The Land Rover Defender has been well-received and the lineup is slated to grow in the future.
According to Automotive News Europe, Jaguar Land Rover CFO Adrian Mardell used a call with investors to confirm a larger Defender 130 will be launched within the next 18 months.
News of the model first surfaced in 2019, when pictures of a presentation leaked online. At the time, the Defender 130 was scheduled to be introduced in August of 2020 but the model was likely delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
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Regardless of what caused the delay, slides shown during the presentation revealed the Defender 130 would be an eight seater that measures 200.8 inches (5100 mm) long and has a wheelbase that spans 119 inches (3022 mm). While the wheelbase is the same as the Defender 110, the Defender 130 will be 13.5 inches (342 mm) longer overall.
The extra length should result in a more spacious third-row, which would make the Defender 130 more appealing to families. As we noted in our review last year, the third-row in the Defender 110 is tiny as there’s only 20.5 inches (521 mm) of legroom.
Engine options should be shared with the other Defender variants, and this means U.S. customers can expect a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder with 296 hp (221 kW / 300 PS) and 295 lb-ft (400 Nm) of torque as well as a turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six with 395 hp (295 kW / 400 PS) and 406 lb-ft (550 Nm) of torque. The model could also be offered with a supercharged 5.0-liter V8 that develops 518 hp (386 kW / 525 PS) and 461 lb-ft (625 Nm) of torque.
