Land Rover Defender V8 review: supercharged 4×4 tested
Well, this wasn’t actually meant to happen, but we’re very glad it did.
The new Defender’s Programme Director Stuart Frith recently told TG that a V8 wasn’t even in the product plan when the project began eight years ago. The team with the unenviable (but at the same time impossibly exciting) task of reinventing Land Rover’s iconic 4×4 did build a couple of mules early on, though, and in the end it was just too good an opportunity to miss.
Welcome then, to the production-ready Land Rover Defender V8. Oh yes.
Officially this is badged the P525, and you’ll no doubt recognise the engine – it’s JLR’s familiar supercharged 5.0-litre unit that makes 518bhp and 461lb ft of torque in this instance. That power is sent to all four wheels (of course) and means the short wheelbase 90 can do 0-60mph in 4.9 seconds, whilst the larger 110 is just two tenths of a second slower. Not bad for something with the aerodynamic properties of a 1960s tower block.
Is it just a new engine, then?
Not quite. Land Rover has toughened up the Defender’s chassis and suspension to cope with the extra grunt – and weight – of the V8 (for reference, there’s 124bhp more than the six-cylinder P400). That means new larger diameter anti-roll bars, stiffer suspension bushes and bespoke spring and damper rates.
There’s also a new electronic active rear diff and a ‘Dynamic’ mode for the terrain response system that Land Rover says will unlock more performance on tarmac and loose surfaces. This is a good thing.
The smooth eight-speed ZF automatic gearbox is the same as you’ll find in all other Defenders, although here you get wheel-mounted paddles for manual up- and downshifts and it has been slightly tweaked for crisper changes.
So yeah.. it’s pretty much all about the engine?
Well yeah, fair enough. The P525 experience is dominated by that wondrous supercharged heart. There’s slightly less output here than in the newly-updated F-Pace SVR, but when an engine sounds as mighty as this you don’t miss an extra 30bhp or so. It’s plenty quick enough.
Plus, the Defender V8 isn’t actually one of JLR’s SVO products, so despite the extra suspension tuning it isn’t supposed to be stiff and hard riding. There’s plenty of heave and pitch under heavy acceleration and braking – all of which is part of the character that defines it.
You like it then?
Love it. If you can park the feeling that everyone else on the road – especially those in now miniscule-looking hatchbacks – thinks you’re a bit of a pillock, then it’s a fantastic thing to pilot.
We’ve only had the chance to drive a 110 on-road so far, and although it’s a giant thing (think just under two metres wide and just under 2.5 tonnes) with the option of seating five, six or seven, it really can shift. Dynamic mode – which will remain exclusive to the V8 – sharpens the throttle response, weights up the steering and livens up what Land Rover calls the ‘Continuously Variable Damping’. The result isn’t exactly elegant and there’s still plenty of roll, but it turns in well, copes with quick cornering and then blunderbusses its way across any following straight section, punching holes through the air like the local hooligan looking for a scrap in the early hours of a Sunday morning, whilst the bonnet rises up and makes a break for the sky.
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Land Rover Defender 90 review: the Defender to have?
And it is. It’s the version of the new Defender that’s fastest on the road, and most capable off it.
It’s the short-wheelbase 90 body motored along by the new straight-six 3.0-litre petrol engine, with 400bhp. It has mild hybridisation too, but this is not a vehicle to which the term ‘mild’ naturally cleaves.
Being short in the wheelbase, the 90 is even more insanely handy in the rough than the 110 – it can wriggle its way out of tighter spots, and is less likely to ground its belly.
But it’s not the only new version we’re testing here.
We also tried the base-model P300 on steel coil springs.
Wow, entitled motoring hack gets bumped into the base version. You don’t often see that.
Enough of your snark. Think how often this website tests the expensive options and tells you they aren’t worth it. You could almost call it public service.
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Anyway… The coils are available only on the 90, as all 110s have air-springs. Air springs also bring adaptive damping, so you miss out on that. This base model also has a simpler terrain response system (no configurable mode). It also goes without an active rear diff and the off-road speed system they call all-terrain progress control. You can add all those things back as option packs though.
