Land Rover Defender 110 2021 Review

Pricing for the 2021 Land Rover Defender range – now coming under the MY22 moniker – kicks off at $74,516 plus on-road costs for the short-wheelbase Defender 90 P300, powered by a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine.

But to get into the longer Defender 110 with four side doors, buyers will have to stump up $2320 more – $76,836 plus ORCs – with the same powertrain. Under MY21, that price was $74,500 plus ORCs.

The model on test here is the Defender 110 SE with a new 3.0-litre six-cylinder diesel and eight-speed automatic transmission. Without the options and on-road costs, this vehicle retails for $96,656.

Adding a host of options to the test vehicle takes its price up to $118,457, before the registration, stamp duty and compulsory third-party insurance.

Those options include a folding fabric roof for $4810, the family pack ($4796), towing/touring pack ($4044), Gondwana Stone metallic paint ($2060), black exterior pack ($1400), privacy glass ($999), leisure activity key ($910), heated front seats ($806), electronic active differential with brake-based torque vectoring ($806), rough-cut walnut veneer ($598), sliding and reclining 60/40-split folding second-row seats with through-loading ski port ($572) and air suspension pack (no charge).

The family pack comprises manually-adjustable third-row seats, three-zone climate control (with rear cooling assist, auxiliary chiller and cooling vents), air quality sensing and cabin air ionisation.

Land Rover claims the Defender in this trim will tow 3500kg and its downball weight is 350kg.

As standard, the Defender 110 SE comes equipped with 20-inch five-spoke alloy wheels, off-road tyres, full-size spare on matching road rim, 12-way electrically-adjustable front seats with three-position memory, electrically-adjustable steering column, a trip computer, leather-bound steering wheel/gear selector, premium ambient lighting and rubber flooring.

Auto on/off matrix LED headlights, heated power fold-in door mirrors, keyless entry/starting, power windows and rain-sensing wipers are all standard too.

The infotainment system incorporates a 10-inch touch-screen, an 11-speaker Meridian audio system, digital radio, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, an online pack with data plan, Pivi Pro and an interactive driver display.

Land Rover sells the Defender with a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, including five years of roadside assistance. There’s also a five-year or 102,000km service plan available for $2650.

Crash safety authority ANCAP has drawn on testing by affiliate Euro NCAP to arrive at a maximum five-star rating for the 2021 Land Rover Defender, in accordance with the 2020 testing protocol.

The respective scores broken down are 85 per cent for adult protection, 88 per cent for child safety, 71 per cent for vulnerable road users and 76 per cent for safety assist technology. Those are fairly respectable figures for a serious off-roading SUV.

Standard safety features for the Defender include six airbags, three ISOFIX mounting points, tyre pressure monitoring, blind spot monitoring, 360-degree camera monitoring, adaptive cruise control, autonomous emergency braking (AEB), lane keep assist, rear collision monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, multi-collision braking, traffic sign recognition, wade depth sensing, exit monitoring and driver fatigue monitoring.

The new six-cylinder diesel under the bonnet of the 2021 Land Rover Defender D300 is not short of urge. There’s very little turbo lag present and once it’s honking past 2000rpm with the accelerator floored, you’ll really know it. It will rev to 5000rpm and haul the whole way.

Yet it’s also a very refined and flexible powerplant – just loud enough to sound sporty in a straight-six way and capable of holding a high gear without any trouble whatsoever on steeper hills.

Driven gently the diesel six is remarkably smooth and subtle – not audible at all motoring along freeways at 1400rpm (100km/h). And the automatic idle-stop system restarts the engine with barely a hiccup, with the engine fired up and ready to go before you finish shifting your foot from brake pedal to the accelerator.

On top of all that, you can bring the Defender D300 to a soft stop without spilling your tea. It’s a sensational powertrain, helped too by the ZF eight-speed automatic transmission bolted to the engine.

Despite the engine displacement and the weight of the vehicle – over 2.4 tonnes – we saw a figure of 9.5L/100km posted from a 70km test drive. In context, that’s pretty good for a vehicle of this bulk, and powered by such a strong engine.

Unfortunately, there was no opportunity to take the Defender off-road, mainly due to government restrictions imposed by pandemic-related lockdowns. I did engage low-range transmission (by pressing a button after shifting into neutral), but didn’t get to use the system in anger.

As part of the optional towing/touring pack, Land Rover’s Terrain Response 2 system is configurable and provides different modes for wading, grass, gravel, rock crawling, etc. There are two additional on-road settings too: Eco and Comfort. And there’s an Auto setting which is adaptive.

Dynamically, the 2021 Land Rover Defender D300 SE is slightly more at home in the bush than on the road. Which is not to say that it’s awful in corners or under brakes.

It does roll in bends but, in fact, its on-road handling is safe and its level of grip can match many soft-road (smaller) medium SUVs – so it’s no clumsy stumble-bum of a vehicle.

