For buyers seeking something subtle, menacing – and just a little bit outrageous – Land Rover’s beastly Defender V8 beckons bellows.
2023 Land Rover Defender 90 V8
“I think you’ll find this chassis capable of a lot more power.” Those words, from one of Land Rover’s engineers at the new Defender’s international launch in 2020, never quite faded from my mind.
After barrelling down some rough, winding and pockmarked roads near the Skeleton Coast of Namibia with more pace than you’d think correct in a handful of new Defenders (with loaded roof-racks, nonetheless), I couldn’t help but agree.
As is often the case, the engineer who dropped that little tidbit mid conversation veered away from offering any more detail. But you could tell in the way that he said it, we could expect to see something spicy in the future.
And in the case of the 2023 Land Rover Defender 90 V8, spicy is – well – putting it mildly.
The definition of a ‘hot rod’ is something quite fluid. It’s all about modifying vehicles to drive fast, with crazy engine swaps and other performance modifications. Fitting big engines into small vehicles, in other words.
And when you look at it that way, Land Rover has built its own factory hot rod: squeezing a 5.0-litre supercharged V8 – an engine soon destined for retirement – into its high-riding, short-wheelbase Defender 90 is quite mad. And it’s also wonderful.
It’s not the first time a V8 has found its way into the engine bay of a Land Rover Defender, although we do need to cast our minds back to before they were called a ‘Defender’. In those simpler times, it was called a One Ten, and had the venerable old Buick-designed 3.5-litre petrol V8.
I spent much of my formative years bouncing around to that thong-slapping soundtrack (which you can get a glimpse of here) thanks to the 93kW V8, which drank copious amounts of fuel through those twin SU carburettors.
After that point, the Defender was a diesel-only affair with a variety of four- and five-cylinder engines used. It wasn’t until this newer and thoroughly more modern and sophisticated model arrived did petrol power return. However, this range-topping V8 took a couple more years to eventuate.
How much does the Land Rover Defender 90 V8 cost in Australia?
Coming in at a hefty $215,480 before on-road costs – nearly 2.5 times the price of a base P300 model – the Defender 90 V8 is not for the faint of heart (or wallet). But although it’s extremely expensive, buyers have been keen to throw down wads of cash to procure one.
It’s even more challenging, simply because the broader Defender range has a great selection of powertrains to choose from. Six-cylinder petrol and diesel powertrains are all joyous, and even the base 2.0-litre turbocharged four-pot motor has loads of performance and charm.
However, nothing is as charming as a classic blown V8, which has seen service in a variety of Land Rover and Jaguar vehicles for many years. The so-called Jaguar AJ-8 dates back to the late ’90s in lower capacities, but the big daddy 5.0-litre variant arrived in 2009 with a new block design and various other upgrades, along with a TVS supercharger and seeing use in a variety of high-end performance vehicles.
It’s starting to be phased out, however. The new Range Rover and Range Rover Sport have switched over to a BMW-sourced 4.4-litre petrol V8, which uses twin turbochargers and is a better bet against strict emissions and consumption limitations.
Throw in an increasingly electrified and hybridised future for all carmakers (including Land Rover), and this can be seen as a last hurrah for an engine like this.
Then, all of a sudden, that high asking price starts to make more sense.
| Key details | 2023 Land Rover Defender 90 V8 |
| Price | $215,480 plus on-road costs |
| Colour of test car | Santorini Black |
| Options | Front undershield – $1037 Extended black exterior pack – $1543 Wi-Fi enabled with data plan – $600 22-inch gloss black alloy wheels – $520 |
| Price as tested | $219,180 plus on-road costs |
| Rivals | Audi RS Q8 | Mercedes-Benz G-Class | Porsche Cayenne |
How much space does the Land Rover Defender 90 have inside?
If you’re buying a short-wheelbase Defender as your primary family vehicle, perhaps you’ll need your head read. It’s not a large vehicle after all, with only 4.3m of length when you don’t include that spare wheel mounted on the back door.
In terms of size overall, I’d say that the boot is similar to what you’ll find in a small or medium-sized SUV, while the second row feels a bit bigger. You can fold the second row down flat when you need extra space, but there is an aluminium extrusion crossmember to contend with. So, you don’t get a flat load space.
Three doors means accessing the second row is via the front doors, with the front seats tilting (and sliding electrically) out of the way for access. It’s a bit of a way up to get in there, but it’s comfortable and spacious enough when you’re in there. You have no windows to open back here, but there are air vents, cupholders and USB power outlets.
