tires are especially silly on an SUV; don't fear the sidewall. It's also worth it to add the optional full-size spare wheel and tire, just in case.