Sunday 22nd November 2015

Land Rover Defender 110 Heritage: Driven

The Defender bows out in some style with the Heritage car; PH takes a farewell drive

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It won't have escaped your attention that the Land Rover Defender isn't long for this world. The latest emissions regulations mean the old stager just isn't efficient enough for the 21st century and production will cease early in 2016. There's no option of one more update with one more engine; it's going for good.

Grasmere Green the ideal colour choice

But while Defender fans will be solemn that such an icon is dying, Land Rover is smiling. Not only can it now focus on properly developing a replacement, but the run out Celebration Series cars have been increasingly sought after. The Heritage, Adventure and Autobiography were all released earlier this year and a mad scramble to place a deposit ensued. The last cars, each representing a different pillar of Defender success, built by Land Rover and not an aftermarket company, were always going to be in demand.

The Heritage is definitely the best of the three. We've not driven the other two but it just is. Not only was it the most affordable of the three to buy, it's arguably the most Defendery of the three. Simple, honest, unadorned. Well, apart from some green trim.

The march of progress!

The Grasmere Green colour is perfect in fact, encapsulating the era of classic Landies while still appearing quite fresh because it's unusual. For the trendy types that fawn over Defenders at present it will be perfect. Apart from the smattering of green plastic inside, which looks odd.

Colour aside this is as Defenders always have been, with everything good and bad that that entails. For drivers coming from a modern SUV they will be in for a shock. Some of the surprise will be good (the amount of glass you can see out of and the way people actually like your car) and the rest pretty bad. The driving position is atrocious, the clutch is heavy, the brakes are wooden and the steering very vague on the road. Fans will staunchly defend its single-mindedness, off-road ability and the inherent compromises, but there's no escaping the Defender feels of another age on the road. Those who don't 'get' Defenders will find nothing new to sway their opinions here.

Old dogs and new tricks

It's hard work in normal traffic. Ben will tell you soon in a separate story how great it is off-road (the pics below should give you some clue!) but everyday it's rather a chore. Given how many are now seen in various city centres that's a relevant observation, or at least more than it was. This is suffering for style, right?

And it does look fantastic, particularly mooching round Kensington streets amongst the murdered out Range Rovers, tacky X6s and the like. Narrow too, making it far wieldier than you might expect. As those SUVs try harder and harder to command attention, the Defender has that timeless, effortless cool brought about by years of icon status. It makes you feel good to be in, sad and vain though that may sound.

A Defender is about the adventure too, even on the road. Taking photos at Queensgate Mews, we bump into a friendly old gent admiring from afar. He tells us his Defender looked near identical to the Heritage, only it had a straight six and took him across India in 1969. What other car could that have happened in? Everyone has a Defender story, and that's what makes them legendary.

More on this to follow...

So even as very far from the Defender's biggest fan, it isn't hard to see where the appeal lies. The utilitarian nature, the lack of pretence (that's, er, excluding the Autobiography) and the go-anywhere ability are what its reputation is built on and what it will be so fondly remembered for. In a world of faux 4x4s, of butch facades covering quite ordinary underpinnings, to have an off-roader pretending to be nothing more is endearing.

With a classic look and the historical significance of the Heritage Edition, these will surely be highly coveted in years to come. That they were relatively affordable to purchase must make the owners even happier about their new car. While the Defender replacement will certainly be more capable, more efficient and safer, it will be doing very well to win over as many fans as this one. Farewell old chum.

 

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LAND ROVER DEFENDER HERITAGE 110
Engine: 2,198cc, 4-cyl turbodiesel
Transmission: 6-speed manual with dual-range transfer box, four-wheel drive
Power (hp): 122@3,500rpm
Torque (lb ft): 266@2,000rpm
0-62mph: 14.7 seconds
Top speed: 90mph
Weight: 2,125kg ("weight from")
MPG: 25.5 (NEDC combined)
CO2: 295g/km
Price: £34,200

Photos: Ben Lowden and Michael Topham

[oldtimer2]

JLR has given the Land Rover the retirement celebration that it deserves. It has surely survived longer than anyone could have imagined. Its appeal was and remains classless. It is also very practical, with nice box shaped interior for stowing stuff (check out a Jeep for comparison) and it can tow stuff (again check out the Jeep)- and it can be bashed about unlike most other vehicles I can think of.

