Don’t let its rugged charm fool you; there’s more to the Land Rover Defender 90 than meets the eye
It’s short, stubby, unmistakeably a Landie and yet something clearly new and exciting. The 2022 Land Rover Defender 90 oozes inner-city street cred but also promises top-notch off-road capability with that stunted-wheelbase design, deep 4×4 engineering and spec, and a badge and brand history that command respect. We’ve tasted it on launch, but have also now lived with the reborn Shorty in the city and the country for a few months – using a model that blends bling with an ability to hose-out the interior. Does it live up to the hype, and the promise, in these different environs?
Pinning it down
The other question to ask right from the outset is whether the 2022 Land Rover Defender 90 deserves your investment and patience, for this is an expensive bit of gear and has long waiting times attached to it.
How expensive is it? Well, that depends on the depth of your pockets – and what is currently happening at both Land Rover headquarters in England and the Slovakian factory that produces the Defender 90 and the bigger 110.
The global pandemic has created havoc for Land Rover and many other brands, forcing changes in specification and model availability, restricting supply and often pushing up the price.
At the time of writing, list pricing for the Land Rover Defender 90 ranged from $80,540 to $215,480 plus on-road costs.
When prices were first announced, the MY21 Defender 90 opened at $71,500, but by the time it began arriving in Australia that entry point had scrabbled up a rocky incline to the tune of $3000 with MY22.
In some cases, there have been spec adjustments, in other cases not. Some owners have also since been asked to accept a downgraded version of the model they intended to purchase.
For our long-term test vehicle, we’re driving the MY22 Land Rover Defender 90 listed at $81,166 plus on-road costs with the new 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder twin-turbo diesel engine in entry-level D200 form.
However, the as-tested price is more than $10,000 higher than that – $92,228 plus ORCs – with a variety of cosmetic and harder-core extras fitted from Land Rover’s 20-page catalogue that currently has 13 pages devoted to options.
These include a folding fabric roof ($4810), the ClearSight digital rear-view mirror ($1274), a Leisure Activity Key ($910), tinted windows ($999), black roof rails ($940), matt black ‘90’ bonnet decal ($281), electronic rear differential with torque vectoring ($806), a tow hitch receiver ($1432), tow neck and ball ($372) and heavy-duty rubber mats ($338).
Those reassuringly thick rubber mats sit on top of the durable flooring in the cabin and cargo area that, combined with lots of sturdy plastic trim throughout, allows you to cart plenty of mud inside and theoretically enables a ‘hosing out’ that might’ve been standard practice for Defenders of yore.
But not anymore. There’s just too much other high-tech gear and other good stuff inside the new-age Defender that demands bucket and sponge to be favoured over a hose or, um, a high-pressure sprayer.
Before we cover the extensive safety and technology ground, here’s a sample of a few other notable features onboard: eight-way semi-powered front seats (albeit a weird combo of electric backrest angle, but manual fore-aft and height adjustment), multifunction steering wheel, dual-zone climate control, keyless entry and push-button start, 180W six-speaker sound system, footwell lights, illuminated vanity mirrors, walk-through ability to the back seats and 40/20/40-split folding rear seatbacks.
There’s also automatic LED headlights and tail-lights (the front lamps recently subject to availability from the factory), soft-close (but not powered) side-hinged tailgate, a perimeter alarm and cool 18-inch gloss-white steel wheels with Goodyear Wrangler A/T tyres (255/70R18) with, as you’d expect, a full-size spare wheel.
Another world
There’s heritage here that dates back to 1948, but the 2022 Land Rover Defender 90 reeks of modern-era engineering and design with its safety, infotainment and off-road technology.
The longer-wheelbase Defender 110 carries a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating based on the current tough testing criteria, so it stands to reason that the shorter 90 should perform well in the event of a crash.
There’s front, side and head-protecting airbags for the front occupants, with the curtain airbag extending to the second row. Child restraints are supported by ISOFIX hooks on the outboard seating positions.
Driver assist systems are extensive and elaborate, covering all the bases you’d expect.
