Land Rover Defender review in pictures: No compromise on everyday comfort
Purists may disagree, but the new Defender pays homage to the old one, while still being its own car. The edges are rounded off, but designer Gerry McGovern has ensured that this is easily identifiable as a Defender.
When it comes to the automotive world, it’s not practice but provenance that makes perfect. This is particularly applicable to the Land Rover Defender, having stayed in continuous production for nearly seven decades.
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The new Land Rover Defender 110 (One-Ten) arrives in India bearing a price tag of Rs 79.94 lakh, going all the way up to Rs 89.94 lakh. This is by no means a sum which will be spent purely to meet off-roading requirements, which means, the new Defender will have to pass certain tests as an everyday carrier of people. Lots of people.
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Purists may disagree, but the new Defender pays homage to the old one, while still being its own car. The edges are rounded off, but designer Gerry McGovern has ensured that this is easily identifiable as a Defender.
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Climb into the Defender, and things get a lot more contemporary. This isn’t like any other car cabin you’ve been in. The materials, the design – everything has a faux military vibe to it, with a mild space-age quality thrown in for good measure.
The touchscreen unit allows easy access to Land Rover’s R&D wizardry – an area where they beat every off-roading brand. Terrain Response System 2, differential locks, energy consumption – everything can be monitored via a clinical interface on the screen.
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The Defender comes to India in P300 guise only. Which means this two tonne behemoth is powered by a modest 2.0-litre petrol engine, making a not-so-modest 296hp. You’d think the relatively pedestrian motor would strain to carry such a bulky vehicle. To my utter surprise, the Defender felt quick. And being quick isn’t necessarily a requirement.
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The eight-speed ZF gearbox does throw in a bit of lag, when you floor the throttle, and the engine needs to be revved hard to get up to proper speeds. But the eagerness with which it does it is astonishing.
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The SE variant comes with electronic air suspension as standard, and that alone might justify buying the Defender, because it takes zero cognizance of the treacherous terrain we’re assaulted with on a daily basis.
It really does float like a butterfly. If that butterfly were stuck to the windshield of a massive Land Rover. In off-road mode, it even lifts up to give you a total ground clearance of 291mm.
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The rest of the kit’s fantastic. Rear locking differential with torque vectoring giving optimum traction. A low-ratio transfer case and the best electronic terrain configuration in the business. The Defender can automatically select a terrain mode, or you perform the dauntingly tricky act of selecting it yourself.
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In its ability to do everything well, the five-door Defender remains peerless. Are there SUVs which are more luxurious? Of course. Are there equally or more rugged off-roaders out there? Certainly. But the Landie brings not just pedigree to the table, but a sense of wholesomeness that few vehicles possess.
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It’s more on-road capable than hardcore off-roaders, and possibly one of the greatest off-roaders that don’t feel the need to compromise on everyday comfort. For Rs 89 lakh a pop, that seems like plenty to go with.
