Land Rover Pushes for Defender’s 2020 Release with Help of Another Automaker

It looks like a Land Rover Defender may be coming in the market soon. But the brand will need the help of another automaker to make it possible.

Land Rover is aiming for a 2020 debut for the Land Rover Defender, which rides on the D7U aluminum monocoque platform like the current-generation Land Rover variants, Discovery and Range Rover. But the hitch is that the new platform cannot accommodate a pickup truck body.

In a recent interview, Mark Cameron, Managing Director of Jaguar Land Rover Australia, said the possibility of having a Defender truck is still under consideration. But it will have to ride on partnerships by Land Rover with another industry player.

And it doesn’t seem unlikely given that Land Rover has already partnered with BMW for the development of its electric vehicles, meaning there is a chance the company will be open to work with another brand to build the Defender pickup. This is also in consideration of the potential costs for the research and development of a new platform or framework for the truck.

Should Land Rover find a willing partner to work on the Defender truck, however, what are the odds that it will be sold in the United States?

It’s very likely, according to Cameron.

He said the automotive markets in North America, Africa, and the Middle East are all considered as markets where a Land Rover Defender truck could succeed. And this makes a case for the model because it shows the potential of having sufficient sales volume, thereby justifying the development of a
Defender truck.