New defender

It’s almost 2 years since the last defender rolled off the Solihull production line…..29th January 2106 saw this little gem roll off the line

Like the very first S1 the last defender was in the SWB version and finished in Grassmere green while sporting a soft top…even the reg mirrored the first one as close as modern regs would allow.

Since then the chatter amongst the Land Rover community has been growing….speculation….excitement…..what would the replacement be like….when would it be launched…..would it do the icon justice and live up to customer expectation?

In recent months many pictures have emerged on the internet of heavy camouflaged test mules….most have which have massively divided opinions on social media.

I think one of the biggest problems that JLR face it that many current owners just don’t like change…..I read one guys comment on our facebook page where he said it the new defender was full of electronic and air bags he wasn’t interested in one…..they have had the current land Rover give or take minor changes from the series etc for a whopping 7 decades! It sounds daft but thats just how stuck in their ways many owners will be.

Clearly you don’t need me to tell up or be in the know to understand that the new defender will have airbags and other important safety features that the old one was lacking….along with a whole host of electronics…..its just logic that without some form of witchcraft it needs these things just as much as any modern car does to meet upto date reguations.

So what do we know so far? Well despite what you might read elsewhere we know very little, Land Rover has been very tight-lipped and rightly so.

To find out we have at least another year to wait with the new model expected in showrooms by 2020 and with an entry price of £40k

I’m sure LR have their fingers crossed that the new model is going to be well received despite feedback they will be getting from social outlets……..falling Jag saloon sales and seen the Bromwich factory on a 3 day week so potential Defender sales might be what’s needed to secure jobs.

AS owners of the old model or new potential customers to the Land Rover brand we have to hope that people will take the new model on board and judge it on its own merit against the current competition rather than trying to compare it to and outdated old Defender…..all be it our beloved icon!