Land Rover Defender 90 due to touch down in October

LAND Rover has locked in an October arrival for its short-wheelbase Defender 90 after experiencing “unprecedented demand” for the new off-roader.

While local pricing is yet to be confirmed, the Defender 90 will initially be available in just one guise, the First Edition P400, which will be powered by a turbocharged 3.0-litre straight six-cylinder petrol engine with 48V mild hybridisation, good for 294kW of power and 550Nm.

According to Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) Australia, more than 50 per cent of the total traffic on its website has been revolving around the new Defender with customer expressions of interest also being the highest of any model to date.

Land Rover global product marketing director Finbar McFall said the addition of the 90 would only increase these trends.

“As the family grows to include an efficient plug-in hybrid powertrain, we look forward to continuing this success,” he said.

“If our experience with the Defender 110 is anything to go by, we can expect over half of customers to opt for one of the four Accessory Packs, making new Defender the most accessorised and personalised Land Rover we have ever produced.”

Equipment-wise, the Defender 90 First Edition will mirror its bigger 110 sibling and come with Terrain Response 2, Matrix LED headlights, a panoramic sunroof, a contrasting black roof, rear privacy glass, Narvik Black exterior trim, 400W Meridian sound system, 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, blind spot monitoring, video-based rearview mirror, ‘First Edition’ badging, heated front seats, heated steering wheel with a power-adjustable column, carpet floormats, branded scuff plates and 20-inch alloy wheels.

As for the rest of the 90 range, JLR Australia PR manager James Scrimshaw would not be drawn into revealing any other details on spec or model line-up other than reiterating the local line-up would be completed in December this year.

Pricing for the 90 First Edition P400 will be revealed closer to its arrival in October this year, two months after the bigger 110 launches in August priced from $69,990 plus on-road costs.