Land Rover Defender
REPORT 4
£51,295 OTR/£74,146 as tested/£1,004pcm
WHY IT’S HERE
To live the life most Defenders can only dream of
DRIVER
Rowan Horncastle
“YOU’RE A LEGEND, MATE!”
Rocking up to a x pay and play event in a brand new k Defender with very little experience and a prawn sandwich sat atop the optional front row centre jump seat I was sure I’d be hung drawn and quartered by winches within five minutes But the reception was surprisingly positive at the Slindon offroad park in Arundel West Sussex
I quickly learned these offroad arrive and drives are amazing With a postcode of space to play on and every obstacle you can imagine there are limitless options to potentially destroy your car But the new Defender just shrugged the danger off and made most of the obstacles remarkably easy
Where others were wrestling with claggy switches to lock the centre or rear differentials manually using their hightolow range gear selectors I just well sat there and let the car work it out while I worried if it was too wide to get down the lanes
Where the new Defender has got fatter it’s also got cleverer LR’s second generation of Terrain Response has really been swatting up on its grip as it knew exactly what to do at all times recognising the driving surface then configuring the appropriately with no input whatsoever
However even though it’s effortless and comfortable this offroad dominance and capability does leave you feeling remarkably redundant and out of the action The only way I could feel a bit involved was to prevent crossaxle slip using the Centre Slip Limited and Centre and Rear Slip Limited options on the touchscreen But prodding touchscreens and changing settings isn’t very rewarding
After the initial shock of seeing a brand new Defender coming to play the hardcore drivers were deeply impressed by our car If you own a Defender have and aren’t scared of risk you can have a go too