WAIVING FAREWELL TO DEFENDER

Land Rover celebrated 68 years of history yesterday as the last of the current Defenders was produced at its famous Solihull production facility.

To mark the occasion Land Rover invited more than 700 current and former Solihull employees involved in the production of Series Land Rover and Defender vehicles to see and drive some of the most important vehicles from its history, including the first pre-production ‘Huey’ Series I as well as the last vehicle off the production line, a Defender 90 Heritage Soft Top.

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FAREWELL TO THE ICON

As a farewell to the legendary off-road icon Land Rover Defender after a 68-year production run, Startech presents an exclusive special model in a limited edition of just 68 vehicles worldwide.

The Startech SIXTY8 is based on the Land Rover Defender 110 Station Wagon – either on the five-seater or seven-seater variant. The limited edition sets itself apart from the rest on account of its “Corris Grey Metallic” body with a roof painted in contrasting “Santorini Black”, and tinted panoramic glazing for all rear windows.

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JAMES BOND TO DRIVE A DEFENDER BIGFOOT

A line-up of Jaguer Land Rover vehicles set to feature in SPECTRE, the 24th James Bond adventure. These will include the Jaguar C-X75, Range Rover Sport SVR and Defender Big Foot, which have been provided by Jaguar Land Rover Special Operations.

Scenes including the heavily modified versions of Land Rover Defender & Range Rover Sport SVR have already been filmed in Austria. The Range Rover Sport SVR is the fastest and most powerful Land Rover ever. The highly capable Big Foots were constructed by Special Operations with huge 37-inch diameter off-road tyres to tackle the extreme terrain. They also feature bespoke suspension systems and enhanced body protection.

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RECREATION OF LAND ROVER'S 1948 PRODUCTION LINE

Land Rover has re-created history by building an authentic replica of the production line used to manufacture its first 4x4 in 1948. The ‘Defender Celebration Line’ re-creates in detail how the first Series I Land Rover was built at the Solihull manufacturing plant just after the Second World War. 

The new visitor attraction, which opened to the public today, forms part of a new Defender tour and showcases replica models in various stages of production, each one meticulously built using identical parts and in precisely the same way as the original Series I.

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LAND ROVER LAUNCHES THE LAST YEAR OF DEFENDER CELEBRATIONS

Land Rover has gone back to the place where it all began to start a year-long celebration of the iconic Defender. A unique 1 km sand drawing at Red Wharf Bay in Anglesey, UK, marks the launch of three exclusive limited edition models and the beginning of an exciting new chapter in the Defender story.

As UK production of the current Defender enters its final phase, Land Rover will use 2015 to celebrate its global automotive icon. The company is also investigating the possibility of maintaining production of the current Defender at an overseas production facility, after the close of UK manufacturing. Any continuation would see low volume production maintained for sale outside the EU.

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MACHINA HARASHO REACHED POLE OF COLD

The Land Rover and The Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) supported ‘Pole of Cold' expedition team have reached their goal - Oymyakon, Russia - aka the ‘Pole of Cold.'

The team - led by experienced British adventurer Felicity Aston and consists of Manu Palomeque, a photographer and film-maker, and Gisli Jonsson, a highly experienced cold-weather engineer, mechanic and winter driving advisor - travelled more than 20,000 km to reach their destination.

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‘POLE OF COLD’ EXPEDITION GETS READY TO DEPART

With just six weeks to go before departure, final preparations for the Land Rover and The Royal Geographical Society with Institute of British Geographers - supported ‘Pole of Cold’ expedition are well under way.

The 14-week 30,000 km journey will begin from the Royal Geographical Society in London on 20 November 2013. The team will depart the UK from Harwich, catching a ferry to Esbjerg in Denmark and then on to Oslo, Norway. The planned route goes through Finland to St Petersburg, before continuing east through Russia to Ekaterinburg and on to the Trans-Siberian Highway. After skirting Lake Baikal, the Defender will be heading along the infamous ‘Road of Bones' to Oymyakon. Conditions at Oymyakon, the Northern hemisphere’s Pole of Cold, will be extreme, regularly hitting -20 deg C and at times as low as -50 deg C. The region earned its title as the ‘Pole of Cold’ when -67.7 deg C was recorded in February 1933. 

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