Test Drive Land Rover Defender 110 since 2007 SUV

Highlander

Land Rover Defender For connoisseurs and experts, the car is the same iconic as for the Soviet person Volga GAZ-21.
 

It is not surprising, because the good old defense has been produced for half a century and has undergone a minimum of cardinal changes for all this time. And it is impossible not to note the fact that over 75% of all ever released deforetors still on the go. Such amazing reliability is primarily due to the simplicity of construction and the aluminum body. But first things first
 

New Defender with a wheelbase of 90 inches, that is, a short and three-door, was officially represented at the beginning of the year at one of the road exhibitions in Moscow. At the same time, officials stated that, despite the many refinement, the design itself and the concept of the car did not change fundamentally. The fact that these words were really similar to the truth, few people doubted. But to make sure that personally, I had to take the car to the test drive. And here we are driving the British legend, which in our country many affectionately call the English UAZ.
 

First of all, it is necessary to note the color of the black metallic for such a car. Previously, defias had a pretty narrow spectrum of color scheme, but the time, as is known, makes its own adjustments. By the way, it is impossible to not be noted that this kolker is very brutal off-road, making it younger and fresh. The funniest thing that is with what to compare from one of the colleagues is a personal Defender, but 2005 release, that is, just before restyling, so it was what. So, the new grill of the radiator although it rushes into the eye, for it looks more massively, but it is not fundamentally different from the previous one. But the hump on the hood is not noticed it is impossible, as well as the absence of morally obsolete folding gaps for airborne (if anyone is not aware, then they are located right under the windshield and ridiculously opened out with the help of levers). Actually, there are almost all visible external innovations on this and end. Is that tiny swearing turn signals became white
 

Much more innovations can be detected in the cabin. No, in itself, he remained the same in size, but nevertheless, some details have undergone key changes. First of all, it concerns the torpedo and the instrument panels. The air ducts moved to the top, became round in the style of the Discovery fellow and are located along the upper corners of the central console. The dashboard itself also modified, the speedometer and the tachometer received a fashionable steel edge in the Range Rover style. Absolutely new seats, according to the conclusions of the creators, are now much more comfortable. Maybe this is the case, just that the bus landing itself remained the same even when the driver's seat is pulled to the stop, I want to move back even further. In addition, the distance between the left edge of the steering wheel and the side door again remained small, even despite the new design and the thickness of the rebar
 

In general, the main problem of all Defender, without exception, is in the ingenious organization of the driver's ergonomics. If you transfer to a jeep from another car, for example, the left foot default hits the brake pedal instead of clutch. In other words, the pedal node is shifted to the left than we are accustomed. There is nothing criminal in this, of course, it can be used to, of course, but it is not clear than the manufacturer's reluctance is caused to solve the problem. Old good British traditions apparently
 

Everything else is quite familiar and familiar to any owner of the Land Rover Defender and incomplete from a veneer of an incomprehensible breed square box that performs the functions of a large glove box, and the seats are sticking out, and even the rumble of these most seats in the folded view of the back door slam down reluctantly, and sliding side The windows by tradition with great difficulty are rushing back, at least as long as new but all of the above disadvantages are forgotten as soon as you sit behind the wheel of this square defender.
 

And the point is not at all that in his management there is some kind of chip (Land Rover Defender is able to please on asphalt except that really autogurman)
 

The new engine is a variation on the theme of the old Good Rover Turbodiesel, quite, by the way, is reliable. The volume decreased quite insignificantly (the four cylinders became again instead of five), and now it is 2.4 liters, issuing on-mountain 122 horsepower. But up to 360 nm increased torque the most important thing in a diesel engine. As a result, the speakers were gained, although no one expects from Defender BMW acch, for example
 

You ask: And if the landing is so-so, the plastic buttons resemble the Lada and all that, for what they love this warriors around the world? The answer is obvious: turn on off-road, because there is a DEF king! The most powerful frame is lowered below the bottom of the body, four-wheel drive with self-locking differential and reduced transmission allows you to drive where almost any car in the world will sit. Is that our UAZ da GAZ-66 can be at least some competition, and then due to rubber with primers the aluminum body allowed to reduce the mass (Defender weighs less than two tons), and not rust. Plowed field? Snowy virgin? Racked rural road? No problem, you can not even include locks! There is no such jeep in the world, and the fans of the brand know this perfectly. And little will make them change their brutal defender on a more comfortable SUV.
 

... there was a time when Land Rover Defender Kaliningrad Assembly cost 23,500 dollars in Russia. Then, for the native British DEF with a wheel base of 110 inches, 36,000 GRINNS asked. Now the price of the cheapest Defender 90 begins with a mark of 33,800 green. And the cost of the test machine with the options exceeds for $ 41,000, however, the tary fans of this car, even such a price tag is not able to stop! In addition, with age, these cars are extremely reluctant in price.
 

Alexey Gusev
Photo: Yang Segal
 
 

A source: Mkmobile Magazine [December / 2007]