Defender gets new lease of life 21 | 10 | 2011

HERE'S SOME GOOD news for Scotland's dyed-in-the-wool Land Rover Defender lovers. Despite confirmation that the all-new Defender will be launched in 2015, changes to legislation mean the bulk of the current Defender range is likely to continue in production until 2017… or even later!

The principal beneficiaries are likely to be the real agricultural workhorses, the long-wheelbase 110 and commercial 130 versions.

For farmers, 'country folk', and those who reared up in horror when the short-wheelbase replacement was unveiled at Frankfurt in the shape of the DC100 concept, this is the best news they could ever have expected.

“There are a number of changes to the legislation that mean we can keep the current Defender in production longer than we thought,” a Land Rover source confirmed.

Watch our video of the DC100 Sport Concept driven in Scotland

So, what are the changes? Well the first relates to the new 2.2-litre diesel engine's ability to meet EU6 standards. These are the tough new rules which will align diesel engine pollutants with those of petrols in 2015/16.

There's also a hint — essentially helped by the fact the Defender was reclassified as a commercial vehicle — it may not have to comply with EU6 until a later date.

Finally, strict pedestrian impact laws were due to stop the Defender in 2015. It's now understood by Land Rover that an exemption from the law might apply until 2020. Happy days for Defender lovers.

See more photos of the new Land Rover Defender concepts

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Jim McGill