Reinventing an Icon
There is no confusion about the type of vehicles that Land Rover and Range Rover produce — SUVs. A somewhat newer version by Land Rover is the Defender.
And it clearly makes a statement with its tall and rectangular shape. From the hood on back, the overall height stands out, and upfront there are small grille openings with fancy headlights on either side. And to reinforce the offroad theme, a covered spare tire hangs on the rear liftgate, and, quite uniquely, there is an outside storage lockable box on the passenger side behind the rear door.
Large 20-inch wheels with tall tires rounds out the look. As expected, the Defender is al lwheel drive with, in our test model, a powerful 3.0-liter, 395-horsepower six-cylinder engine. But there are multiple other Defender models with different engine choices including a four cylinder and a V8. And clearly since stick shifts are no longer part of the deal, in its place is an 8-speed automatic transmission. Acceleration in our test car is more than reasonable with a 0-60 time of 6.2 seconds. But with the supercharged V8 power plant model, the time drops to 4.4 seconds.
And if needed, the transmission can be shifted from gear to gear with the use of a lever. At stops, the engine turns off and comfortably turns on when moving forward. Even though the suspension is designed for off-road action, the overall ride is great and absorbing even over bumpy roads. And cornering at most speeds is easily handled.
Although the Defender is ready for rough off roading, the interior is comfortable, practical, and nicely done. A 10-inch touch screen in the center of the dash handles the usual functions from radio to navigation and many more. When in reverse gear, multiple exterior cameras show 360 degrees around Defender and a front or rear view depending on the direction. At low speeds, the camera can be turned on. Buttons on the center console can be used to raise or lower the vehicle which was obviously designed for off-road conditions. A heads-up display on the windshield indicates your speed, and in the dash pod, the legal speed limit is shown. Clearly the interior is designed with cloth seat covering to handle dirt possibly picked up from off roading.
Three passengers are readily handled in the back seat with super head room and plenty of room for people with long legs. Besides a giant sunroof, there are little viewing windows on the side of the roof. Air vents are mounted on the back of the center console. Like the front area, there are multiple colors and surfaces (vinyl, plastic, and metal) spread throughout the interior. Even with the large tire mounted on the rear door, accessing the rear area is easy because the door swings sideways, and is not lifted. A sizable nicely covered rear area can handle lots of items big and small. Additional storage is under the rear floor cover.
Clearly, the Defender stands out from other SUVs because of the overall look and its height. Interestingly, it has various models (the smallest being the 90 while the epic 130 seats 8) with two-door and four-door versions, and multiple options that can be added. Pricing starts at about $60,000 and goes upwards $120,000 depending on the model. In any case, the Defender is clearly unique.
LAND ROVER DEFENDER 110 X-DYNAMIC SE
MODEL // SUV 4-door POWERTRAIN // 3.0-liter, 6-cylinder gas engine with 395 horsepower, 8-speed automatic transmission, all-wheel drive. PERFORMANCE // 0-60: 6.2 seconds FUEL MILEAGE // city 18 mpg, highway 23 mpg, average 20 mpg. PRICE // as tested $100,873