Born-again British 4x4 icon stretched to create “the unstoppable eight-seat explorer”
The 2023 Land Rover Defender 130 has been officially revealed in a single teaser image ahead of its world debut on May 31.
Billed as the “the unstoppable eight-seat explorer”, the stretched version of the five-door Defender 110 is claimed to offer “epic all-terrain adventures for up to eight” occupants, arranged in a 2-3-3 seating configuration.
“Land Rover’s unstoppable 4×4 family will expand with the introduction of the practical Defender 130 body design, which will join the existing 90 and 110 derivatives,” said Land Rover in a press release late today.
“New Defender 130 will be ready for any adventure with premium interior practicality for up to eight occupants, across three rows of seating. With a spacious 2-3-3 seat configuration, the latest digital technologies and advanced integrated chassis technologies, Defender is the toughest, most capable off-road expert.”
Land Rover said the order book for the new Defender 130, which will be the new flagship of the born-again off-road SUV model range, will open in line with its reveal on May 31.
That means you can expect Australian pricing to also be announced in two weeks, ahead of first local deliveries later this year.
No further details were provided, but spy shots of a camouflaged Defender 130 at the Nurburgring back in April – and patent drawings that emerged in January 2022 – show it retains the same boxy shape as the two-door Defender 90 and the long-wheelbase Defender 110 five-door.
Rather than riding on a longer-still wheelbase like old-generation Defender 130s, which featured a 130-inch wheelbase, the new 130 is understood to retain the same on-road footprint as the 110, including its 3022mm wheelbase.
However, reports suggest it adds another 340mm of body length behind the rear wheels, bringing the 130’s total length to a long 5100mm and providing extra space for both cargo and three seats instead of two in the third row.
As per the 110, expect the 2023 Land Rover Defender 130 to be available with 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder turbo-diesel (D300) and turbo-petrol (P400) engines, as well as a plug-in hybrid powertrain (P300e) and perhaps a BMW-sourced 4.4-litre twin-turbo petrol V8 rather than Jaguar Land Rover’s aged 5.0-litre supercharged AJ-V8.
Keyword: New Land Rover Defender 130 teased