[300bhp/ton]

PistonHeads said:

It won't have escaped your attention that the Land Rover Defender isn't long for this world. The latest emissions regulations mean the old stager just isn't efficient enough for the 21st century and production will cease early in 2016. There's no option of one more update with one more engine; it's going for good.

What a load of bks!

Seriously are you unable to report real world truth?

The engine the Defender uses is used in a Ford Transit, so it is obviously emission friendly enough...

The Defender has an engine bay big enough to fit a straight 6 or Vee 8 engine in. So there is of course an option of other engines.

[Camoradi]

Unlike most modern vehicles, the end of production of the Defender won't be the start of them becoming a rare sight on our roads, because owners will keep them going. Ours has just gone past its 20th birthday, and passed its MOT yesterday with just a couple of minor advisories. I hope it will be the last car we ever own in about 30 years from now. A sort of automotive cockroach, fuelled and ready for the apocalypse

[300bhp/ton]

oldtimer2 said:

JLR has given the Land Rover the retirement celebration that it deserves. It has surely survived longer than anyone could have imagined. Its appeal was and remains classless. It is also very practical, with nice box shaped interior for stowing stuff (check out a Jeep for comparison) and it can tow stuff (again check out the Jeep)- and it can be bashed about unlike most other vehicles I can think of.

Stowage is poor in the Puma Defenders. So not sure why you think it's better than a Jeep.

I agree tow ratings for the Jeep are pants, but that has little to do with the vehicles ability.

In the US my belief is they don't want the JK stepping on the toes of the bigger pick up trucks, so they deliberately limit it's rated tow rating.

It was 3500lbs I think, despite the same engines and transmissions having far higher tow ratings in other vehicles with less substantial chassis and axle setups.

When Jeep first brought the JK to the UK in 2006, they simply swapped lbs for KG. And early JK's where rated at 3500kg, just like a Defender.

Not sure what happened, but they have since dropped the tow rating down to something more akin of most Jap pickup trucks. This must be political, as physically the vehicle is fine.

[kbf1981]

300bhp/ton said:

oldtimer2 said:

JLR has given the Land Rover the retirement celebration that it deserves. It has surely survived longer than anyone could have imagined. Its appeal was and remains classless. It is also very practical, with nice box shaped interior for stowing stuff (check out a Jeep for comparison) and it can tow stuff (again check out the Jeep)- and it can be bashed about unlike most other vehicles I can think of.

Stowage is poor in the Puma Defenders. So not sure why you think it's better than a Jeep.

bks.

I own a 110 and rented a JK Unlimited for a couple weeks in the States recently. The 110 is vastly bigger in terms of cargo area.

[300bhp/ton]

kbf1981 said:

bks.

I own a 110 and rented a JK Unlimited for a couple weeks in the States recently. The 110 is vastly bigger in terms of cargo area.

What are you calling cargo area?

Defender:
No glove box to speak off, gone is the wide tray running the dash length. No over head stowage, no door pockets. If you don't spec a cubby box, then you get a tray where the middle seat should be. Cubby boxes are fairly big, but that's about it. There is next to no room behind the seats.

2nd row seats have no stowage space at all.

The boot/bed area is big yes. But that's why I ask what are you calling cargo area?

[Toffer]

Camoradi said:

Unlike most modern vehicles, a sort of automotive cockroach.

+1

[lostkiwi]

woollyjoe said:

I really hope these become fashion accessories leaving the proper original ones for enthusiasts and people who will use them properly. Therefore keeping the prices down and sensible for what they are.

