2024 Land Rover Defender 110 X-Dynamic SE - Bottom Line Review

ROYAL ARMS FOR OVERLANDING: The British are big on certain traditions which celebrate the Commonwealth. The Land Rover automotive brand merges the legacy of colonialism into remote regions of the globe with the Royal Warrant, decreeing trades or industries which set an example of British-ness.

By Appointment to HM The King, Charles III:

Manufacturers of Motor Vehicles

JLR is unique in the global automotive industry. They are designers of peerless models, with an unrivalled understanding of the future luxury needs of its clients, an emotionally rich brand equity, a spirit of Britishness with unrivalled access to leading global players in technology and sustainability within the wider Tata Group. The company has been a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Motors, in which Tata Sons is the largest shareholder, since 2008. JLR is proud to be listed by HM King Charles III in his initial grant of Royal Warrants. This extends our successful association with Royal Warrants which began over 70 years ago when we received our first from HM King George VI in 1951.

TATA Motors, as custodian of the British heritage expeditionary automaker since 2008, continues to recognize the legacy of the Defender line, with a modern descendant of the Land Rover Series II overlander, ubiquitous to safaris.

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WHAT: 2024 Land Rover Defender 110 X-Dynamic SE 4x4 two row,, ful-size, off-road sport utility vehicle. The L663 is the second retro successor to the original 1948 Land Rover Series I, then Series II and III,  preceded by the mid 1980s - 2016 Land Rover 110 (also 3-door 90 and LWB 130). The new Defender is built on an aluminum intensive JLR D7x unibody platform.

• Optional Power P400: intercooled turbocharged + supercharged 3.0L V-6 + 48V mild hybrid + idle Start/ Stop = 395 hp / 406 lb-ft @ 2000 rpm + ZF^TM 8-spd. torque converter planetary automatic transaxle. (* tested powertrain)

WHAT (A) STYLING DIFFERENCE(S): As a descendant the prototype British expeditionary transport, the 2024 Land Rover Defender 110 X-Dynamic SE is dressed to be immediately recognizable as a modern take of the forebear British expeditionary transport, familiar to the steppe of Tanzania but now friendly to American suburbia.

Heritage Defender cues: √ Spillover gloss black contrast roof, with side lite glass; √ Protruding center front grille; √ Slab-sided and vertical swingout tailgate w/ full spare tire; √ Single lens round headlamps; √ Tall wheel arches; √ Wrap around D-pillars form butresses with gloss black finish descending to bumper cover, hosting stacked taillamps

• +1 Rear roof edge skylights x 4

√ Flanking hood with dark plastic ruggedized treads; √ Vertical dark fender louvers; √ Imposing winged perforated aluminum front center aluminum bash plate; √ Full lower body dark plastic cladding;

√ Body colored A-Pillar and wide C-Pillar; √ Gloss black B+D pillars, blending with post 1st Row dark tint privacy glass for floating roof effect; √ Slim greenhouse; √ Gloss black sail panel mount wing mirrors blend with bottom windscreen banding; √ Body color telephone receiver style, protruding door & swing gate handles; √ Protruding lower rear center aluminum bash plate w/ registration plate bowl;

• Land Rover Discovery contributions: √ Thin upper grille spanned by single lateral satin finish upper grille bar anchored by white on green "LAND ROVER" oval emblem on left side
• Range Rover Sport contributions: √ Rising rear lower quarter panel; √ "LAND ROVER" with electricity symbol badges: Upper grille bar, left side + C-Pillar + Swing gate, lower right corner

WHY: All aboard for exploratory road & trail travel in the current or former Commonwealth.

WHEN: On-Sale (in the U.S.) since late Summer 2023

WHERE: Land Rover new vehicle dealers

WHERE MADE: Nitra, Slovakia

WHERE TO: Five are assured to overland refined.

• Standard full-time all-wheel drive:
  • Programmable off-road settings
  • Two-speed electronic viscous clutch controlled transfer case
  • Open front, E-locking center and rear differentials^{(opt. Active rear differential +brake torque vectoring)}
  • Nominal / maximum front to rear torque split = 48:52% / 0:100%
  • Adaptive air spring suspension
  • Pivi Pro^TM surround off-road cameras
  • Land Rover Terrain Response 2^R configurable management modes x 7:
    • Rock crawl / Sand / Mud & Ruts / Wade/ Grass, Gravel & Snow / Comfort / Eco
    • All Terrain Progress Control
      • -1 Center stack button activating left climate dial for Terrain Response 2R select = cumbersome
  • ABS Hill descent control
  • -1 Differential locking only available via media display

HOW ROADWORTHY: The optional twin-charged Ingenium petrol staight-six powertrain, designated P400 for nearly 400 horsepower, imbues the 2024 Land Rover Defender 110 X-Dynamic with silken, swift legs. The eight-speed ZF automatic transmission makes the most of the abundant torque. Shifts are crisp and free of lag, partly owing to the mild-hybrid assistance. The sounds are authoritatively melodious. Peculiarly, though, there is no dedicated Sport drive mode setting.

Optional air coil springs, at all four corners, endow the Defender 110 with genteel road manners. The tall center of gravity feels less tippy than in the longer 130 Series, and the unusually quiet German made Goodyear Wrangler Adventure all-terrains, surprise with unexpectedly useful turn-in. Steering is defined by good on-center stability and satisfactory resistance, though the road surface is mostly muted. Four wheel disc binders impress in size but feel a bit parched for bite under particularly long pedal trip.

