2013 Land Rover Defender 90 XS TD

A Worldwide icon - as British as King Charles, Fish and Chips or the Local Pub. From 1990, the 90 and 110 models were rebadged as the Defender. It was instantly familiar given the evolutionary relationship with the Series Land Rovers that preceded them. To the layman, the different versions have almost become interchangeable, not least because each represents the utilitarian, unpretentious, rugged off-roader that made Land Rover famous.

The Defender itself evolved gradually over its quarter-century on sale, gaining new Ford engines and the odd interior tweak, but perhaps the most significant change was nothing to do with the designers at Solihull, it was its gradual adoption by trendy metropolitan elites, declaring it as their carriage of choice, taking the Land Rover legend from the country into the city. It's now equally popular with both cattle herders and yoga instructors, a trend that is reflected in the latest models, as good up to their axles in clag as they are at carving through SW1.

LR63 RED (the registration number will stay with the vehicle) is finished in very rare Firenze Red Metallic with a gloss-black front grille and headlight surrounds, over a black cloth and leather-trimmed interior. Shod with new 16" 'Boost' alloy wheels finished in gloss black with BF Goodrich All-Terrain T/A tyres fitted in 2021, the factory Defender 90XS specification includes a high and low range gearbox, electric windows, an analogue clock, heated front and rear windscreens, air conditioning, heated front seats, an Alpine CD stereo with Bluetooth connectivity and USB and auxiliary inputs, and fold-down rear seats. 

Receipts included reveal over £10,000 worth of upgrades in 2021 and 2022, including a leather-trimmed Momo Tuner steering wheel with an Optimill quick-release boss, 30mm wheel spacers, Vision X 7" LED Halo headlights, and colour-matching door mirror covers, wing vents and steering guard. Mechanical upgrades over the same period include an uprated LOF gearbox output shaft, a LOF clutch kit, LOF clutch slave cylinder, a Bell Auto Services uprated Garrett VGT hybrid turbocharger (high flow/high torque) and a Bell Auto Services Stage 3 performance remap which provides smooth power delivery with increased torque while providing improved fuel economy. Documented maintenance includes a replacement offside front swivel seal, a new front differential seal, gearbox half shafts and lay shafts, shock absorber bushes, a rear suspension ball joint, and a windscreen seal. 

The car benefits from a main dealer and specialist service recorded in 2013, 2015 (1,438 miles), 2020 (5,513 miles), 2021 (9,321 miles), 2022 (10,604 miles) and 2023 (11,373 miles) with receipts provided. The car was in storage from 2016 and through the COVID epidemic. July 2023 saw a full paint correction detail, PPF install to front headlight surrounds, front wing sides, grille, headlights, wing mirrors, front bumper in matt PPF and lower skid panel, XPEL Fusion ceramic coating applied to entire Defender, cost of which was over £3,000.

Obviously hugely pampered in the past, its new custodian will need to do nothing but enjoy admiring and driving one of the most recognisable and characterful cars on our roads today.