Land Rover North America announced today it has begun first deliveries of its new Defender SUV after a 23-year absence in the U.S. market. The longer-wheelbase 110 model leads the charge, with a starting MSRP of $49,900 plus $1025 destination.
The Defender has been totally reimagined for the 21st century, with a modern retro-inspired design, an all-new aluminum platform, and two choices of drivetrain. The first is a 2.0-liter turbo four dubbed the P300, making 296 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. The optional power plant, found in the P400 trim, is a 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six, aided by an electric supercharger spun by a mild hybrid system using a 48-volt lithium-ion battery and a belt-integrated starter motor. Combined, the system makes 395 horsepower and 406 lb-ft of torque, able to rocket the truck to 60 mph in just 5.7 seconds.
While the truck’s silhouette may not have changed much over the past several decades, it’s been handed a whole bunch of modern tech to keep occupants happy. A 10-inch infotainment screen sits mounted in the dash, with standard Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. It’s able to control pretty much everything in the car, and it’s even capable of receiving over-the-air updates.
A Land Rover spokesperson told us the cooler, short-wheelbase Defender 90 won’t be arriving stateside until this fall. According to the company’s configurator, the first Defender 90s will be “First Edition” trucks, starting at a whopping $65,100. We’ve inquired to see whether the base version will be any cheaper, and will update this article when we hear back.
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