-1 Ample wing mirrors = some wind noise

HOW FAR: 18 combined miles per gallon. 624 miles highway range on 91 octane unleaded fuel.

HOW BIG/ LITTLE: √ 5 Occupant seating = full-size 2+3 SUV style; √ Rows 2 bench seating + manual lever seatback recline; Row 1 footwells slightly narrow; Row 2 sees enhanced legroom with floor integrated foot rests, and generous headroom owing to raised roof.

• +1 Tall roof might not clear some garage openings

HOW USEFUL: √ Right side swing out tailgate; √ 2nd Row 40:20:40 split reclining, sliding, folding bench seating; √ Manual handle 2nd seatback fold releases; +1 Cooled 1st Row center console bin;  +1 Long 1st & 2nd Row door pockets;

• +1 Partial open center stack w/ lower shelf; Sliding covered lower center stack mobile handset tray & connection / power ports
• -1 Modest front center armrest & cargo bay sub-floor storage.

HOW SAFE: STANDARD: IIHS = Not Yet Tested; √ 8 airbags; √ Rear camera w/ predictive grid; √ Blind Spot, rear cross traffic Warning; √ Post collision S.O.S. alert; √ Roll Mitigation; √ Pedestrian & cyclist detection braking; √ Forward collision avoidance braking; √ Lane Departure Warning + Keep Assist; √ Full adaptive cruise control; √ Rain sensing windshield wipers; √ Automatic High Beam headlamps.

• Also Included (as standard):♦ 360° Park Assist warning; ♦ 360° surround + trail view camera + rear backup camera washer; ♦ Traffic Sign detection; ♦ 2nd Row occupant detection

HOW PEOPLE FRIENDLY: How fitting that a Royal Warrant holding coach builder upfits an expeditionary bus cabin for mall crawling duties. Exposed hex bolt fasteners, mirroring the exterior, textured rubberized gripped grab surfaces including first row passenger center console grab handles, and dash shelving for compasses and maps convey a mission to where few dare. Nonetheless, the execution inside the 2023 Land Rover Defender 130 S boasts a level of finish and refinement not even a Toyota Land Cruiser 250 can conceive.

√ Grained leather seats - heated Row 1; √ Wide berth, sport bolstered front bucket seats; √ 12-way power front seats, w/ 3-setting memory; √ Heated, tilt + telescoping leather steering wheel + spoke integrated haptic + toggle redundant controls; √ Rotary dial automatic 4-zone climate control + 2nd Row controls at Row 1 center console aft; √ Canted center stack toggle transmission position lever; √ Canted center stack drive mode + climate controls; √ Overhead console retracting sunglasses bin; √ Power folding side mirrors; √ Dual pane panoramic moonroof, power open + tilt Row 1.

-1 Limited steering wheel reach adjustment; Short 2nd Row seat cushions

Cool Gizmo(s): √ 12.3" inch Interactive Driver Display variable configuration instrument cluster + navigation map mirroring; √ Head-on view illustration puddle lamp projection

Details Done Right: √ Leather seating; √ Tandem stitched leatherette dash top & door panel tucked seams; Textured pliable foam hand grips; √ Knurled metal climate dials & steering wheel thumb barrels; √ Metal audio speaker grilles; √ Dense pile carpets; √ Exposed brushed silver finish Torx^TM panel fasteners

Nearly Non-Descript: -1 Foam rubberized dashboard cover texture resembles playground mats; Coarse grain below waist-height, pillar, aft cabin wall plastic cabin trim; Smooth steering wheel spoke controls lack tactile distinctiveness; Non-fluid door and secondary switch action.

HOW CONNECTED:√ Pivi Pro^TM center mid dash tablet landscape 10.0"-inch capacitive touch LCD tri-pane landscape infotainment screen; √ Bluetooth & voice command hands-free communications; √ what3words^TM GPS HDD Navigation w/ 3-D map, voice guidance + Map in Digital Instrument Cluster; √ voice to text SMS messaging; √ USB-A x 1, USB-C x 3; 12V x 2 (includes cargo), 115V, 180 W AC x 1 (Cargo bay); √ Qi inductive charging pad; √ OTA media software updating.

• +1 Pleasing earth tone high contrast graphics, customizable widgets; Traditional knurled twin rotary knobs for climate temperature & audio volume

HOW "APP" -LICABLE: √ wireless Android Auto / Apple Car Play smart phone projection; √ LR Online Data Pack w/ over the air updates; √ Weather app; √ Off-Road Pages app

• By Subscription: √ Sirius XM 360L w/ enhanced search (90 day trial); √ 4G LTE Wi-Fi by Verizon (1 GB, 90 day trial); √ Sirius Guardian telematics

HOW AUDIBLY: ♦ 11 speaker, 400 Watt, 6 channel Meridian audio system + chrome sail panel speaker grilles = uni-dimensional, boomy sound

HOW MUCH: $82,523 = 2024 Land Rover Defender 110 X-Dynamic SE 4x4 suggested retail price (including destination)

WHAT'S MISSING: Less motorway wind buffeting; Better shaped first row seat cushions; Cargo bay 2nd Row power seat back folding; Running boards

ANY COMPETITION: Ineos Grenadier: mil-spec switch panels, classic Land Rover Series II driving ways; Lexus GX 550 Overtrail: +1 Torsen center differential, cabin comfort