And it’s also important to bear in mind that the Goodyears fitted are hardly semi-racing slicks.

If you do want something with handling a little more car-like on the road – and will still go bush – you probably need to look more closely at a Discovery or a Range Rover. Or you can fit your Defender with tyres that are not as chunky.

The ride comfort of the Defender – with the optional but no-cost air suspension – is extraordinary, and road noise is better than just acceptable, particularly when you check out the knobby tread on the (optional) Goodyear Wrangler 255/60R20 mud-and-snow tyres fitted.

Unlike traditional off-roaders, including the Defender’s namesake from a bygone era, this is one vehicle that is not only capable off-road, it’s a comfortable touring machine on bitumen as well.

The LED headlights do dip automatically at the approach of an oncoming car, but the system does leave it a bit late at times. While the Defender is well equipped for cameras, the old-fashioned mirrors are almost exceptional for providing a great view behind in a compact format for easier parking in tight spots.

In the cabin of the test Defender, the fixtures and materials all combine for a highly presentable layout and quality fit and finish.

The exterior colour (‘Gondwana Stone’) appears as a highlight on the inside of the doors, co-ordinating with ‘Acorn’ grained leather, ‘Robust’ woven textile seat facings, walnut woodgrain-style decorative pieces and other fixtures in ‘Luna’ (grey) and beige plastics.

It sounds overdone, but it’s quite elegant in fact, echoing a ‘Nordic’ look such as you’ll find in Volvo models and the occasional BMW.

While the instrumentation is clear and easy to read, and the controls are all straightforward to operate, JLR’s new generation of infotainment display design is one for users who are up to date with the latest ergonomic conventions from the smartphone world.

Older buyers may struggle with the new way of doing this initially, although there’s nothing too confronting.

There is no shortage of ways to recharge your portable device in the Defender, not with two USB ports (one for charging, one for data) in the centre fascia, plus 12V outlets proliferating throughout the cabin – including one for each of the third-row occupants.

A third USB charging point resides above the glovebox, along with a USB Type A charging port in the rear of each of the front seats, plus two USB Type C charging ports in the rear of the centre console.

The Defender has more than enough storage space to accommodate all the detritus from a teenage boy’s bedroom floor. As well as the glove box itself, there’s a deep tray directly above it, plus an additional storage bin below the folding centre arm rest and two-tier trays with a removable waterproof liner in the lower tray for easy cleaning.

Two fixed cup holders are also located in the centre console.

Although the Defender has the necessary ground clearance for off-road work (with more available on the highest suspension setting), the hip point for dismounting is very favourable, even for younger kids, and you can set the suspension lower for access that’s easier still.

In the driver’s seat, things are very comfortable, although the seat base lacks ideal support for those occasions the Defender is threading through bends at higher speeds.

But for gentler touring and around-town motoring, the driving position is fine, helped considerably by the scope of adjustment and the three-position memory (mirrored for the passenger seat).

There is plenty of headroom for passengers across all three rows, even with the sunroof fitted. In the second row, accommodation is simply stupendous for even taller passengers, also offering plenty of legroom to stretch out with further space under the front seat to place one’s feet.

The narrower section of the second row seat is located on the driver-side, making disembarkation from the third row a little less safe, on the road side of the vehicle.

In every respect other than headroom the third-row seat is best left to small children, but they do get adjustable vents with a separate fan-speed control dial, and additional facilities such as an easily cleaned cup holder on either side.

More legroom in the very rear of the Defender can be freed up by sliding the second-row seats forward, although for ultimate accommodation a stretched Land Rover Defender 130 model is in development, if you’re prepared to wait a year or more.

With the third-row seat lowered, a cargo blind in a hessian-style material clips into place easily, to block the sun’s rays (and prying eyes).

The spare tyre is mounted on the tailgate to improve the departure angle and leave space available in the boot for luggage, although there’s not that much room remaining once the third row seats are occupied.

The 2021 Land Rover Defender 110, with its new D300 engine, is a standout in what is turning out to be another year of truncated model launches, many of which haven’t been all that memorable.

It’s a great machine that is amazingly competent and delivers style and comfort as well.

This is a vehicle that has been so lovingly designed that you can sit in it, parked in the driveway, and revel in the view as your eyes take in the tiny details that make this engineering project a work of art – like the aesthetic application of exposed Allen-head-style bolts to fasten interior trim to the doors.

The straight-six diesel engine is a marvel for its lack of harshness and vibration, for its surging power and torque, and its reasonable economy.

Then there’s the ride comfort, the field of vision and the interior spaciousness, to name just three aspects of this vehicle that will leave you amazed.

Is there a large prestige SUV in your future? The Defender really needs to be on your shopping list.

How much does the 2021 Land Rover Defender 110 D300 SE cost?
Price: $96,656 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo-diesel
Output: 220kW/650Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 7.9L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 207g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP 2020)