ITALIAN STALLION
Italian styling and engineering specialistsares Design partner with JE Motorworks to create 53bespoke Defenders
founded by ex-formula One senior manager and Ferrari commercial head Dany Bahar, ARES Design majors in unique, high-performance vehicles, and its take on the Defender, is just that.
Its dedicated production facility in Modena, Italy, is taking care of the interior, which will feature an abundance of luxury materials such as aluminium, carbon fibre, hand-crafted wood and Italian leather, while JE Motorworks is concentrating on the performance side of things – with a 282 bhp and 325 lb ft of torque Rover V8 mated to a six-speed tiptronic auto gearbox.
They will also fit a speciallydesigned exhaust system, uprated driveshafts, differentials and two inch lift suspension, winches, roof bars and sidesteps, as well as exclusivelydesigned wheels.
JE have made major investments in both equipment and a skilled team in order to design and manufacture many of the mechanical and engineering parts from scratch, and they’re very excited to be involved with this particular design house.
“We’ve been talking and developing ideas and designs with ARES for nearly a year now. The brief was effectively what would a Jaguar Land Rover SVO (Special Vehicles Operations) version of the Defender look like – and then improve on it,” reveals Jonathan Douglas, chairman and chief engineer at JE.
“When a company like ARES comes along and shows interest in enhancing a Defender to such an extent, it says a great deal about the potential the car still has in the eyes of the automotive and luxury brand markets. The resulting car will be spectacular.”
Dany of ARES said: “Every aspect of the modification is critical to us. Mechanical engineering capability of this high standard is extremely hard to find but perhaps we could have guessed such a capability would be located close to the original home of the Defender.
“The expertise and sheer passion for Land Rovers and engineering at JE was absolutely compelling, and our two companies share the sort of obsession with detail and quality that many claim but few actually deliver.”
The first car is reported to be completed and scheduled for delivery to its customer by early July. If you’re wondering how much one of these Limited Editions will set you back, we can’t tell you sadly – there is no starting price “simply because they don’t have a base model.” Buyers can spec it however he or she wants, and apparently they will be “far more interested in design and engineering quality, than what it costs.” Read into that what you will. Needless to say, if you are interested, and no doubt it’ll be a wise investment for the future, cars can be commissioned by establishing interest with ARES through ares-performance.com/ or by visiting an ARES location.