Land Rover has launched the ‘Hard Top’ commercial version of its new Defender, reviving the name of the 1950s original to recognise the vehicle’s heritage.
Billed as the rugged and durable commercial vehicle on sale now, the Defender Hard Top is capable of wading up to 900mm and will tow up to 3,500kg, with Advanced Tow Assist technology available to aid reversing manoeuvres.
It’s available in the smaller three-door 90 and larger five-door 110 body styles seen in the regular car and features two seats in the front – with the option of a third central jump seat – but swaps out the rear seats for a load bay with a fixed full-height partition.
Load space, accessed via the side-hinged rear tailgate, stands at 1,355 litres in the smaller and 2,059 litres of load space respectively.
It also offers lockable storage areas providing with 58 litres of underfloor stowage at the rear of both the 90 and 110. An additional underfloor area is fitted to the 110 Hard Top, situated where the footwells would be on the regular model and giving 155 litres of hidden stowage.
The load floor is completely flat, with up to six integrated lashing points and heavy-duty rubber mats while the front footwells get high-sided rubber mats. And enhanced interior lighting is five times brighter than the standard passenger Defender.
Engine line-up covers the D200, D250 and D300 in-line six-cylinder Ingenium diesel engines now added to the standard passenger car, all featuring the new Intelligent All-Wheel Drive.
Payload stands at 670kg for the 90 and 778-800kg for the 110 Hard Top while maximum load length measures up to 1,030mm and 1,472mm respectively. The 110 Hard Top can accommodate a standard Euro Pallet.
The Defender 90 Hard Top comes solely in Defender specification while Defender 110 Hard Top offers an additional choice of S, SE and HSE variants. Onboard features include the Pivi Pro touchscreen infotainment with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and twin eSIM technology, enabling over-the-air updates, and all models get Land Rover’s 3D Surround Camera system.
The 90 Hard Top is available from £35,820 OTR (exc. VAT) and the Defender 110 Hard Top from £43,012 OTR (exc. VAT).
