10 Remarkable Facts About the Land Rover Defender
2020 brings us the first ground-up redesign of the iconic off-road vehicle, and we want to help you get your Defender facts straight!
The Land Rover defender has been of service to many countries for many different things. Everything from Police and Military usage all the way to prestigious celebrity owners litters the iconic boxy hero’s lineage. Though the iconic look of the Defender has since been changed, we are happy to bring you some facts you may or may not be aware of about these legendary offroad machines.
1. The Defender was a Continuation of the Series 1 Land Rover
While the Defender name did not come to fruition until 1990, its spirit has been around since 1948. According to Motortrend, the Defender is based on the original Land Rover Series, which first debuted at the Amsterdam Motor Show in 1948. The Defender’s name was born with the creation of the Land Rover Discovery. To prevent confusion between the two, Land Rover opted to change the badging from the 110 and 90 to Defender 110 and Defender 90. So, in some manner, the Defender came 22 years before the first Range Rover. Even odder is the fact that the Defender existed to some degree 42 years before it was called a Defender!
2. The Defender was Only Available in the U.S. for Five Years
As is all too common with cool foreign cars, the U.S. got the short end of the stick with the iconic off-roader. Initially offered in 1993, the Defender’s North American sales stopped after 1997. Due to U.S. safety restrictions, significant changes to the Defender meant the Land Rover factory had to build certain models specifically for North American sales. These models are known as North American Specification (NAS) Defenders. In 1993, only 525 NAS Defenders were built. Five hundred came to the U.S., with the remaining 25 going to Canada. They all have 3.9-liter V8s and manual transmissions. Interestingly, 523 of them were alpine white. Many sources will tell you that only one came in black, but that is not the case, according to JLR Classics, a Jaguar and Land Rover dealer. Two came in black at the specific request of buyers, which included Ralph Lauren.
In 1994, Land Rover did away with the 110 and only produced the Defender 90 for the North American market. Defender 90s, too, came with 3.9 liter V8s and manual transmissions. Though they were initially only available as soft tops in the U.S., Land Rover did eventually offer the classic hardtops as well as ones with a removable fiberglass roof. In 1997 the engine offering became a 4.0-liter V8.
The year 1997 would go on to be the final year for U.S. market Defenders. With the new regulations introduced in 1998 requiring all passenger vehicles to have airbags for both front seats, Land Rover concluded it wasn’t cost-effective to make the changes necessary. Unfortunately, that meant no more of the boxy off-road machine for us yanks.
3. The Royal Family Has Enjoyed Them Since 1948
It makes a good amount of sense that the English company would be a go-to choice of the English Royal Family. In 1948, King George IV, Queen Elizabeth’s father, was given the 100th production Land Rover, according to CNN. Since then, the offroad machines have been a mainstay of the royal family. Over the decades you often would see the royals being toted around in a fleet of Land Rovers. The Royal Family is quite well known for its outdoor tendencies, so the Land Rover is a perfect fit. You can even still see Queen Elizabeth driving her Defender 110 around the countryside from time to time. A little known fact about her is that she trained as a mechanic and military truck driver, which definitely bumps up her coolness factor in our minds.
4. Land Rover Built Some Pretty Wild Special Editions
The first special-edition example of the Land Rover was the Defender 90 SV. It features rear disc brakes (marking the first time Land Rover installed these on a production car), alloy wheels, and came only in turquoise. It wasn’t drastically different than a standard 90, but only 90 examples were made, so they are pretty rare. That certainly is not the extent of the special-edition Defenders, though.
In 1997 Land Rover built 300 limited examples in Willow Green as a last hurrah for the North American Market vehicles. The color was only available for this year, and each one came with a placard denoting its number in the limited run.
Land Rover also built the G4 special-edition Defender to accompany their global exploration challenge that featured spotlights and a roll cage as standard. Indeed, Land Rover had a special Defender for just about every occasion, including the marking of their 50th, 60th, and 70th anniversaries. Additionally, they sold Black and Silver limited editions in finite numbers.
The wildest ones, though, would have to go to the Defender Tomb Raider edition and the Paul Smith Bespoke Defender. The Tomb Raider examples commemorate the Defender’s starring role in the first Tomb Raider movie. The Tomb Raider came equipped with a roof rack, additional spotlights, winch, bull-bar, and raised air-intake.
