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Current Land Rover Defender ends production

The current Land Rover Defender has ended production overnight with a number of current and former employees gathering to send-off the last of the current Defenders.

LAND ROVER has celebrated 68 years of history with the last of the current Defenders rolling off the line at Land Rover’s Solihull production facility.

To mark the occasion Land Rover invited more than 700 current and former Solihull employees involved in the production of Series Land Rover and Defender vehicles to see and drive some of the most important vehicles from its history, including the first pre-production ‘Huey’ Series I as well as the last vehicle off the production line, a Defender 90 Heritage Soft Top.

In announcing the end of production of the current Defender, Land Rover announced it was gathering a team of experts and former line workers to oversee the restoration of a number of Series Land Rovers sourced from across the globe. The first vehicles will go on sale in July 2016. The restoration will take place at Solihull on the current Defender line.

Dr Ralf Speth, CEO of Jaguar Land Rover, said: “Today we celebrate what generations of men and women have done since the outline for the Land Rover was originally drawn in the sand. The Series Land Rover, now Defender, is the origin of our legendary capability, a vehicle that makes the world a better place, often in some of the most extreme circumstances. There will always be a special place in our hearts for Defender, among all our employees, but this is not the end. We have a glorious past to champion, and a wonderful future to look forward to.”

Nick Rogers, Group Engineering Director at Jaguar Land Rover, added: “This is a special day of fond celebration for Jaguar Land Rover. We all have personal memories of Defender. It’s a true motoring icon and is much loved around the world. The world has changed dramatically in the last 68 years, but this vehicle has remained a constant – something no other vehicle can claim. The last of the current Defender models embraces the vehicle’s simplicity, honesty and charm – it represents its Series Land Rover heritage. Creating the Defender of tomorrow, a dream for any engineer or designer, is the next exciting chapter and we are looking forward to taking on that challenge.”

Development of the new Defender began way back when the Evoque was being launched and is expected to be revealed either late in 2016 or early 2017, before going on-sale in 2017.


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Dennis Does Cricket
8 years ago

Very sad. The best car ever made

Mick
Mick
8 years ago

Should have been offered since the late 90’s with automatic, adjustable steering column and extensive sound proofing. Lost countless sales and revenue domestically. Been trying to kill it off for years.

Robert Pepper
8 years ago
Reply to  Mick

The new one will have an automatic transmission, of that you can be sure. Whether it has manual or not is another question. I guess yes.

Current Defenders can be swapped to auto, easily soundproofed and the seat base can be changed so it is more adjustable. Not so the steering column!

Isaac Bober

Isaac Bober