Sitting up front in the Defender is a nice experience, with the blacked-out treatment continuing here with nary a colour to come across. It’s an all-inclusive set-up, with all of the options ticked. Seating material is a combination of black leather, suedecloth and something called ‘Robustec’. When you look closely, there are small grip dots that provide a nice tactile difference to the regular set-up of perforated leathers.
I’ve always been a fan of the Defender’s interior, which feels set apart from the norm of other SUVs and four-wheel drives. There’s a heritage-style inspiration across the dashboard, which also works well for practicality. There’s loads of room for storing your everyday bits and bobs, including the deep space below the dash-mounted gearshifter.
The centre console – properly refrigerated in this case – isn’t that big, but it does a very good job of keeping your drinks cold.
There are USB-A, USB-C and 12V power outlets lower down in the console, along with a USB-C point higher up and wireless charging mat.
One point of difference in this Defender 90 V8 is the alcantara-wrapped steering wheel, which adds different textural feel to driving the car. Maybe wait until you arrive at home before getting stuck into your wicked wings, however, and you’ll need to be conscious of things like creams and sanitiser on your hands. Because you’d hate to stain it.
| 2023 Land Rover Defender 90 V8 | |
| Seats | Five |
| Boot volume | 397L seats up 1563L seats folded |
| Length | 4583mm |
| Width | 2008mm |
| Height | 1969mm |
| Wheelbase | 2587mm |
Does the Land Rover Defender have Apple CarPlay?
Infotainment comes via Land Rover’s upsized 11.4-inch Pivi Pro touchscreen.
To go with the screen real estate, the system packs in a wireless phone charger and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, digital radio, integrated navigation, and a range of vehicle and off-road settings screens.
Land Rover’s platform also sees the system equipped with a dedicated SIM, allowing over-the-air updates and a range of live functions including weather and parking information, plus access to steaming services and email – once connected.
Remote smartphone access is also possible, allowing remote vehicle lock/unlock, vehicle status checks, or ‘send to car’ navigation destinations.
Land Rover also crams in a 14-speaker sound system into the Defender 90 V8’s relatively compact interior, topped off with a subwoofer for ultimate audio impact.
Is the Defender a safe car?
Perhaps the most stark difference between old and new Defender, this model scored a five-star ANCAP safety rating from 2020 testing. It scored particularly strong for adult occupant (85 per cent) and child occupant (88 per cent) protection, while vulnerable road users (pedestrians) get a 71 per cent score. Land Rover’s suite of active safety assistance technology got a 76 per cent rating.
It’s kind of macabre, but if you want to see a Defender roll multiple times in a horrific-looking crash on a USA freeway, then head over to this news story. The occupants got out without a scratch, which is quite impressive.
| 2023 Land Rover Defender 90 V8 | |
| ANCAP rating | Five stars (tested 2020) |
| Safety report | Link to ANCAP report |
What safety technology does the Defender 90 have?
There are dual front, side and curtain airbags inside the Defender 90. Although many vehicles have used an additional front centre airbag, along with a driver’s knee airbag, in this quest for five stars in the ANCAP crash test, Land Rover managed to get top scores without these additional bits.
Autonomous emergency braking has junction, pedestrian and cyclist detection, and there is just about every other active safety acronym accounted for in this new Defender: lane-keep assistance, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, traffic sign recognition, door-exit warning, driver fatigue monitoring, and a flash 360-degree surround-view camera system.
And if you’re not getting the best view from your rear-view mirror (or there is someone tall in the middle back seat), you can toggle it to a digital display from a camera hiding in the shark fin antenna on the roof.
Is the Land Rover Defender 90 cheap to service?
Instead of using a rigid service schedule, the Defender monitors kilometres and driving conditions (as well as observing any faults), and will inform the driver of when they are due for a visit to the dealership.
Land Rover offers a five-year service plan (with a 130,000km limit) for the price of $3750, which is a bit more expensive than the P400 powertrain at $2250. However, I think we’ve already established that this isn’t the car for you if low running costs are important.
Insuring a Defender 90 V8 doesn’t seem to be a cheap exercise, either. Our enquiries saw an annual premium of $4394.07 based on a comparative quote for a 35-year-old male driver living in Chatswood, NSW. Insurance estimates may vary based on your location, driving history, and personal circumstances.
| At a glance | 2023 Land Rover Defender 90 V8 |
| Warranty | Five years, unlimited km |
| Servicing costs | $3750 (5 years) |
Is the Defender 90 V8 fuel-efficient?
In a word, no. Against the claim of 12.8 litres per hundred kilometres, we logged 14.4L/100km of premium fuel burnt. It could be better, sure, but it could also be worse. It depends mostly on how much you enjoy that sweet, gentlemanly V8 burble.