Cannot believe the amount of pimped up defenders around London - just a massive idiot badge. Many of these type of cars for sale churn owners every one to two years once they figure out how difficult they are to live with.

Difficult to live with? I lived with my 300TDi 110 as a daily runner for a 90 mile each way motorway commute for 4 years. The Puma powered ones are positively car like in comparison.

[Sandford]

Awful in the extreme to drive. Uncomfortable and for what’s meant to be a get you anywhere vehicle it does have some ability that’s sadly let down by the simple fact that it will probably get you to a location few vehicles can reach then promptly break down. We have a new defender at work, it’s been in the dealer for repair longer than we have had it. The drive train suffers repeated breakdowns, the heater falls apart, the electrics constantly drain the battery, the electric windows fall into the doors at the first sign of frost, the inner door handle digs into your leg, the seat runners dig into your calfs, the de mister does the opposite, the steering lock means a three point turn almost everywhere, without a Queens special auto the gearbox can do quick, normal people have difficulty getting in and out, back seats are for small people only, without extra headlamps it’s top speed is less than 40 at night. The only good thing is that when its at the dealers we get to use the rusty old 150,000mile MK1 Discovery that’s a dream to drive in comparison.
I still have nightmares about a convoy trip from Wolfenbuttel to Tidworth in an open top defender 110 at 50mph ALL the way, most of it in cold winter rain.
I do hope the “new” defender will be a basic unbreakable freelander chassis with a plastic body, manual lever drive mode selection, roll cage and comfortable seating in a roomy cabin..

[vtecyo]

A LWB Defender double cab pick up body still the worst "car" I've ever driven. First and last time ever in one.

Good off road but no better than our trusty SWB Pajero (both on mud tyres) on a very wet days shooting across a hilly farm. Much more cramped, less refined, nastier to drive. Pajero was a P reg, Defender was on a 58 plate IIRC. Says a lot.

[Maldini35]

Sandford said:

Awful in the extreme to drive. Uncomfortable and for what’s meant to be a get you anywhere vehicle it does have some ability that’s sadly let down by the simple fact that it will probably get you to a location few vehicles can reach then promptly break down. We have a new defender at work, it’s been in the dealer for repair longer than we have had it. The drive train suffers repeated breakdowns, the heater falls apart, the electrics constantly drain the battery, the electric windows fall into the doors at the first sign of frost, the inner door handle digs into your leg, the seat runners dig into your calfs, the de mister does the opposite, the steering lock means a three point turn almost everywhere, without a Queens special auto the gearbox can do quick, normal people have difficulty getting in and out, back seats are for small people only, without extra headlamps it’s top speed is less than 40 at night. The only good thing is that when its at the dealers we get to use the rusty old 150,000mile MK1 Discovery that’s a dream to drive in comparison.

I don't disagree.
Still love my series III though.
A totally unique driving and ownership experience in an increasingly bland and grey automotive world.

[sjg]

Do they deliberately pre-ripple the panels? Hard to believe that JLR isn't capable of making a flat panel actually flat these days. Even brand new ones look like a fairground hall of mirrors.

[DonkeyApple]

300bhp/ton said:

What a load of bks!

Seriously are you unable to report real world truth?

The engine the Defender uses is used in a Ford Transit, so it is obviously emission friendly enough...

The Defender has an engine bay big enough to fit a straight 6 or Vee 8 engine in. So there is of course an option of other engines.

Yup. Purely economics. To bring the spec up to meet modern customer expectations would lead to a price tag where there would be hardly any customers and if left as is then the revenue generated from the space used is dwarfed by the revenue the other LR models would generate using that space.

It's very sad to see it go and it will, ultimately, mean a change in perception of the LR brand but so much more money is to be made from using the current Defender capacity to build the premium products that it is commercially understandable.

