It has been a minute since we final noticed a camouflaged Land Rover Defender SVX in public. However testing continues on this hardcore, high-powered off-roader, and this time round we caught one thing new within the grille. Really, it is simply above the grille, and it suggests this Defender is certain for the US.
Focus your gaze on a strip between the headlights. Among the images present a little bit of orange, however a few pictures reveal three distinct orange squares. These certain do appear to be amber marker lights, that are required in america for autos which can be at the least 80 inches extensive. It is why you see them on rigs just like the Ford Bronco Raptor, and seeing them right here means the Defender SVX is certainly a bit wider than the usual mannequin. That’s, supplied these lights are put in for authorized use within the US and never only for testing functions.
14 Pictures
How a lot wider are we speaking about? Specifics can be revealed when the camouflage comes off, however we all know the Defender sits slightly below 80 inches extensive in 90 and 110 guise. These new images provide a transparent have a look at the flared fenders which, at a look at the least, seem a lot the identical as the usual mannequin. We surmised in earlier SVX articles that there’s a bit extra girth to the SUV, so even when we’re speaking simply a few additional inches, that might be sufficient to place the Defender into amber-marker territory.
As for the remainder of the photographs, camouflage wrap with heavier coverings nonetheless cover modifications to the face. Curiously, it seems like graffiti was spray painted onto the white mesh, although we do not know if it was completed intentionally by Land Rover people as some type of disguise. There is definitely no lacking the sizable BF Goodrich Traill Terrain tires. We will additionally see suspension upgrades happening throughout the wider wheel housings. The modifications ought to add a little bit of floor clearance, whereas beneath the hood, rumors abound that BMW’s twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V8 will take station with upwards of 600 horsepower.
We first discovered of this hotter Defender in February 2023, so a full reveal cannot be too far-off. We might have full disclosure by the top of the yr, or failing that, someday within the first quarter of 2024 is probably going.