New Models - Land Rover Defender

Defender’s diamond edition

Utilitarian: Special Defender variant pushes pricing over the $60,000 mark.

Land Rover’s definitive off-roader turns 60 with the limited-edition Defender SVX

2 December 2008

By BYRON MATHIOUDAKIS

LAND ROVER’S ubiquitous Defender celebrates its 60th birthday with the limited-edition SVX.

Of the 1800 specially-numbered vehicles produced to mark the occasion, Land Rover Australia is importing 82 examples of the British-made 4WD icon.

The $63,320 price tag represents a $14,330 increase on the price of the regular MY8.5 Defender 110 seven-seater four-door wagon ($48,990), upon which the SVX is based.

Fittingly, diamond-themed five-spoke 16-inch alloy wheels mark the anniversary special, along with satin black body decals (against the standard ‘Santorini Black metallic paint job), tubular side steps, an aluminium front under-shield protector and a sunroof.

Inside the changes include the fitment of Recaro seats, heated front seats, satellite-navigation, aluminium trim, leather-wrapped steering wheel and an MP3-compatible sound system with subwoofer and amplifier.

SVX buyers also receive body-coloured wheel-arches, ‘Titan’ bonnet badging, special grille and headlight surrounds, rear LED bulbs, locking wheel nuts, a body-coloured roof and heated rear window with washer/wiper, plus mudflaps, a rear folding step, rear door stowage net, machined aluminium transmission knobs and a cubby hole lid with interior lights.

On top of the standard anti-lock brakes comes traction control, ventilated disc brakes, air-conditioning, remote central locking, electric front windows, a perimeter alarm and first aid kit.

Otherwise, the SVX is an addition to the latest version of the Defender launched in November 2007.

Powered by a 2.4-litre 16-valve common-rail four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine derived from a unit found in Ford’s VM Transit van range, the Defender delivers 90kW of power at 2200rpm and 360Nm of torque at 2000rpm.

As before, torque is transmitted in a 50/50 full-time split to all four wheels, with high and low-range gearing included.

The only gearbox on offer is a six-speed manual transmission. As before, no automatic is available.

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