Defender

Details: Category: Defender; Last Updated on Thursday, 20 October 2011 21:08; Written by Site Admin; Hits: 15853

The Defender name was adopted in 1990 for two reasons:
One was as a measure to distinguish the utility Land Rover model from the Discovery and Range Rover, which were moving rapidly up-market. The other was to further distinguish Land Rover as a company in it's own right, having been bought out from government control in 1988 by British Aerospace. (British Aerospace had in fact bought the whole of the Rover Group, but Land Rover was seen as the key money-maker).

The Defender also had a new turbo-diesel engine.
This was loosely based on the existing 2.5 litre turbo diesel unit, but had a modern alloy cylinder head, improved turbo charging, intercooling and direct injection. The '200 Tdi' as it was called produced 107 horsepower (111 in the Discovery), and 188 lb-ft of torque (195 lb-ft in the Discovery), which was nearly a 25% improvement on the engine it replaced. This engine finally allowed the Defender to cruise comfortably at high speeds, as well as tow heavy loads speedily on hills while still being economical. Immediately Land Rover removed all of the other engine options (now redundant in the face of such a good package in a single engine). Some enthusiasts consider the 200 Tdi to be the best engine ever fitted to the vehicle.

1994 saw another development of the Tdi engine, the '300 Tdi'.
This was the same capacity as the 200Tdi, and both the Defender and the Discovery had engines in the same state of tune (111 horsepower, 195 lb-ft), and had the same basic layout, but had over 200 changes to improve the refinement and on-road performance of the engine. However, in the process the economy of the engine was reduced slightly, as was the ability for it to be serviced by the owner.

In 1998, a high-spec. limited edition 50th Anniversary Defender 90 was released, which was equipped with automatic transmission, air conditioning, roll-over protection cage and powered by the Range Rover 4.0 litre V8 petrol engine. This was the last ever Defender model to see the Rover V8 fitted as standard.

The 300 Tdi engine could not meet new European emissions regulations, so in 1998 the Defender was fitted with an all-new 2.5 litre, 5-cylinder in-line turbodiesel engine, badged the Td5. This replaced the 300 Tdi as the only available power unit in the E.U. although export versions could still be equipped with the 300Tdi for quite some time afterwards, including all Otokar Defenders. The Td5 engine used electronic control systems to provide 11 horsepower more than the Tdi, and much improved refinement. Traditionalists were critical of the electronic systems deployed throughout the vehicle, fearing that these would fail when used in extreme conditions. This was proved not to be the case, but the increased complexity means that repairs and upgrades to the engine have to be done by someone with the necessary electronic equipment, which has led home mechanics to prefer to buy second-hand Tdi-powered vehicles.

Td5 powered Land Rover Defender. Pic by Valentino Ghi.

Land Rover Defender.

A new model specification, the 'XS' Station Wagon, was introduced in 2002 as a top-spec level, while the 'County' package can now be applied to every model in the line-up. XS models come with all 'mod-cons', such as heated windscreen and seats, air-conditioning systems, electronic traction control and leather seats. These are popular with buyers in the UK and other developed countries, who either use the vehicle for on-road duties such as towing or people-moving, or simply as an interesting alternative to an estate car. The development of air-conditioning as an option caused a small yet visible change to the Defender's 'look', as vehicles fitted with this option have their radiator grilles moved forwards slightly to accommodate the cooling apparatus, this now protruding beyond the wings (a standard fitment from 2007 onwards on civilian specification Defenders).

