Aussie buyers asked to accept lower-specified SUVs or cancel order due to semi-conductor crisis
Australian buyers who have ordered a new Land Rover Defender are being asked to accept a downgraded version of the model they intended to purchase due to the ongoing global semi-conductor shortage that has severely disrupted car manufacturing worldwide.
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) Australia managing director Mark Cameron flagged earlier this year that such a move might be necessary due to the combined effects of the microchip shortage and orders flooding in from global markets that are recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic.
This has made it difficult for the Australian operation to secure enough supply, leading to long waiting times for owners and the likelihood that the high content of semi-conductors in the new Land Rover Defender – both the 110 and the short-wheelbase 90 – would require certain features to be removed.
One local buyer who ordered a Land Rover Defender 110 recently received an email from the car-maker saying that “certain options and standard features that were previously available have been removed from production until further notice”.
As a result, the vehicle in question, which was said to have been “in the final stages of build”, has had its 12.3-inch interactive driver display (digital instrument panel) replaced with a regular cluster with analogue dials and a TFT display.
That means a smaller 7.0-inch screen, no ability to hide the dials from view or configurate the instrument panel to provide a more personalised layout.
Matrix LED headlights also specified on the customer’s car were replaced with less sophisticated but still “premium” LED headlights that include high beam assist.
The buyer was given the option to stick with the order with the revisions and, by way of compensation, accept $1750 of credit “to spend on genuine Land Rover accessories which can be redeemed at your retailer”.
Alternatively, the customer was offered the ability the cancel the order and have the deposit refunded.
The downgrading of the Defender’s specifications are in line with JLR Australia’s assessment of the semi-conductor crisis back in July and production delays that were already being experienced at the Slovakian factory that produces the 4×4 off-roader.
Other car-makers in Australia such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz have faced similar predicaments, dropping not only infotainment-related tech but advanced safety systems as well.
Keyword: Land Rover Defender downgraded