2025 Land Rover Defender Road Test and Review

2024 Land Rover Defender 110 S ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Until a few years ago, the Land Rover Defender was the last of the brand’s utilitarian trucks. Even as other Land Rovers got flashier rims, more leather trim, and sharper on-road handling, the Defender was a simple machine built for the British army and safari expeditions.

The latest Defender, introduced in 2020, keeps the iconic flavor. It’s still shaped like a box, it’s still less dressy inside than other Land Rovers, and it’s still capable off road. But it has also become a modern, comfortable luxury SUV. For this review, we spent a week testing the Defender, which currently starts at $56,900 but can cost three times that amount. Keep reading to learn about the Defender’s pros and cons to see whether it’s the right mid-size luxury SUV for you. 

Classic Meets Modern Design

To get a feel for the 2025 Land Rover Defender’s design, start with its taillights. They’re squares that sit astride a swing-out cargo door with a rear-mounted spare tire. But these lights are also bright, crisp LEDs – classic meeting modern. 

Similarly, the headlights remain squares with a hint of a circle inside. The last Defender (sold in the U.S. in the ’90s but still built for overseas markets until 2016) had purely round headlamps. Still, the new model is the only current Land Rover that’s traditionally boxy instead of sleekly modern. You can even get it in a cheeky-looking two-door model. 

Think of the Defender as Britain’s equivalent to the Jeep Wrangler or Mercedes-Benz G-Class: a former military vehicle that has evolved into a pricey modern SUV. Only as we’ll discuss, the Defender isn’t as utilitarian as even a new Wrangler – and it costs nearly $100,000 less than the Benz. 

2024 Land Rover Defender 110 S ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Modern Yet Rugged Interior

The Defender’s interior continues this vibe. Its dashboard doesn’t look like other modern luxury SUVs, including other Land Rovers. It has chunky grab bars and exposed screws instead of acres of leather. And it has a cluster of buttons and knbos instead of an all-digital experience. To some tastes, the Defender’s interior doesn't look fancy enough for its price tag. But it’s carefully built – it has character, but not the rudimentary feel of a vehicle that's literally built cheaply.

Our only complaint was the controls. The Defender’s 11.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system looks pretty, but once you actually try to make it do anything, you face cumbersome operations and laggy responses. And while we appreciate the physical buttons and knobs, they’re not always so easy to figure out, either. The steering wheel’s controls are especially challenging. 

2024 Land Rover Defender 110 S ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Choose Your Size

The Defender is sold in a choice of three sizes. The two-door model is called the 90. The most popular four-door, like our test vehicle, is called the 110. And an extended-length version, called the 130, has more space for cargo and third-row passengers. 

Whichever Defender you get, there’s plenty of space in the first and second rows. You sit up high on comfortable, well-shaped seats. Even the two-door 90 can fit adults in the back once they’ve wiggled their way inside. The 110’s optional third row is quite tiny, though. Expect to slide the second row forward to fit even a child back there, though adults can wedge in if needed. The 130’s third row still isn’t massive, but it’ll fit people better. 

2024 Land Rover Defender 100 S ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Boxy Cargo Hold

Despite its boxy shape, no Defender has the roomiest cargo hold in its class. But not surprisingly, the bigger you get, the more space you have. 

The 110 like our test vehicle fits a mere 10.7 cubic feet of cargo space with the third row in use. Folding it down opens up a useful but not incredible 34.6 cubic feet behind the second row and a maximum of 69.0 cubic feet behind the front seats – a little less than a Toyota RAV4 compact crossover. The 130 improves to 15.3 cubic feet behind the third row (still just a few inches of depth on the floor), 35.8 cubic feet behind the second row, and 76.1 cubic feet behind the front seats. Finally, the two-door 90 has just 15.6 cubic feet behind its second-row seat and 58.3 cubic feet with the second row folded down. Plus, the swing-out cargo door can be inconvenient in tight spaces. 

The good news is that the Defender is a monster towing machine, so you don’t have to fit all your stuff in the cabin. Depending on the model you choose, it can pull up to 8,201 pounds – more than many pickup trucks. 

2024 Land Rover Defender 110 S ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Choose Your Engine

The Defender comes standard with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 296 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. That’s good for a 7-second sprint to 60 mph – nothing thrilling, but not bad for a big brick of an SUV. Our test car had the upgraded 3.0-liter inline six with 395 hp and 406 lb-ft of torque, which Land Rover says can hit 60 in just 5.8 seconds. It sounds better, too. 

