We’ve already tow-tested the petrol version of the new Land Rover Defender, but is this turbo-diesel version better for hauling loads?
As with many new models, there’s a long queue in Australia for the 2022 Land Rover Defender. For that reason, it has taken us this long to get our hands on the entry-level diesel version of the reborn British off-road wagon for a thorough towing test. But now we can finally answer this all-important question: Does the promise of more torque and better efficiency make the diesel Defender a better tow tug than the petrol model we’ve already tested. And is it a threat to the all-new 2022 Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series?
Why we’re here
We tow-tested the acclaimed Land Rover Defender 110 last year, but at the time we were restricted to assessing the 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo-petrol P400 S model.
While the P400 S proved itself to be a great tow tug, the lingering question was whether the more efficient diesel-powered Defender – with its 3.0-litre six-cylinder diesel engine – would make a better touring tow vehicle.
We now have the 2022 Land Rover Defender 110 D300 SE in our garage, so it’s time to answer that burning question. Petrol versus diesel: Which is better?
Settling the score
The most affordable Land Rover Defender 110 wagon models are the petrol-engined versions, the P300 at $81,890 plus on-road costs or the P400 S at $97,540 plus ORCs.
Priced from $101,950 plus ORCs, the 2022 Land Rover Defender 110 D300 SE on test is the entry-level diesel-powered model in the range now that the D250 diesel is only available in short-wheelbase Defender 90.
But as we’re accustomed to with Land Rover, the recommended retail price is often just the starting point, with so many options for customisation available to buyers. Our review car has a slab of options fitted, pushing its as-tested price to $121,691 plus ORCs.
Among them are three option packs: the Family Pack, which includes manual third-row seats, three-zone climate control with auxiliary chiller, air quality sensing and cabin air ionisation ($4796); the Towing/Touring Pack, which adds All Terrain Progress Control, Terrain Response 2, Configurable Terrain Response, Advanced Tow Assist and tow hitch receiver ($4044); and the Black Exterior Pack that brings a gloss black grille bar, bonnet finishers and badging ($1400).
Individual options include the folding fabric roof ($4810), privacy glass ($999), Leisure Activity Key ($910), heated front seats ($806), electronic active differential with torque vectoring by braking ($806), Rough-Cut Walnut veneer trim ($598) and 60/40-split load-through rear seats with manual slide/recline ($572).
The Gondwana Stone Metallic paint is a no-cost option, but the Redarc electric brake controller on our vehicle is another key addition, one which we estimate will cost about $800 fitted.
The D300 SE’s headline standard features include air suspension, dual-range transmission, auto high beam assist, LED lights front and rear, adaptive cruise control, heated electric power-fold side mirrors, push-button start, leather/textile seats (12-way powered at the front) and power adjustment for the steering wheel.
The Defender has a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty with five years’ free roadside assist. Routine maintenance costs are set at $2650 for five years of pre-paid servicing.
Safety and tech
The 2022 Land Rover Defender 110 carries a maximum five-star ANCAP rating that was awarded in 2020, which means the 4×4 off-roader is well and truly up to date in terms of its safety performance.
Standard safety inclusions extend to lane keeping assist, a driver condition monitor, 360-degree parking aid, traffic sign recognition and tyre pressure monitoring. There’s also trailer stability assist.
On the tech front, the 10-inch touch-screen infotainment system includes Land Rover’s Pivo Pro infotainment system, DAB digital radio, an online pack with data plan and 11 speakers with subwoofer.
The audio quality is very good, while menus are quite simple to navigate once you get familiar with the options. There’s no lagging or touch-screen issues either; it just works.
As for towing and load specifications, the Defender has a 3500kg braked towing capacity with 350kg maximum tow ball download.
In the specification tested, its kerb weight is published as 2441kg, GVM is 3280kg and GCM is 6780kg.
Oil-burning question
The 2022 Land Rover Defender 110 D300 SE has a 3.0-litre Ingenium straight-six twin-turbo diesel engine (with mild-hybrid technology) that produces 221kW (or 300PS, hence the name) at 4000rpm and 650Nm of torque from 1500-2500rpm.
It’s a bit slower than the petrol six-cylinder Defender, with a claimed 7.0-second sprint from 0-100km/h (6.1sec for the P400), but for such a large SUV it isn’t what you’d call ‘slow’.
