I hereby offer my services to Jaguar Land Rover. Clearly, from an enthusiasts point of view, what the company is lacking is the loud voice of a Defender die-hard, someone who has a passion for the vehicle and its history, someone who is not reluctantly thrust into Defender development while the cool kids standing in Italian shoes get to play with the new Range Rover. Does JLR really need a verbose, over-the-hump overlander on the paycheck? Probably not.
To celebrate 75 years of Land Rover, the advertising gurus and accountants have decided that a short wheelbase Defender 90 in Candy Apple Green (actually “Grasmere Green”) with matching 20-inch alloy wheels will best honor the legend that is the original Land Rover. “Completing the exterior enhancements are a unique 75 Years graphic and Ceres Silver colored bumpers”. They even sprayed some of that Studio 54 disco on the interior.
The grandad Land Rover was made from leftover parts of airplanes used to fight in the Battle of Britain and across Western Europe; the choice of color was dictated by military surplus supplies of aircraft cockpit paint. And parts of the original Land Rover were repurposed from the fight against fascism!
But, we need to be honest with ourselves. If Land Rover did honor the tradition of the Series 1, regurgitated the old Defender, and painted it with old aircraft paint, no one except anoraks like me would care. Certainly, no one would buy it except for a few old anglophiles who already have yards and workshops full of British-engineered aluminium. If the old school Land Rover (which became the “Classic” Defender) were a vehicle for its time, Land Rover would still be making and selling them in oil-leaking droves. There is a reason Land Rover doesn’t hire loud, obnoxious historophiles who wear stretchy green shorts and can assess the health of an engine by sniffing a dipstick. We would bully them into making the new Defender the old Defender, which no one was buying. Modern humans need comfort, safety, and quiet; we demand 3D surround cameras, premium LED headlights and configurable terrain response. We insist on mild hybrid technology, an 11.4-inch Pivi Pro infotainment system, a head-up display, and at least one wireless device charger.
Land Rover delivers all the creature comforts with the 75th Edition, and all models feature a folding fabric roof and 14-way driver, and passenger heated electric memory seats. There is a spiffy heated steering wheel with electronic adjustments and three-zone climate control. The “Edition” is also equipped with a tow hitch receiver, black roof rails, and an advanced off-road capability package.
The Defender is driven by a P400 Ingenium gas engine, utilizing mild hybrid electric vehicle (MHEV) technology to optimize power delivery and fuel economy by harnessing energy normally lost under deceleration and braking. This engine produces 345 more brake horsepower than the little 1.6-liter engine, which the original Land Rover was burdened with.
From $91,000
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