An old Land Rover is like a trusty sheepdog: an essential tool for those who work with one, and a cutesy part of a countryside scene for everyone else. But, as with our furry friend, there comes a time when its dependability fades and retirement beckons.
So if you run an old Defender, what do you replace it with? If you work for the one-percenters at the Gleneagles golf course, the answer is a brand-new Defender 110 75th Edition, at a cool £90,200. Others might stump up £55,000 for a new Ineos Grenadier, whereas smaller businesses or individuals might look at a sub-£30,000 Ford Ranger.
What none of these solutions addresses is the growing pressure on industries to cut their CO₂ emissions by all possible means. A single-cab Ranger chucks out 226g/km, the new Defender 240g/km and the Grenadier 276g/km in its most efficient form.
Which brings us to Munro, a Scottish start-up aiming to produce a green do-it-all commercial vehicle called the Mk1. This electric 4x4's resemblance to the classic Defender is more than coincidence. As co-founder and CEO Russ Peterson explains, the firm originally set out to build a spiritual successor to the Defender as it was put out to pasture, targeting the go-anywhere 'leisure' market. What transpired was a demand not from enthusiasts but from industrial fleets.
He says: "We thought that fleet buyers, fleet operators and machinery operators would not be ready to switch to electric so soon. They would be actually looking to do this in 10 years' time. But when we started, we did a tiny bit of PR right at the start of the conception to get the word out - to test the market and to validate the idea as a luxury car enthusiast's vehicle. The people that contacted us were big utility companies, like FTSE 250, FTSE 100 - huge firms that had big fleets of pick-ups and 4x4s, some of them ageing fleets of older Defenders.
Denne historien er fra May 17, 2023-utgaven av Autocar UK.
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Denne historien er fra May 17, 2023-utgaven av Autocar UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
THE ONE WHEN PEUGEOT GOT ITS SUPERMINI MOJO BACK
The 208 marked a return to form for a maker renowned for its small cars
READY TO TOFF
Gordon Murray's grand new HQ is now nearing completion, with T50 production already in full swing. MATT PRIOR and STEVE CROPLEY drop by and go for a ride
This humble chip will change cars forever
Nvidia, the £2.7 trillion US tech giant behind it, has the power to shape motoring's intelligent future. JAMES ATTWOOD learns how
MERCEDES-BENZ V-CLASS
Interior upgrades make the MPV worthy of shuttling Merc's CEO himself
Sharing is caring
One successful motor trader has opened up his car collection for the benefit of his home town.JOHN EVANS meets him
When trains would take your car across the UK
The Channel Tunnel's Le Shuttle service is a marvel, saving drivers hassle and several hours on a ferry, and even after 30 years it's still something of a novelty to drive your car onto a train carriage.
MG ZS
Dacia Duster-chasing crossover joins MG's hybrid powertrain push
LAND ROVER DEFENDER OCTA
It's a 4x4 that thinks it's a supercar. But does this 627bhp V8 flagship offer the best of both worlds or just compromise each for the other?
Matt Prior
To nobody's great surprise, the other day the Renault 5 and Alpine A290 jointly won the 2025 Car of the Year award (the original and still the best of the big international car awards thingies).
DS WANTS TO BECOME 'LOUIS VUITTON OF CAR INDUSTRY'
It's aiming to follow Bentley into the luxury space, says design director
