Land Rover's Defender Classic V8 can now be commissioned in Australia.
The programme offers a hand-built, V8-powered version of the original Defender, specified to each buyer's order.

It isn't a series-production model.
Each Defender Classic V8 is built to order by Land Rover's Defender Classic division through its Works Bespoke programme.

What is the Defender Classic V8?

Each car is based on a Solihull-built Defender donor vehicle produced between 2012 and 2016.
Defender Classic sources the donors, then strips and rebuilds them, a process Land Rover says takes hundreds of hours.

Three body styles are available from launch:

• 90 Station Wagon
• 90 Soft Top
• 110 Station Wagon

Land Rover says more variants will follow.
A completed Sunset Gold 90 Soft Top is also available to buy now.

Defender Classic V8 pricing starts from £209,000 plus delivery and local taxes.
That's roughly A$398,000 at current exchange rates - before shipping, import duty, GST and Luxury Car Tax are added.
Australian drive-away pricing hasn't been announced, and the final cost will be considerably higher once those charges are included.

Power comes from a Land Rover 5.0-litre naturally aspirated petrol V8 making 298kW at 6000rpm and 515Nm at 5000rpm.
It's paired with an eight-speed ZF automatic, operated by a pistol-grip shifter, and permanent all-wheel drive with a two-speed transfer case, a torque-biasing centre diff and heavy-duty front and rear differentials.

Claimed 0-100km/h is 5.9 seconds for the 90 and 6.1 seconds for the 110 (both estimates), with a 170km/h top speed.

It retains live beam axles front and rear, with a Defender Suspension Upgrade Kit comprising Eibach coil springs and anti-roll bars plus Bilstein dampers.
Braking is handled by four-piston Alcon calipers with 335mm front and 300mm rear discs.

Buyers specify their car through an online configurator, then work with specialists at Classic Works in Coventry, UK, and Essen, Germany, to finalise the build.

Options include:

• Paint: Heritage or Extended palettes, or a match-to-sample bespoke colour
• Exterior: Heritage, Standard or Adventure grilles, black or silver exterior packs, LED headlights as standard with a Heritage or Crystal Lighting Pack
• Wheels: 16-inch Wolf steel wheels in Black or Limestone, or 18-inch Sawtooth alloys in Gloss Black or Diamond-turned
• Accessories: side steps, roof rack, ladder, expedition cage and winch
• Interior: leather across the dash, seats, door cards and headlining, five monotone or eight duotone colour schemes, plus an extended Bridge of Weir leather palette
• Seats: optional Premium seats, or Recaro seats on selected models
• Tech: a 4.8-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, sat-nav and DAB, or an optional nine-inch screen in a custom fascia, plus an available reversing camera with lens washer
• Explorer Pack: a Ply Guys camper conversion for the rear, with an optional roof-mounted tent box and ladder

For comparison, Land Rover's current Defender OCTA is priced from $304,500 plus on-roads and uses a 4.4-litre twin-turbo mild-hybrid V8 with 467kW and 750Nm, with a claimed 0-100km/h time of 4.0 seconds.
The Mercedes-AMG G63 starts from about $370,000 plus on-roads, with a 430kW/850Nm 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 and a claimed 0-100km/h time of 4.4 seconds.

Both produce more power and torque than the Classic V8's 298kW/515Nm, and both are cheaper before the Classic's shipping and local taxes are added.

Private restomod builders also offer V8-powered versions of the original Defender.
Twisted, for example, lists V8 Defender 90 and 110 builds at US$375,000 - 385,000 using a 480hp (358kW) GM 6.2-litre V8.
The Defender Classic V8 differs in being built by Land Rover's own Classic division with a Land Rover engine.

The Defender Classic V8 is available to commission now.
Build times and Australian delivery timing haven't been confirmed.

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