Land Rover still provides a staggering range of special conversions such as hydraulic platforms, fire engines, mobile workshops, ambulances, breakdown recovery trucks and 'stretched' versions sometimes reaching as much as 230" wheelbase.
The Defender is very much an anachronism in today's vehicle marketplace. It is still largely hand assembled, and unlike most modern cars and trucks, all the major body panels and sub-assemblies simply bolt together. A Defender can literally be broken down to its chassis with simple hand tools, there is no unibody structure. This is actually an advantage when used extensively for off road travel - unibody vehicles can weaken over time, but there are no such stress points on a Defender. This feature allowed Land Rover vehicles to be shipped anywhere in the world as "CKD" sets ("completely knocked down" - crated sets of components for later assembly), but has become a liability because of the high cost of labour in the UK where the vehicles are primarily manufactured today. Both enthusiasts and commercial users appreciate the bolt-together construction of the vehicle, for it not only means that modifications and accessories are easy to fit, but given some spanners and the correct parts, almost any Series or Defender vehicle can be switched between the various body styles with an hour's work or so. Dented or damaged panels can therefore easily be replaced. It also means that the bodywork of the vehicle gives absolutely no structural strength (it can be completely removed, leaving just the chassis and bulkhead/firewall if needed). This has its advantages in that modifications, damage or corrosion in the bodywork cannot compromise the vehicle's strength, but also means that the upper bodywork offers little or no protection in the event of the vehicle rolling over. Roll-over cages are popular modifications fitted by many users, and were a standard fitment to all North American Specification (NAS) Defenders.

2005 Defender

Military Defenders

Land Rover Defender vehicles have been used extensively by many of the world's militaries, including the US, following experience with the vehicle during the first Gulf War, where US forces found the British Army's Ninety patrol vehicles to be more capable and more suited to operation in urban areas and for air-lifting than the Humvee. The British Army has used Land Rovers since the 1950s, as have many countries in the Commonwealth of Nations. The British Army replaced its Series III fleet with One Tens in 1985, with a smaller fleet of Nineties following in 1986. Both used the 2.5-litre naturally-aspirated diesel engine. These older vehicles are reaching the end of the service lives, with many being sold onto the civilian market from the late 1990s. In 1994 Land Rover created the Defender XD (XD= eXtra Duty) to replace and complement these vehicles. Powered by 300 Tdi engines, the XD has a much stronger chassis, with fibre webbing around the welded joints in the chassis and around stress points to massively increase load capacity. The XD was available both in Defender 90 and 110 forms, and was developed under the name 'Project Wolf'- a common name for these vehicles. British Army Wolves are usually 110-inch High Capacity Pick Ups or Hard Tops, and are used for patrol, communications and supply duties. XD 90s are less common, but are generally ordered as Soft Top or Hard Top vehicles for light liaison and communications.

The short-wheelbase vehicles lack the load capacity needed by many modern armies, and the increased power of heavy-lift helicopters has made the larger 110s easily air-transportable, which was an historic advantage of the smaller, lighter 90. The Italian army uses heavily-modified XD 90s for special operations due to their superior off-road ability and manoeuvrability. Land Rover always offered its military Defenders with the 300Tdi engine rather than the more powerful but more complicated Td5 engine offered in civilian vehicles. Before the 300Tdi engine came along, military Land Rovers were offered with 2.5-litre petrol and diesel engines, as well as the 3.5-litre V8 petrol. Although trials with the Td5 engine proved it to be reliable in battlefield conditions, it was decided that servicing and repairing its electronic control systems was too complicated. Land Rover were also unable to guarantee they could make the Td5 resistant to electro-magnetic interference. With 300 Tdi production now ceased, Land Rover offer a military version of the 4-cylinder Ford DuraTorq engine which is now used as a replacement for the Td5 in civilian vehicles.

XD Defenders on patrol.

The British Army's Land Rovers have been the subject of criticism following operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. The standard Land Rovers carry no armour-plating and so are very vulnerable to roadside bomb and rocket attacks. The 'snatch' Land Rovers are armoured against light firearms discharge and petrol-bomb attacks, i.e. street riots, not anti-tank mortars or explosives. It is accepted that the Army's Land Rovers are not designed to operate in these front-line combat conditions (similar criticisms have been levelled at the American Humvee, also not designed for out-and-out front-line fighting roles), and so new vehicles have been designed and built to better protect the troops in this situation.

