Legendary British off-road firm Land Rover celebrates its 60th birthday during 2008, and has unveiled a special-edition Defender to mark the event.
While most of the 25,000 units built every year are used as agricultural workhorses or service vehicles, bosses say this is the most stylish and feature-packedversionLand Rover has ever produced.
Called the SVX (no relation, of course, to the Subaru coupe of the early 1990s), it comes with metallic black paintwork and satin black decals. Silver-finish details include the tubular side-steps and front grille surround. There are new five-spoke alloys, a reinforced aluminum front undershield and clear LED rear lights. The interior has custom-designed Recaro front seats, alloy gear knobs, and a new audio system with subwoofer, USB socket, iPod cradle and Garmin sat-nav. Each car will also have an individually numbered plaque.
The SVX will be available in both 90 soft-top and 90 station wagon body styles, with the former the most eye-catching. Each will feature a metallic silver tubular cage that supports a tailor-made, removable black fabric top. This encloses a flat load-space and a spare wheel stowed behind the front seats.
"The Defender SVX looks very different to a spartan 1948 Land Rover, but it's still an essentially practical vehicle that will enable you to go almost anywhere," said Phil Popham, Land Rover's managing director.
Just 200 SVX vehicles will be built and production will start in the spring. Prices will be announced later, but the first car will be donated by Land Rover to the British Red Cross for auction. The two companies' association dates back to 1954, when a vehicle was supplied for use in Dubai, UAE, as a mobile medical dispensary.
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