Passport to Adventure

In 1948, the Land Rover came to life with a simple purpose - to give Britain a vehicle that could compete with Jeep. It had to be simple, coupled with extraordinary strength and durability. The first Land Rover was built in that particular year.

Soon after, it became the farmer’s best friend, and with its outstanding off-road capability it became a vehicle of choice for military forces around the world. It did cut a distinctive profile among herds of commuters, as one could venture into unexplored territory. Built three years after World War II, Land Rover was a civilian, peacetime go-anywhere vehicle that broke the mold of conventional thinking.

The Series 2 made its way in 1958. This wasn’t greeted too well by the customers, and so the Series 2A was launched in 1961 to up the sales. Ten years later, the Series 3 made its debut with a V8 engine, which was a giant technical leap at the time. In the years to come, continuous changes were done to improve the vehicle even more. Hence, in March 1983, the 110 was introduced with petrol, diesel and V8 petrol engine options. This was again up-rated in January 1984. Five months down the line, the 90 wheeled on the road. For the next four years or so, significant changes were made to the engine of Land Rover. Turbo-diesel appeared in 1986, and the V8 got boosted up to 134bhp. Apart from minor alterations, no further changes were incorporated to the 90/110 Rovers. And so, in September 1989 both these models got a new name – the Defender. The 90 became the ‘Defender 90’ and the 110 became the ‘Defender 110’. The Defender 110’s name came from its wheelbase, which was 110 inches. Land Rover Discovery was also new at the time, and this move to usher in the Defender was perhaps to clarify the range.

A vehicle with an unlimited capacity for hard work was now being called the Defender. Later, it got a five-speed manual transmission; it became available with the 107bhp four-cylinder turbo-diesel, and 134bhp 3.5 litre V8. Even the interiors began to look more ‘car like’. People loved it. Now, the Defender had become a recreational vehicle rather than an off-road one. The car became more comfortable.

In 1992, the Defender got reintroduced as the ‘NAS Defender 110’ with a more refined, 182bhp, fuel injected 3.9 litre V8. This NAS 110 was a 4x4 and an instant hit. It had standard air conditioning, and a radio/cassette unit in the middle of the console. Furthermore, disk brakes were introduced, and the wheelbase was restructured. Then, in came the NAS 90 Defender, or the NAS90. This was meant to be a special edition vehicle, and a Station Wagon was made available, too.

Changes continued in the new century. Central door locking, electric window lifts, ABS braking and new colours; the Defender was now clearly an esteemed vehicle.

In 2012, a 2.4 litre diesel engine, a six-speed gear box, and dash and forward facing rear seats got introduced. The new engine gave 122 horsepower in both the Defender 90 and Defender 110. Both these models were updated in terms of the interior and the engine. But soon after, Land Rover confirmed that the production of the much loved Defender will end in 2015.