Defender Updated: 2007

Replacing the Defender with a new model has been in the planning stages for many years. The design is over 20 years old in its current form and in many ways is only slightly updated from the Land Rovers of the 1950s. Replacement was due for 2007 as the new 'Euro iv' emissions regulations came into force, which meant the end of TD5 engine production. Recently new methods of building the Defender have made the model profitable again (since the 1990s, the hand-built vehicle had been made at a small loss), and so its replacement had become less of a priority, freeing up time and funding for development of other Land Rover models.

Therefore for the 2007 model year the Defender received a new 4 cylinder 2.4 litre version of Ford's Euro iv compliant DuraTorq diesel engine called PUMA, as currently used in the Ford Transit van. Producing 122bhp at 3500 rpm, as opposed to the 122bhp at 4200rpm on the td5, the DuraTorq has a cast iron cylinder block, and alloy 16 valve cylinder head with a common rail fuel injection system. A modern dashboard, uprated cabin heater, air conditioning as standard, new 6 speed gearbox and forward-facing rear seats (due to new seatbelt legislation) have updated the vehicle. There's a bulge in the bonnet to accommodate the new taller engine, and the defender badge has been removed from the front of the vehicle. The radiator grille has also moved forward to accommodate the standard fitment aircon cooling kit. The manually operated cooling vents under the windscreen have been removed, fitted with metal blanking plates instead. This is to facilitate the new dash design. Total replacement of Defender will be needed by 2012, when new regulations regarding crash safety for pedestrians will render the current design obsolete. The revised Defender's first public viewing was at the Paris motor show - September 30th 2006.

2007 revised defender model

2007 - revised model defender

2008 - Defender SVX Limited edition

The Defender SVX limited edition was sold in limited numbers around the world during 2008 - Land Rover's 60th anniversary year.

Project 'Icon'

In 2009, Project 'Icon' was revealed as the project to replace the Defender. Project Icon has therefore been granted a place in Land Rover’s product cycle and is due to be launched in 2015.

At this stage, Land Rover is working out the positioning of the car and how it will be marketed. After successfully re-inventing the Range Rover brand with new Range Rover, Range Rover Sport and Range Rover Evoque models, Land Rover is turning its attentions to sorting out the positioning and model line-up of its core off-roader range.

It's believed that the resulting Project Icon vehicle is unlikely to take the Defender name for production, although many of that car’s looks and values could be carried over to the new model. The car has been tipped to be underpinned by the T5 steel platform chassis as used on Discovery 3. We've started a new project icon page here.

Defender Fire and Ice Limited Edition

June 2009: Land Rover announced the release of a special edition of the Defender. The special edition came with a whole load of additions: leather and Alcantara trim, color-coded head- and tail- lights, glass sunroof panel and diamond-turned alloy wheels. The Fire and Ice nameplates stand for the colors in which the special edition is painted in. The Fire version was painted in Vesuvius Orange metallic, while the Ice version was painted in Alaska white. Both of them have Santorini black painted hoods and roofs. The Ice was based on the Defender 110, the Fire version is based on the Defender 90.

Land Rover built only 850 units of the Fire and Ice edition.

In 2011, Land Rover once again changed the engine, this time to comply with the upcoming Euro 5 emissions regulations. A new Euro 5 rated 2.2 litre diesel engine replaces the Euro 4 2.4 litre DuraTorq diesel. The smaller capacity engine delivers the same power, torque and economy as the outgoing engine (122 PS @ 3,500rpm and 360Nm@2,000rpm),with top speed increased to 90mph from 82mph. The smaller engine capacity helps make this the cleanest Land Rover Defender yet produced. In Euro 5 markets, the new engine comes with a diesel particulate filter (DPF) to ensure the lowest possible levels of regulated emissions.

2012 defender

2012 MY Defender - Land Rover Press Picture

If you can help us out with more information on any of the vehicle types mentioned here, please do so. You can contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Defender pictures