It still has a low box and diff locks mind. And 3D cameras and wade-depth sensing. And the Pivi Pro navigation.
With the 300bhp four-cylinder petrol, which is cheaper than the diesels, this is a Defender that slips under £44k. Albeit at 260g/km it’s hardy a thrifty company-car choice.
But it would take titanium-willed self-control to run through the configurator and not tick one or multiple options boxes. It can very easily become a £60k vehicle.
So the P400 in X spec is going to be crushingly dear?
With no options it runs £77k. But that has most of the attractive kit already on it, so you won’t stray far above that. And hey, it’s far less than a Mercedes G350d.
OK, start with that six-cylinder engine.
It’s a fancy thing. Two chargers pump air to the cylinders. One’s a normal turbo, the other an electrically-driven compressor, as a means to get rid of lag at low revs. Audi has a similar thing in the SQ7 diesel, and Mercedes-AMG in the 53 petrols. It’s powered by 48-volt electrics, and so the mild-hybrid starter-generator can also take advantage of 48v. Plus, the cylinder head has continuously variable valve lift.
It’s a straight-six, nothing to do with the supercharged V6 Jaguar and Land Rover have been using in recent years. But it uses lots of parts in common with the other Ingenium three and four-cylinder jobs. It was intro’ed on the Range Rover Sport and Velar last year.
How does it feel?
It’s got broad shoulders, shoving the heavy off-roader forward meaningfully from about 2,000rpm to 5,000-plus. It’ll even go to 6,500 but you wouldn’t, as it’s not exactly dripping with high-rev aural charisma. Whereas it is pretty smooth in the mid-ranges. While we’re on the subject of the sound, at very low revs it’s strangely dieselly, albeit quiet.
The eight-speed transmission shifts smoothly and anticipates your needs well, so you’re seldom stuck at low revs wanting instant torque – it’ll just shift down. But for experiment’s sake hold it in a high gear with the paddles and you find the electric compressor does suppress the lag even if it doesn’t entirely get rid.
Zero to 62mph is 6.0 seconds, which is pretty perky but never outright fast. It overtakes smartly enough. If you floor it even at speeds higher than 60, the nose perceptibly lifts as it gathers more speed.
So is it fast enough to overwhelm the chassis?
Not a bit of it. This is a vehicle that manages itself with dignity provided you work it smoothly. There’s roll, and the tall tyres squirm a bit, but it’s honestly in another world from the new Jeep Wrangler. And the ride is properly supple and controlled.
Once up to motorway-speed-and-a-bit the Defender hums quietly. Engine and wind and tyre noise all fall to the background, and it tracks straightahead gamely.
Will my family fit the 90?
If you’ve got a primary-school-age kid, speccing the centre jump-seat option will make you the best parent in the world.
The rear bench gives plenty of leg and headroom for adults, and the upper ‘alpine’ windows make it feel airy. But getting there is a palaver – you have to squeeze into a tight gap or have your patience tested as the front seats motor sluggishly forward.
The boot’s just under 400 litres, which is hardly enough for six active campers. If you have a lifestyle you’ll want to plunder Land Rover’s huge range of external carrying accessories – roof racks, ladders, panniers, clamps and the rest.
Well if you’re truly going to get muddy you’ll want a more basic spec. What’s that like?
The P300 petrol is pretty much like anyone else’s four-cylinder turbo: not exactly inspiring, but torquey and useful. The coil springs ride decently when the Defender is empty, and have helper springs within them for when you’re loaded up or towing. Given the diminished performance versus the P400, you can probably manage without adaptive damping.
And off the road?
Oh my oh my. Even without the air-suspension to levitate the body in extreme circs, it’s amazing. Remember, ground clearance between the wheels is determined by the wishbones, and raising the air springs wouldn’t help that. Of course you don’t get the advantage of using air to increase your breakover, but in the SWB that angle is so insanely good anyway it’s seldom a worry.
The petrol engine and autobox dispense torque gingerly when you need to ease across slippery mud, but with vim when you’re pointing up a precipitous slope. Traction is awesome. Clearance and articulation pretty colossal. Wading depth almost scary. Downhill control near-supernatural.
It just paws along like a hippo. So don’t stand in its way.