Land Rover Defender 130 is set to go on sale in Australia from $124,150.
Land Rover Australia has confirmed the new long-wheelbase Defender 130 will go on sale in Australia from $124,150 before on-road costs.
Two models will be available for buyers, the Defender 130 SE D300 from $124,150, and the Defender 130 SE P400 from $131,650, coming standard with Land Rover’s five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty.
Land Rover has been enjoying huge sales success with the Defender since it landed in dealerships last year. Now the British brand will be hoping to find even more customers with the biggest version of the off-roader to date: the Land Rover 130. The model has not been confirmed yet for Australia, although we anticipate it will be announced for our market this year. Here’s what to expect.
The 130 takes the already-substantial 110 edition of the Defender and adds an extra 340mm beyond the B-pillars, making it 5358mm long – that’s more than 10cm longer than the seven-seat version of the latest Range Rover.
Land Rover claims that this extended rear overhang doesn’t impact on the Defender’s off-road ability; it retains approach and departure angles of 37.5 degrees and 28.5 degrees respectively, and has a maximum wading depth of 900mm.
But the longer body frees up so much additional space in the cabin that engineers have been able to install a third seat in the last row. That means there is now the possibility of a two-three-three seating layout, making the car an eight-seater and taking it beyond the capacity of the seven-seat 110.
Land Rover clearly believes the additional capacity will be a key selling point; the car will be an eight-seater by default, and the removal of the third row to make it a five-seater will be offered as a no-cost option.
The Defender 130 will be available with a choice of at least three powertrains in Europ but only two in Australia.
Australia will get the D300 and P400, both in SE trim. The P400 produces 294kW and 550Nm torque at 2000-5000rpm, good for a 0-100km/h in 6.6 seconds.
The diesel D300 3.0-litre six-cylinder develops 221kW and 650Nm torque at 1500-2500rpm. The 0-100km/h dash is finished in 7.5 seconds for the D300.
Inside, the Defender 130 gets the larger 11.4-inch Pivi Pro touchscreen infotainment system that was introduced on the higher-end 90 and 110 V8 models, as well as standard air purification. Other features include Smart Voice Guidance, which reduces the amount of instructions required in familiar surroundings, and what3words location functionality.
There’s also the option for the third row of seats to be heated, and those in the sixth, seventh and eighth seats also get padded armrests and USB-C charging ports. Up to five of the eight seats (the outer seats in the second and third rows, along with the front passenger seat) can feature Isofix mounting points.
The extra rear overhang gives the Defender 130 some impressive-looking outright practicality figures. Eight-seat versions have 389 litres of boot space with all three rows in place, and this extends to almost 2300 litres with the second and third rows folded into the floor. The ultimate capacity is slightly higher in the five-seat version, which can carry up to 2516 litres.
Order for buyers in Australia open on August 1 2022.
John McIlroy