That’s a ‘yes’ for advanced autonomous emergency braking (AEB), blind spot and lane keep assist, front and rear traffic detection/vehicle guidance, clear exit monitor, adaptive cruise control, speed sign recognition, driver fatigue monitoring, tyre pressure indicators and, not least of all, a high-res 3D surround camera system affording a sharp 360-degree view and a ClearSight ground view that’s helpful in both urban and off-road situations.
Elsewhere, there’s tow hitch assist, an electric park brake and a raft of self-regulating ‘control’ devices covering general stability and traction, rollovers, cornering, towing etc.
We may as well lump hill launch assist, hill descent control and wade sensing into the electronic off-road suite that includes Land Rover’s Terrain Response drive modes (Mud-Ruts, Grass-Gravel-Snow, Sand, Rock Crawl, etc).
LR’s connected Pivi Pro infotainment unit – where you definitely don’t want to aim when hosing out the cabin – is accessed via a 10.0-inch touch-screen and supports over-the-air updates, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto connectivity, DAB digital radio, satellite navigation and more.
Fronting the driver is a pair of traditional analogue speedo and tacho dials flanking a large central TFT digital display that shows trip computer details and a variety of other information.
Colder, harder facts
The D200 tag on our 2022 Land Rover Defender 90 denotes this as the lower-output version of the new 3.0-litre Ingenium straight-six twin-turbo diesel engine that produces 147kW (200PS, hence the name) at 4000rpm and 500Nm of torque from 1250-2250rpm.
Such is the fluid nature of Land Rover’s Defender offerings in Australia that the D200 has already hit the sidelines, leaving the 183kW/570Nm D250 as the sole diesel listing in the range – for the time being at least (starting at $95,590 plus ORCs).
Aided by a mild-hybrid system and requiring the emissions-reducing AdBlue additive, the D200 offers an official combined-cycle fuel economy figure of 7.9L/100km, which isn’t bad for a hefty 4×4 off-roader that tips the scales at more than 2.3 tonnes. We’ll test those claims in future updates.
The engine combines with an eight-speed automatic transmission and permanent all-wheel drive system (with low-range transfer case). Quoted acceleration from 0-100km/h is an unremarkable 9.8 seconds, 80-120km/h takes 7.9sec and top speed is 175km/h.
Using monocoque construction and riding on a double-wishbone front/integral-link rear suspension with coil springs – not air suspension as found elsewhere on Defender – the D200 Shorty has a 225mm ground clearance and wading depth of up to 850mm.
The approach angle is 31 degrees, departure angle 37.9, ramp breakover 25 and the maximum ascent/descent gradient 45 degrees.
Electronic power-assisted rack and pinion steering delivers an 11.3m turning circle. Braking hardware includes 349/225mm front/rear discs when riding on the 18-inch wheels, while the towing capacity with trailer brakes is 3500kg. Maximum tow ball weight is 350kg.
The 90 has a truncated 2587mm wheelbase and measures 4583mm long (including spare wheel), 2105mm wide and 1974mm high. Luggage capacity is a paltry 397 litres with the rear seats up, extending to 1563L with them bent forward.
LR covers the vehicle with a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty and offers a service plan across that timeframe (up to 102,000km) costing $2650.
More to come
So that’s the basis for our long-term test of the 2022 Land Rover Defender 90 D200.
Over the coming weeks, we’ll provide updates covering a wide variety of bases. You can read our first impressions from the local launch review and our international drive.
However, there’s a lot more to this story.
It’s easy to be swayed by the Defender 90, revelling in its rugged charm. But living with it brings out all the character traits, good and bad.
How much does the 2022 Land Rover Defender 90 D200 cost?Price: $81,166 (MY22, plus on-road costs)Available: Check dealer stockEngine: 3.0-litre twin-turbo diesel six-cylinderOutput: 147kW/500NmTransmission: Eight-speed automaticFuel: 7.9L/100km (ADR Combined)CO2: 207g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Not tested
Keyword: Land Rover Defender 90 2022 Long-Term Review