Put your foot down and there’s no discernible turbo lag, the smooth inline six responding with a strong forward surge. It also sounds great when revved.
Just trundle the Defender around town and you’d hardly tell it’s a diesel, while the eight-speed automatic transmission picks gears with a nice fluidity and its shift algorithms are well sorted.
We borrowed a full-size tandem-axle Olympic caravan weighing 2900kg (260kg tow ball mass) from the guys at RV Connection at St Marys, west of Sydney, for this test.
Lining up the coupling was simple with the rear-view camera, as it has a towing setting that helps you to line up the tow ball.
There was a slight parallax error, but when the screen depicted the tow ball under the coupling it wasn’t far enough off to not be able to slip the coupling onto the ball.
In top gear at 100km/h, the big diesel six settles into about a 1400rpm readout on the tacho, although it seems happier on some terrain with a downshift to seventh gear, where it sits at about 1800rpm at the highway limit.
If left in ‘D’, the transmission can hunt a bit; Sport mode is more decisive, and ultimately holds seventh gear for longer.
Given how well the petrol-powered Defender (294kW/550Nm) climbed our 90km/h test hill, we had high hopes for the diesel. The oil-burner has less power but about 100Nm more torque, and was towing a similar-weight caravan.
The steepest point of the climb saw the Defender downshift to fifth gear, where it sat at 2500rpm. At that point, I had to back off slightly to avoid accelerating past the 90km/h speed limit, and nowhere on the climb did the Land Rover need more than about one-third throttle input.
This vehicle is incredibly responsive with a heavy trailer behind it. There will be no problem with hill-climbing or overtaking performance with or without a heavy trailer behind.
On the test descent, the Defender was also very good, sitting at 3500rpm in third gear, pegging the 70km/h speed we started at.
Fuel consumption averaged 7.9L/100km solo in mostly freeway driving, while the tow test saw an average of 16.2L/100km – which is excellent for a vehicle this size towing this type and weight of caravan, and down from the still-reasonable 20.4L/100km we recorded in the P400 petrol version.
The Defender has one of the smaller fuel tanks for the class at 90 litres. Yet if our fuel figure is a truly representative towing average, the Defender diesel will comfortably travel up to 505km (with a 50km safety margin) before needing to pull in for fuel.
It’s worth test-driving a Land Rover Defender if you plan to not only tow in the back blocks but drive it solo in the city, because the big Landie might not automatically suit everyone.
The Defender 110 is wide for this class (2022mm excluding side mirrors) and has a 12.84m turning circle, which is not ideal. It’s also impossible to see much at all if you turn to look when reversing, but mirrors and cameras are there to help you out.
While it’s big outside, so it is inside; the first two rows get plenty of room, while the third row is tight on foot space and the seat bases are very close to the floor back here, too.
Towing stability
The 260kg tow ball download didn’t alter the attitude of the 2022 Land Rover Defender 110 D300 SE, thanks to the self-levelling air suspension.
The Defender is one of those vehicles that appears to be born to tow. The D300 was completely composed towing at 100km/h.
There simply was no hint of a yawing movement to suggest any instability at all, which is by no means a given with towing this kind of weight.
Towing ride quality is mostly very good, with no harshness or jittery response with a caravan behind.
Yet on undulating secondary roads, the Defender does feel a touch underdamped, with the front-end rising and falling a little more than you might like.
Final words
The 2022 Land Rover Defender 110 D300 SE not only matches the petrol model’s towing performance, it improves on it.
There will be few complaints about towing performance, or for that matter, towing fuel consumption, which proved to be excellent.
Stability was also very good, but like the petrol Defender we tested last year, suspension can feel a touch too soft on poor roads when towing.
This is one of the best heavy-duty recreational tow vehicles on the market.
Of course, the biggest question mark for towing long distances is not how the Defender performs, but the unknowns around service back-up in regional areas if something goes wrong.
How much does the 2022 Land Rover Defender 110 D300 SE cost?Price: $101,950 (plus on-road costs)Available: NowEngine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder twin-turbo dieselOutput: 221kW/650NmTransmission: Eight-speed automaticFuel: 7.6L/100km (ADR Combined)CO2: 200g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP 2020)
Keyword: Land Rover Defender 2022 Tow Test