At least the fuel tank is a reasonably sized 90L, so you won’t be stopping at the servo to top up every other day. Unless you drive like an absolute hoon, and it starts drinking like my kids drink red lemonade at a birthday party.
Fuel Consumption – brought to you by bp
| Fuel Useage | Fuel Stats |
| Fuel cons. (claimed) | 12.8L/100km |
| Fuel cons. (on test) | 14.4L/100km |
| Fuel type | 95-octane premium unleaded |
| Fuel tank size | 90L |
What is the Defender 90 like to drive?
Slamming a supercharged V8 into a short-wheelbase Defender doesn’t necessarily make any sense, but it also makes perfect sense.
The soundtrack is a classic V8 rumble. It’s certainly not overbearing, with the massive crackles and thundering decibels. There’s a satisfying bellow when it starts working under longer loads of acceleration, augmented by a bit of supercharger whinny at the same time. It’s a more gentlemanly experience than a C63 AMG, for example, which barks with much more volume.
Part of this would be to do with the petrol particulate filters fitted to the (otherwise short) exhaust system of this Defender 90 V8. This is something required to keep this powertrain on the right side of the law in more strict markets around the globe.
It also explains why it’s not as fearsomely loud as you get in an older Range Rover Sport SVR, for example.
The Defender 90 is a tall vehicle, with loads of ground clearance and the same independent all-round air suspension that allows it to perform so well off-road. Land Rover has tweaked the suspension by making it feel a little more firm, direct and connected than other variants of the Defender.
This nature is helped along further by the inclusion of a ‘Dynamic’ driving mode, which is sure to make the Defender purists quake with fury. It doesn’t over-egg the pudding, which I think is important. It’s still daily drivable in any mode, and doesn’t fall into the mess of trying to be too dynamic.
Because don’t forget, this Defender still carries all of the off-road chops of its lesser siblings. Okay, those 22-inch wheels and road-biased tyres might not last long on a slippery Billy Goat’s Bluff, but elements like raised air suspension, loads of ground clearance, one of the (if not the) best traction-control systems getting around, locking differentials and good tyre diameter mean this Defender will go hard off-road. Likely, a lot harder than any owner is going to attempt.
This sets the Defender 90 apart from something like a Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, which (while faster) has traded in its off-road chops. Is the Defender 90 V8 better than a Mercedes G63 AMG? Although the only way to do it would be a pie-in-the-sky head-to-head comparison, I would say maybe, probably?
However, the flip side is that this Defender 90 V8 is not as dynamically capable on-road in comparison to other big-priced performance SUVs. It’s not bad to drive, it’s actually quite hilarious. The short wheelbase, jockeying ride and overall height mean it rolls and rollicks around corners, tyres doing their darndest to grip as the body inevitably rolls through the corners. Engine performance is never left wanting, especially when Dynamic mode tightens up the throttle response and transmission.
Straight-line performance is hilarious as well – squatting down angrily as it reaches 100km/h in just a shade over five seconds. It’s that hot-rod nature that adds charm to the overall experience. It’s playful and fun, but not serious and overbearing. And it’s all the better for it.
| Key details | 2023 Land Rover Defender 90 V8 |
| Engine | 5.0-litre supercharged V8 petrol |
| Power | 385kW @ 6500rpm |
| Torque | 625Nm @ 2500–5500rpm |
| Drive type | Permanent four-wheel drive, low range transfer case, locking centre and rear differentials |
| Transmission | Eight-speed torque converter automatic |
| Power to weight ratio | 159kW/t |
| Weight (kerb) | 2470kg |
| Spare tyre type | Full-size |
| Tow rating | 3500kg braked 750kg unbraked |
| Turning circle | 11.3m |
Should I buy a Land Rover Defender 90?
The value-for-money equation – if that even matters for buyers – is hurt by the fact that the other powertrain options for the Defender are great. The base P300 four-cylinder turbo is charming and willing, and the six-cylinder P400 matches a V8-powered Nissan Patrol and Ram 1500 for outputs, but does it with classic six-cylinder grace. Plus, you’ve got a choice of six-cylinder diesel engines to choose from as well.
However, the Defender 90 V8 cannot help but stand out. The Defender 90 itself is characterful and charming, interesting and exciting, regardless of what’s under the bonnet. But this V8 – although old and on the way out in some respects – adds to the experience wonderfully. You’re paying over the odds to get into one, no doubt. But if you do, I’ll hazard a guess that you’ll love it.
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