2018 Land Rover Defender caught testing

The Land Rover Defender's production ended in January 2016. Now, a couple of test mules have been spotted which are believed to be the 2018 Defender.

The two spotted mules had different wheelbases with the shorter wheelbase (SWB) version carrying a Discovery body shell and the longer wheelbase (LWB) version carrying a Range Rover Sport body shell. Considering that both these body shells have a unibody construction, it is believed that the new defender will also have a similar architecture and not the traditional body-on-frame construction.

According to the media report, given the track of the car and the shorter wheelbase, the spotted mule was most likely the Defender. From the spy shots, it is visible that the SWB model featured an independent suspension at the rear and had very small rear doors.

The spotted vehicles could be testing the chassis and the powertrain of the new Defender. The final shape of the vehicle is not yet known, however there have been speculations that the new design will be completely different from the boxy shape of the previous model.

The Defender enjoyed an iconic status over the years due to its go-anywhere ability and a very capable 4x4 system. Due to the emission norms, JLR ceased production of the vehicle after a production run of 68 years. The new model is expected to be revealed in 2018.

Source - Autoblog