The Defender will star in a chase sequence in the upcoming 25th James Bond film, which will be Daniel Craig’s last.
The Land Rover Defender is back. Britain’s answer to the Jeep Wrangler has been redesigned for 2020 with an aluminum body and high tech gear.
Available in two-door and four-door models, the Defender features an optional air suspension that gives it up to 11.5 inches of ground clearance and the ability to wade through water nearly a yard deep.
The 2020 Defender is powered by a standard turbocharged four-cylinder engine mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission. Every model features all-wheel drive and locking differentials for treacherous terrain. The Defender will also be available with Jaguar Land Rover’s new 3.0-liter inline-six-cylinder engine. Along with traditional turbocharging, the upgraded engine utilizes an electric supercharger and 48-volt hybrid system. Unlike its predecessor, the next-generation Defender will have a unibody construction versus a body-on-frame setup and replaces the old solid axles with a fully independent suspension. The latter comes standard with coil springs, but it can be upgraded with an air suspension that allows adjustable heights. The Defender also has 11.5 inches of ground clearance and the ability to ford through 35.4 inches of water, which both exceed the Jeep Wrangler’s maximum clearance and wading ability.
The 2020 Defender is offered in both two- (90 model) and four-door (110 model) body styles, which designate two different wheelbases and different interior passenger space. Its dashboard sports a 10-inch touchscreen infotainment system as well as physical knobs and buttons for the climate controls. The shift lever is also mounted on the center stack rather than the center console. While the Defender boasts durable cabin elements, it also affords upscale materials and various luxury features. Among the slew of driver-assistance technology, the Rover has several unique systems tailored for off-roading and towing.
The Defenders you’ll see in the movie are no standard cars. The automaker’s design team worked in close cooperation with the people from the Special Effects and Action Vehicles division of James Bond to create unique models, based on the Defender X model in Santorini Black. They feature darkened skid pans, 20-inch black wheels, and special off-road tires. These cars were among the first to be built at Land Rover’s new plant in Nitra, Slovakia.
Land Rover says the movie will also feature a Series III Land Rover, a Range Rover Classic, and a new Range Rover Sport SVR in addition to the Defenders, although we doubt those three will be used in any chase. Land Rover first partnered with Eon Productions for the 1983 Bond movie Octopussy, in which a Range Rover convertible appeared. We also know that Bond will drive a trio of Aston Martins in the film: a classic V8 Vantage, the new Valhalla supercar and, of course, a DB5.
