Land Rover Defender
GOODBYE
£51,295 OTR/£74,146 as tested/£1,004pcm
WHY IT’S HERE
To live the life most Defenders can only dream of
DRIVER
Ollie Marriage
IF YOU’VE READ THESE REPORTS SINCE THE DEFENDER FIRST ARRIVED back at the start of this year you’ll be aware of the issues we’ve had There have been a lot from water sloshing in the sills to aircon packing up to loss of power to coolant leaks At times it’s been a pain in the arse But none of us wanted this day to come Because we’ve loved running this car
But the quality and reliability issues need to be eradicated They’re not acceptable We did over miles in this D and shadowing every single one of them was a fear that something would go wrong We’re car enthusiasts we love the product we understand it and found ways to cope But most owners aren’t like us They won’t forgive and forget
It’s such a pity because the car performs so well It did everything we wanted and did it with a chunky spring in its step It offroaded wore a roof tent paddleboards bags and bikes towed a mighty caravan It is eminently fit for purpose in the modern world and fulfils the role Land Rover envisaged for it However it’s not a tool anymore and that means in years to come it will never resonate in the same way as the original
I wouldn’t change anything about the way we specced it but I would urge you to think carefully about the outerwear because it hasn’t been well developed the roofrack whistles the pointless side box blocks visibility The paint protection film was a fortune but has brilliantly shrugged off scratches the steel wheels were the right call the centre jump seat was a hoot and it was even fun to hustle We’d still have over any day of the week And diesel never hybrid petrol There were frustrations and I’d live in fear of the warranty running out but there’s not another offroader to touch it it’s a genuine x and stands above every SUV