Big spenders can also upgrade to a choice of V8 engines. Most Defender V8s (priced from $109,800) have a supercharged 5.0-liter making 518 hp and 461 lb-ft of torque, which hit 60 mph in 5.1 seconds. Then there’s the brand-new Octa model whose 4.4-liter V8 makes 626 hp and 553 lb-ft of torque. It’ll beat some sports cars to 60 mph with a 3.8-second dash. It starts at $152,000. 

It’s not the most economical SUV. Even the four-cylinder only gets an EPA-estimated 18 mpg in the city, 20 mpg on the highway, and 19 mpg combined on premium fuel. The six-cylinder is close behind at 18 mpg city, 20 mpg highway, and 19 mpg combined. However, we beat that estimate to hit 21 mpg during a week in the six-cylinder that skewed toward highway driving. That’s not thrifty but not terrible, either. But the V8s get just 16 to 17 mpg combined. 

2024 Land Rover Defender 110 S ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Drives Great on and off the Road

Driving a V8-powered Jeep Wrangler or an older-model Mercedes-Benz G-Class is a white-knuckle experience. It’s like strapping a rocket onto an oxcart – you’re going faster than the old-school, off-road-focused suspension can really handle. 

That’s not the case in today’s Defender. It rides smoothly and steadily, yet its responsive steering and handling inspire confidence. It’s better to drive on road than many luxury SUVs with no off-road pretensions at all. 

And that’s not the case with the Defender. The modern Defender has car-like unibody construction, but it’s packed with technology that lets it tackle challenging off-road obstacles. Available driving modes tailor the SUV for different driving conditions, like rocks versus mud. A rear locking differential protects against wheelspin if one tire loses traction. And the available adjustable-height air suspension provides up to 11.5 inches of ground clearance. Land Rover even says you can ford nearly 3 feet of standing water. 

2024 Land Rover Defender 110 S ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Choose Your Price Point

As we mentioned, the Defender starts at $56,900 and tops $150,000 in the top Octa model. And there’s lots of choice along the way. 

First, most people will upgrade from the cheapest model (the two-door 90) to the four-door 110, which starts at $60,800. Still others will pick the extra space of the $69,700. The six-cylinder engine costs about $7,000. Other available upgrades include full leather upholstery instead of partial leather; ventilated front seats; a surround-sound stereo; and a refrigerator in the center console bin. 

Fortunately, you don’t need to buy a lot of extras to get a well-equipped Defender. Standard luxury amenities include adaptive cruise control, GPS navigation, a heated and power-adjustable steering wheel, a 10-speaker Meridian stereo, and a panoramic roof. 

2023 Land Rover Defender 90 ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Competitors to Consider

As a boxy luxury off-road vehicle priced from around $60,000 (in four-door form), the Defender’s closest competitors are the Toyota Land Cruiser and the Lexus GX 550. These are siblings with the same body but different engines and interiors. The Land Cruiser is a four-cylinder gas-electric hybrid, while the GX has a richer-sounding but thirstier V6. They have more cargo space than the Defender and a historical reputation for longevity. But the Land Rover is more economical than the Lexus and better to drive than either. 

We’d also shop the Defender against upper-trim Jeep Grand Cherokees and Toyota 4Runners. The Grand Cherokee has more cargo room, a fancier-looking interior, and simpler controls than the Defender. But the Defender handles more sharply, has more power, and drives better. Versus the 4Runner, the Defender once again drives better but has fussier controls. 

And if you’re interested in a base-model Defender, especially the two-door model, you can shop it against a well-equipped Jeep Wrangler or Ford Bronco. They’re rougher-riding vehicles than the Land Rover, especially the Jeep. But they have simple capability and tough mechanical bones rather than electronic wizardry. Plus, you can take off their roofs and doors for an open-air driving experience. 

Finally, if you’re not committed to an off-road vehicle, some of our favorite luxury mid-size SUVs include the Acura MDX, Audi Q7, BMW X5, and Lincoln Nautilus. The Acura and Lincoln offer a lot of value for the money, while the Audi and BMW have extra-sharp handling and lots of power. 

2024 Lexus GX 550 Overtrail+ ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Final Thoughts

The 2025 Land Rover Defender is a charming yet practical vehicle. It alludes to its history of rugged toughness while delivering an excellent and thoroughly modern driving experience. It’s roomy enough to serve as a family car, while it has enough of a cool factor to suit even a single person. And while it’s not cheap, it’s not as frightfully expensive as some top-of-the-line SUVs. 

Budget plenty of money for gas, and budget some patience for the controls. It doesn’t have the most space for third-row passengers or cargo. And some people will want a more overtly luxurious design inside and out. But otherwise, we’re big fans of this SUV. It’s built to thrive in any scenario you might throw at it, from outdoor adventures to family road trips to high-speed twisty roads to everyday commutes. 

2024 Land Rover Defender 110 S ・ Photo by Brady Holt