The main positive is that the cars are always going to be around and available, more and more rare parts are being remanufactured and Jaguar Heritage are also bringing key parts back and I'm also sure they will be churning out Series restos very soon given a couple of conversations I've had recently with various people who have already been contacted for advice and information.

[300bhp/ton]

sjg said:

Do they deliberately pre-ripple the panels? Hard to believe that JLR isn't capable of making a flat panel actually flat these days. Even brand new ones look like a fairground hall of mirrors.

That's because the panels are so thin. The same type of metal was used on Series II and III vehicles and early Ninety & One Tens. But much thicker.

[lostkiwi]

sjg said:

Do they deliberately pre-ripple the panels? Hard to believe that JLR isn't capable of making a flat panel actually flat these days. Even brand new ones look like a fairground hall of mirrors.

Its because the panels are flat to start with, then spot welding introduces heat distortion which ripples the panel. They're also fully hand built so no two of them are the same hence the hammer is often called into use to adjust things to fit.

I owned a 300TDi Defender longer than I owned any other vehicle. It was used off road and on and covered 50k miles in the time I owned it. It suffered 3 major issues in that time:
1. A CV joint exploded jamming the steering with the broken pieces (could happen to any FWD car as well)
2. A propshaft let fly at 60mph on the M6 (could happen to any other RWD car)
3. Headgasket blew. It has Rover in the name so not that surprising...

Aside from that it just went and went and went. Even filling it from empty with petrol then getting in and driving 10 miles wasn't an issue once it had been drained and refilled with diesel (kept it 5 years after that - no issues at all).

[rogerhudson]

It's telling that JLR can't seem to be able to develop a better vehicle ( don't call it a car) to replace it, it's obviously evolved into it's evolutionary niche stasis point. It's not quite as apocalypse friendly as a series 3 diesel Standard Vanguard but they didn't make many of those so looks like we must make do, how about a defender with a woodgas generator like the 1943 KdF/VW. I'd love to see what the EU test would think of that.
I still see the occasional LR Series one, sixty years old and going well.

[lostkiwi]

rogerhudson said:

It's telling that JLR can't seem to be able to develop a better vehicle ( don't call it a car) to replace it, it's obviously evolved into it's evolutionary niche stasis point. It's not quite as apocalypse friendly as a series 3 diesel Standard Vanguard but they didn't make many of those so looks like we must make do, how about a defender with a woodgas generator like the 1943 KdF/VW. I'd love to see what the EU test would think of that.
I still see the occasional LR Series one, sixty years old and going well.

There was a guy on the FC101 Land Rover forums that made his v8 run on wood gas......

[300bhp/ton]

DonkeyApple said:

Yup. Purely economics. To bring the spec up to meet modern customer expectations would lead to a price tag where there would be hardly any customers and if left as is then the revenue generated from the space used is dwarfed by the revenue the other LR models would generate using that space.

Not sure I agree it about spec and economics.

There is no reason they couldn't update in one way or another. Jeep and Suzuki manage to sell body on frame off roaders just fine.

I think it's more to do with production techniques. The Defender is man power heavy, which means high cost.

The vehicle probably needed to change little, just how it fits together and how the production line works. That's what has stopped it. Plus I think the shift in image has already happened and the Defender no longer fits with what Land Rover want to be.

[Ilovejapcrap]

Work gave me one of these in the bad winter 2010?

It's ok but what do you do with your right arm.

I decided to cut mine off in the end

[rogerhudson]

woollyjoe said:

I really hope these become fashion accessories leaving the proper original ones for enthusiasts and people who will use them properly. Therefore keeping the prices down and sensible for what they are.

Cannot believe the amount of pimped up defenders around London - just a massive idiot badge. Many of these type of cars for sale churn owners every one to two years once they figure out how difficult they are to live with.

34,200 pounds? who'se having a laugh, get one of the ex-army Wolfs for about 14k and pimp it yourself. It could last for ever.
What is the highest mileage series LR, if a Volvo 1800 can get to a million than a Landie should do it easily.