We Have Lift-off!
SA4x4|October 2019
Land Rover unveils the new Defender
Micky Baker
We Have Lift-off!

Take a deep breath. Pause. Close your eyes, and quiet your mind. The wait is finally over. The Defender is here, reimagined and forged anew for the 21st century.

Land Rover has spent a good few years teasing the 4x4 world with snippets and scraps from the development process and, over the past few months, we’ve seen plenty of updates as the next-gen Defender was put through its paces around the world.

According to the marque, the prototypes were put through 62 000 tests, withstanding 1.2-million kilometres of travelling through intense heat, numbing cold and dramatic altitudes. But enough about the past – the future is here, available in 110 and 90 variants, and they’re freaking cool.

Ground up

Surely, one of the biggest challenges facing the new Defender is living up to the off-road prowess and all-terrain versatility of the original models. First, let’s look at the numbers on the 110, listed in the sidebar to the right.

Those are some remarkable numbers, especially with regards to the fording potential. Water crossings are assisted by the Terrain Response 2 system’s new Wade function, and that’s just the tip of the technological iceberg.

The new Defender features permanent all-wheel drive with a twin-speed gearbox. The centre differential comes standard, while an Active Locking rear diff is an optional extra.

With the new Configurable Terrain Response system, Land Rover says that experienced off-roaders can fine-tune vehicle settings to perfectly suit road conditions, while newbies can rely on the Auto function to silently select the best calibrations.

Add to that the ClearSight Ground View camera system, and the Defender seems like an unbeatable, unstoppable, and technologically unmatched off-roader.

Denne historien er fra October 2019-utgaven av SA4x4.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra October 2019-utgaven av SA4x4.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA SA4X4Se alt
SA4x4

Uganda The Pearl Of Africa

This trip, the very last in the series of stories from Dan Grec’s two-year Africa round trip, details a scary mishap and some extraordinary wildlife encounters

time-read
10+ mins  |
March 2020
Chewy, But Edible
SA4x4

Chewy, But Edible

Take another look at those garden pests

time-read
4 mins  |
March 2020
Auto Perfection?
SA4x4

Auto Perfection?

Adding a six-speed auto to Mahindra’s workhorse ups the game for this value proposition

time-read
3 mins  |
March 2020
SA4x4

Defenders On Tour

The second 2019 Defender Trophy event kicked off in Limpopo and was unique in that participants camped in three different countries…

time-read
9 mins  |
March 2020
SA4x4

Rad Rig The Dream Catcher

Motorhome world’s one-of-a-kind luxury globetrotter

time-read
4 mins  |
March 2020
The Difference Between An Overlander And An Offroader
SA4x4

The Difference Between An Overlander And An Offroader

A very important distinction needs to be made between the offroader and the overland traveller; often the two are thought to be the same.

time-read
5 mins  |
March 2020
Steelmate TP-S9
SA4x4

Steelmate TP-S9

Solar powered TPMS (External sensor)

time-read
3 mins  |
March 2020
SA4x4

Light on the dark side

VW AMAROK DARK LABEL

time-read
4 mins  |
March 2020
Monkey business!
SA4x4

Monkey business!

Vervet Monkeys (Chlorocebus pygerythrus) are the most widespread of the African monkeys; occurring from the Ethiopian Rift Valley, highlands east of the Rift, and southern Somalia, through the eastern lowlands of Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia (east of the Luangwa Valley), Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and all nine provinces in South Africa.

time-read
3 mins  |
March 2020
SA4x4

GREAT ZOOKS

There are a few mishaps as a bunch of Jimnys tackle one of Lesotho’s premier off-road challenges, Baboon’s Pass

time-read
10 mins  |
March 2020