The Paul Smith Bespoke edition was designed by British fashion designer Sir Paul Smith to mark the end of the production of Defenders. It’s a one-of-one build and features many different colors on its body to celebrate the use of Defenders across military, emergency, and public service use.
5. Some Defenders Had BMW Engines Under the Hood
Between 1997 and 2001, Defenders sold in South Africa were available with the BMW M52 engine. The very same 2.8-liter inline six-cylinder you find in a 328i, 528i, 728i, and BMW Z3. The BMW lump is still mated to the R380 manual transmission, and it was available in both 90 and 110 models. Remarkably, the short gearing set up on these models allowed it to sprint from zero to sixty miles per hour in 9.2 seconds. While that’s not a blistering number, it does make these the fastest Defenders ever built. Interestingly, nothing about their looks would give them away. Unless you know what to listen for, you would never know if you saw one driving down the street.
6. The Special Vehicles Division Built Even Crazier Defenders
Land Rover set up the Special Vehicles Division to aid in generating European market sales. They built everything from stretched wheelbase models to be used as mobile workshops to examples with a third powered axle, making them six-wheel drive. Additionally, they created special vehicles for military use. The Rapier missile-launching system is one example. The system consists of three Land Rovers, including a 127-inch wheelbase Defender hauling the launching and aiming equipment, as well as two 110s for carrying crew members and additional equipment.
The wildest SVD build, though, has to be the amphibious Defender 90. It started life as a standard-issue soft top turbo diesel model. However, it had pontoons added and was used as a promotional piece when Land Rover sponsored the Cowes Week regatta from 1987 to 1990.
7. The Numerical Naming Scheme Signifies its Wheelbase
This one may be a bit obvious to most. However, there are still quite a few people in the dark about the difference between a Defender 90, 110, and 127. The number indicates that particular model’s wheelbase length in inches. For example, a Defender 110 has a 110-inch wheelbase. The 90 has a wheelbase of 93 inches, but rounding is a good thing. Though, it seems it wasn’t good enough to round the Defender 127 up to 130 in the case of the standard “station wagon” example. However, the “130” designation was used for the crew cab pickup truck variant.
8. Modern Safety Regulations Lead to the Defender’s (Temporary) Demise
The U.S. was not the only place to make the Defender obsolete. While 1997 was the last year it was delivered to the U.S. due to new safety regulations in effect in 1998, new regulations in 2015 in Europe were the ultimate reason the Defender’s production was ended. The European New Car Assessment Program added a pedestrian safety element to their crash testing in 2015. Since the Defender does not have any pedestrian detection system, Land Rover decided it was ultimately time for the iconic off-roader’s end. It indeed was a saddening end to an era thanks to rapidly evolving technology. The older styling is gone, but will never be forgotten.
9. It was a Global Go-To For Military Applications
While the Defender was obviously a staple in the British military, it played roles in several other countries as well. In 1994 Land Rover released a special beefed-up version of the Defender known as the XD. It was available in both 110- and 90-inch wheelbases. They were used for general-purpose tasks like patrol and supply duties. While the majority of the XDs built were 110s, 90s were advantageous in their ability to be air-transported easier due to their lighter weight.
The Defender also saw use in the Albanian Land Force and the Australian army. Outside of military work, they also saw use as police and government vehicles throughout Europe.
10. The Defender Spent a Lot of Time on Screen
The Defender has made quite a few appearances on screen in both movies and television. You can see it in everything from Doctor Who to the Leonardo DiCaprio film Body of Lies. Other notable appearances include Hotel Rwanda and the action-thriller Edge of Tomorrow.
Interestingly, it seems the majority of the Defender’s appearances on screen pertain to their military use. In fact, you can even see a Defender 110 in military form in the music video for the classic song “Zombie” by The Cranberries. Additionally, it was recently announced that the new Defender will appear in the next James Bond film.
Overall, we think the Defender, in its previous form, lived a great life. We look forward to seeing the new generation of Defenders do their thing, too.
Photos: Land Rover & Motor Trend