Original Land Rover Defender Might Return Without The Help Of JLR

While Land Rover has insisted that the original Defender won’t live on,

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by Brad Anderson

July 19, 2016 at 18:01

While Land Rover has insisted that the original Defender won’t live on, the man keen to restart production may do so with a new vehicle almost identical to the Defender.

A couple weeks ago, reports emerged that chemicals tycoon Jim Ratcliffe was in talks with Land Rover to buy the Defender’s production facility and relaunch the model. Despite the plan being rejected by JLR, Ratcliffe hasn’t been dissuaded.

At least according to Autocar, who says that the billionaire businessman could rebrand the car, build his own plant in northern England and produce up to 20,000 units annually.

Ratcliffe says that due to the Defender’s age, copyright issues regarding its design would be few and far between and that through a partnership with an automotive firm, the new-age Defender could be offered with a brand new powertrain rather than retaining the Ford-sourced diesel of the discontinued model.

Ineos, Ratcliffe’s company, has confirmed that it is conducting a feasibility study into the plan and will release its results in December.