The Latest Chapter in Westminster Motors’ History of the Defender

There are a surprising number of vehicle models that have enjoyed extended production runs. But few models can trace their history directly back to the vehicle that launched a new automotive company.

The Land Rover Defender is one of those vehicles. It has direct lineage back to the Land Rover Series I, the first Land Rover to roll off the assembly line in 1948.

When Jaguar Land Rover ceased production of the Defender in 2016, the history of the model dated back almost 70 years. 

Westminster Motors’ History of the Land Rover Defender

We’ve been blogging about the Land Rover Defender for 5 years now. But, when we posted our first Defender article,  “5 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About the Land Rover Defender”, in September of 2015, there was one thing we didn’t know: the Defender would be out of production within a year. 

The Land Rover Defender Bows Out After 70 Years – So the second chapter in our history of writing about the Defender was quite sad. Without knowing when or if the Defender would return, it felt like we were writing an obituary for one of the most iconic, longest-running vehicles ever to go windshield deep crossing a river, traverse the Sahara and star in James Bond movies.

The Return of the Land Rover Defender – If that “last post” about the Defender was like a eulogy, this one felt like we were writing about the second coming. Spy shots of a new Defender began emerging early in 2018. And we wrote this article in November, 2018, to tell you that Jaguar Land Rover had confirmed the speculation, the Defender would return in 2020.

“How to Buy and Maintain a Land Rover Defender” – While we waited for the new model to materialize, we thought people might like to grab an existing Defender before any price spikes that might happen when the new model debuted.  We told you about what to look for, and look out for, when buying a classic Defender. Of course, we encouraged you to book an appointment at Westminster Motors for dealer-alternative Land Rover service and parts!

This is Not Your Grandpa’s Defender – In February of this year, we brought you news of the arrival of the new Defender. Staying true to form, Jaguar Land Rover expected the new flagship to hit Canadian roads in March.

The Latest Chapter is a New Beginning for the Defender

We highly doubt that this is the last time we write about the Defender. Land Rover started delivering the new model in Canada on June 1st. Regardless of whether you’ll ever embrace the new model as a direct descendant of the Series I or not, seeing the new Defender, or any new Land Rover, hit the streets is always exciting.

One last piece of Westminster Motor’s Defender history. We were humbled and proud to recently spend some time with and work on a 2002 Land Rover Defender 110 TD5.

If Defenders are the standard-bearers of what a Land Rover truly represents, this particular vehicle was the epitome of what a Defender can be. We’ll miss her, but we’re quite pleased that she crossed our path.