The Land Rover Defender traces its roots to the original Land Rover of 1948, a simple, go-anywhere utility vehicle inspired by the wartime Jeep. According to company lore, its designer Maurice Wilks sketched the idea in the sand on a beach in Anglesey, Wales. Built with aluminum body panels because steel was rationed after the war, the Land Rover went on to serve farmers, armies, explorers and the British royal family. The original line was renamed Defender in 1990, ended production in 2016, and returned as a completely new, more luxurious Defender in 2020.

At a glance
Debut 1948, Amsterdam Motor Show
Designer Maurice Wilks (with his brother Spencer, Rover’s managing director)
Series models Series I (1948), II (1958), III (1971)
Defender name From 1990
Original production ended 2016
New Defender 2020

A stopgap that became a legend

After the Second World War, the Rover company needed a product it could build and export while steel was scarce. Maurice Wilks, who used an army-surplus Jeep on his farm, proposed a British equivalent. Aluminum, plentiful from aircraft production, was used for the body. Intended as a temporary product, the Land Rover quickly outsold Rover’s cars.

The Series years

The Series I, II and III Land Rovers were simple and robust, with leaf springs and a separate steel chassis. They were used across the British Commonwealth and beyond — by armies, farmers, aid agencies and expeditions. Coil-sprung 90 and 110 models arrived in 1983, and the Defender name was adopted in 1990 to distinguish the utility model from the Discovery.

The end of an era

The original Defender’s design could not meet modern safety and emissions standards, and production at Solihull ended in January 2016 after roughly two million Series and Defender vehicles had been built.

The new Defender (2020)

The new Defender is a completely different vehicle: a stiff aluminum monocoque, independent air suspension and modern electronics, built in Nitra, Slovakia. It keeps the boxy stance and off-road ability — and adds comfort that the original never had. It has been a strong seller, including in the U.S., where the original Defender was sold only briefly.

Defender and Range Rover

The Range Rover was created in 1970 as a more comfortable, luxurious alternative to the Land Rover. Read the Range Rover history and the history of Land Rover.