Now available in many colors, but originally the Land Rover Defender was only available in green for some strange reason
When it began its journey, the Land Rover Defender, then called the Land Rover Series 1, was only made in green, for a reason that has little to do with the styling exercises being carried out today. The year was 1948 and Europe was devastated after World War II. Nobody thought about luxury cars, but rather those that had behaved like heroes on the battlefield. That is, in the Willys Overland Jeep.
Aware of the impoverishment of the population and the need to provide an accessible vehicle, the British government commissioned Maurice Wilks, Rover’s chief designer and owner of a farm in Wales, to develop an affordable and robust model. At first Wilks didn’t bother. Given the results that the Willys Overland Jeep had achieved in difficult terrain, it used the same chassis of side members, leaf suspension and four-wheel drive. This is how the first Land Rover Defender in history was born. Or rather, the Land Rover Series 1.
Designed for farmers and peasants, it was spartan like itself. There were no interior panels in the doors, rear-view mirrors were neither present nor expected, and the soft seats and spare tire were an extra. Austerity measures at the highest level. So much so that Rover used leftover army paint to color the bodies. Military green became the tone with which Land Rover Defenders were made and which characterized them throughout history.
The best of the year
Soon the Land Rover Defender was used by armed forces, explorers, emergency services, etc. As his legend grew, he became more sophisticated and versatile. It was named the best car in the world of 2021 by the Women’s World Car of the Year.
75 years after his birth, this brute is still a brute disguised as a gentleman, winking at his past in the anniversary version. The visible screws inside go hand in hand with good materials, cutting-edge technology, comfort and performance. Specifically, 404 hp in the plug-in hybrid version P400e, which offers a real range of 40 km in electric mode and a gasoline consumption of around 9.5 liters of gasoline per 100 km.
And because it can’t resist forgetting its origins, it has guards on the hood so the driver can climb onto the roof and set up a tent. Because what better way to be protected from lions than to spend the night almost two meters above the ground? There is also no shortage of reducers and their ability to adapt to any type of circumstance. Of course, this is now done through a selector, where the user selects the type of terrain on which they will circulate. Therefore exclusivity to the highest degree… but of course under a green body.