13The long-awaited Land Rover Defender Sport won’t be all-electric after all. JLR has announced that models based on its new EMA platform, including the beloved Defender’s baby brother, will also be offered with hybrid power. The British marque confirmed that the new model in the Land Rover Defender family, which we’re expecting will be called Defender Sport, and the new mid-size Range Rover SUV, are going to feature its first-ever full-hybrid powertrain. However, JLR hasn’t revealed any technical information about this new petrol-electric set-up, or whether it’ll be arriving at the same time or after the EV versions of the two hugely important SUVs. However, JLR did commit to sharing more details about the dramatic new Velar-sized SUV later this year. This will be the first model based on the new EMA platform, and introduce a fresh design language for the luxury brand. The pair were originally going to be electric-only, but JLR explained the decision to add the option of hybrid power was in response to “demand for increased choice in global markets”, as well as provide better flexibility for its customers. It’s also worth considering that the United States is the priority for JLR at the moment, and demand for EVs over there has cooled a lot. CEO P.B Balaji said: “Apart from accelerating our existing offerings, we are also exploring new high potential segments for our Defender brand, which will allow us to offer tailored luxury products and experiences for even more of our US clients. “Our aspiration, in the coming years, is to grow our US business to the size of the entire JLR business as it exists today.” While the new Defender Sport will offer similarly chunky styling and off-road capability to the iconic original, prices are set to be lower than those of its full-sized sibling. Land Rover has toyed with the ‘mini Defender’ idea for several years, but numerous prototypes have now been seen testing and we’re hoping the car will finally be revealed later this year. Sales are unlikely to start until sometime in 2027, though, at which point the Defender Sport will replace the ageing Discovery Sport. 13Regarding the future of the best-selling Discovery family, JLR said there are “plans to evolve [Discovery] but stay true to its roots as a truly aspirational and ingenious lifestyle brand – designed for real life, well lived. “It will be brought into the future with propulsion flexibility and innovations in product design with announcements on confirmed plans to come.” We’ve previously seen road-going prototypes of the new Defender Sport in near-production form, and now we can get our first look at how Land Rover’s designers are transferring the bulky Defender’s design into a more compact package. As our exclusive image shows, we expect the new baby Defender will have a boxy and upright shape, but there will be a few key changes over its big brother. These include thinner front lights and a sleeker angle to the nose, making it less bluff than we’re used to on a Defender. Black-coloured lower bumpers and wheelarches will give it an off-roader look, and our pictures show the car fitted with rugged-looking wheels and off-road tyres. However, just as with the full-sized Defender, buyers will also be able to choose a more road-biased look, with larger wheels and body-coloured panels. Land Rover knows its customers love customising their cars, so contrasting roof colours, decal packs, wheelarch extensions and off-road gear such as chunky roof racks will all be part of the offering. The baby Defender will differ from its big brother largely in terms of proportions, which come courtesy of a new EMA platform. The new architecture, which was originally designed exclusively for electric vehicles but is now getting an hybrid option now too, is packaged more efficiently. This is better for cabin space, but means having a longer front overhang. 13The wheelbase is also long in context to the car’s overall length, but like the Defender 90 and 110, it has a very short rear overhang. The car’s windscreen is upright, and while the rear glass in the tailgate isn’t quite vertical, there are some aero devices at the side that will make it appear so. The tailgate will be side-opening, though, and while there’s no spare wheel attached on the prototype we spied, there’s a good chance we’ll see one on the production car. Inside, expect a more digitised take on the relatively simple and hard-wearing full-sized Defender. Displays will grow in size, and they’ll introduce a new user interface that will also be found on JLR’s future models. There will only be two rows of seating, with no seven-seat option. However a sixth jump seat between the driver and front-seat passenger could be integrated. The electric Defender Sport will feature dual motors and a new battery pack, which we expect will sit somewhere around the 70-90kWh mark. It could eventually be available in various sizes across different models in the JLR group, including the new Range Rover Velar, but the baby Defender will likely stick with just one battery size to start. With such an upright body, efficiency is not expected to be the new car’s strongest asset. It should have a range around the 300-320-mile mark, given the battery size and latest e-motor technology. Despite mainly running on volts, the baby Defender will still be four-wheel drive, and come with most of the off-road capability expected from the brand. Its overall proportions will limit things such as the approach and departure angles, but we do expect a full Terrain Response system to be available. 13Land Rover will also take full advantage of the electric powertrain for off-roading, with the ability to meter out power more precisely to the front and rear wheels than is possible with a combustion engine. Elements including locking differentials could be fitted at the axles, but with no mechanical connection between them, a centre-differential is no longer required. Land Rover is expected to reveal the new Defender Sport this year, but sales aren’t planned to start until the beginning of 2027. At present, few electric SUVs can be considered outright off-roaders, but the incoming Jeep Recon will act as one of the most direct rivals to the Land Rover Defender Sport. Elsewhere, the remaining competition will include anything from high-end versions of mainstream SUVs such as the Skoda Enyaq, right up to the latest generation of luxury SUVs like the BMW iX3 or Mercedes GLC Electric. Pricing for the Defender Sport is expected to start somewhere in the high £40,000 to £50,000 mark, putting the new car below entry-level variants of the full-sized Defender. However, Land Rover hasn’t been shy with pricing in the past, so we wouldn’t be surprised to see high-spec versions rise to quite a bit more than that. Although the current Defender has been a sales success, an extra iteration of the iconic 4x4 could further eat into the sales of the Discovery, which has struggled to match the Defender’s appeal. However, JLR says it has “a distinct place” in its portfolio and is working on plans for the future of the Discovery line. We’ll have to wait and see how the company approaches reinventing the Discovery, although it claims that EMA is flexible enough to accommodate a three-row, seven-seat family vehicle. As you will be aware, the Freelander name was recently resurrected by the Chinese firm Chery, as part of a joint venture between it and JLR. Auto Express has confirmed the all-new Freelander 8 is coming to the UK, and it’ll arrive some time in the second half of next year. However, very importantly, it’s not a Land Rover. P.B Balaji, JLR CEO, recently clarified this relationship to Auto Express, saying: “From a design perspective, we’ll take ownership of it, but thereafter in terms of engineering, manufacturing and of course selling it, it’s Chery’s car, and we wish them well on that.” Our dealer network has 1,000s of great value new cars in stock and available now right across the UK. Find your new car…
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