Land Rover Defender to Expand into Three-Row SUV
The Land Rover Defender is on a serious roll, having just been named “World's Best Car of 2021” by the journalists of the Women's World Car of the Year award.
The luxurious off-road SUV is also getting a round of updates for the 2022 model year, highlighted by the addition of a supercharged V8 engine producing 518 horsepower, and the company is seriously considering a pickup variant in the near future, just like it used to offer in the past.
- Also: 2022 Land Rover Defender Gains 518-Horsepower V8
- Also: New Land Rover Defender May Spawn a Pickup
There’s even more good stuff coming, mind you. Similar to how Ford wants to build a whole family of vehicles around the new Bronco, Land Rover is now confirming that a three-row Defender is in the works.
After the short-wheelbase Defender 90 and long-wheelbase Defender 110, we’ll see the Defender 130. Based on the latter, it will be 342 millimetres longer overall for a total of 5,100 millimetres (excluding the spare tire). Global sales will start at some point in the next 18 months, likely for the 2023 model year.
In a recent call with investors, Jaguar Land Rover CFO Adrian Mardell said the Defender 130 will "hit a sweet spot in North America, China and also the Middle East," where large SUVs mean big business. It will directly rival the BMW X7, Lexus LX and Mercedes-Benz GLS.
"We are looking at what we can do with that brand because with relatively small investment we can increase its appeal,” added Jaguar Land Rover’s head of design, Gerry McGovern. “I'm absolutely convinced Defender will become a power brand in itself."
A plug-in hybrid variant will inevitably follow. And what about a fully electric Defender? It’s hard to imagine right now, but remember that the company aims to have around 60 percent of its vehicles sold globally to be equipped with zero-emission powertrains by the end of this decade.
