Land Rover finally builds the Defender ute we’ve been asking for
Words: Andrew Sluys
Land Rover has unveiled a chopped up ute version of the Defender, but as a military concept, it’s probably not coming to a local dealership anytime soon.
The concept was built as part of the Land Rover’s Wolf Series II for a defense show in the UK.
It’s the first factory-built Defender that we have seen from Land Rover since the new generation was introduced in 2019.
Where Defender pick ups were a stalwart of the range historically, Land Rover has seemingly moved away from its agricultural utes with the new one, leaving pick ups in the past.
Land Rover officially calls it a Utility Vehicle (UV), and it rides on the Defender’s D7x platform, which features a unibody design.
“The Defender Wolf Series II is intended as a light mobility solution for people and equipment transportation for the defence sector,” Defender Managing Director Patrick McGillycuddy said.
“We are bidding for the UK Ministry of Defence Light Mobility Vehicle tender, with a modern replacement for the world‑famous Defender Wolf that served the British Armed Forces for over 70 years.”
No details have been released regarding what powers this Defender, but Land Rover did mention it has come from the Wolverhampton production plant.
This rules out the likelihood of it getting the BMW-sourced 4.4-litre V8 that currently powers the Octa.
JLR states that the Wolf Series II was subject to more than 62,000 engineering tests before it was signed off.
It reportedly had to undergo the company’s Extreme Event Test procedure, which sounds like a serious undertaking.
News of this new Defender Wolf pick up comes just days after a report revealed JLR’s interest in putting a Defender-based ute into production.
The report states it would be part of JLR’s partnership with Stellantis, and produced in the United States.
