The Land Rover short wheelbase Defender 90 has finally arrived. We knew that it was in the making and offers better manoeuvrability and breakover angle over the long-wheelbase five-door version. That said, the biggest update is the plug-in hybrid (PHEV) powertrain that is being offered in the Defender range. So the new Defender 90 comes along with a new P400e variant that gets a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder, turbo-petrol engine under the hood which is coupled with an electric motor. The P400e variant will be offered in both Defender 90 short-wheelbase and Defender 110 long-wheelbase.
The Land Rover Defender PHEV gets a 2.0-litre engine coupled with an electric motor.
The 2.0-litre mill has been tuned to churn out 296 bhp and the electric motor adds 138 bhp, taking the combined power output to 398 bhp. The electric power is enough for a range of 43 km while the Defender 90 PHEV can clock triple digit speeds in 5.6 seconds. What's even more impressive is how frugal the Defender PHEV with a claimed fuel economy of 30.30 kmpl while its CO2 emission is rated at 74 g per km. The 3.0-litre, inline six-cylinder, diesel engine will also be on offer on the Defender 90 in select markets. The engine is also tuned to belt out 296 bhp and 650 Nm of peak torque and can do a 0-100 kmph sprint in 6.7 seconds. Even this powertrain is offered with the micro-hybrid technology and gets the engine start-stop system.
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The Land Rover Defender gets the all-wheel-drive (AWD) system coupled with an intelligent torque distribution system.
Off-road mechanicals like the all-wheel-drive (AWD) system coupled with an intelligent torque distribution system to optimise torque distribution between the wheels, are offered as standard on both models- Defender 90 and Defender 110. The Land Rover Defender 90 has already gone on sale in US while we expect it to be launched in India in 2021.
