We have lost a number of great British icons so far in 2016, and now the Land Rover Defender has joined that list.
The last Land Rover Defender departed the stage at the Solihull plant on Friday surrounded by more than 700 of its close friends and family, made up of current and former staff involved in the production of Series Land Rover and Defender vehicles. Land Rover Defender was 68.
As the last model, a Defender 90 Heritage Soft Top, rolled off the line, Land Rover announced a new Heritage Restoration Programme to be based at Solihull, which will celebrate the life of the iconic model by restoring a number of examples from across the globe.
The Series Land Rover and Defender enjoyed a glittering career. From humble beginnings when the first model sold for £450 at the 1948 Amsterdam Motor Show, more than 2,000,000 have now been sold. The baby of Rover chief designer Maurice Wilks, the original Land Rover was born into a world of post-war austerity where steel was in short supply, but aluminium and manufacturing capacity plentiful. Moving with the times, it became the Series II ten years later, passing the half-a-million sales mark in 1966, and as the Series III it continued to build on that success before being renamed the Defender in 1990. A versatile performer who was as at home fighting fires or exploring the Amazon as it was on the farm, the Series Land Rover and Defender had friends amongst royalty and commoners alike.
Leading the tributes was Jaguar Land Rover CEO Dr Ralf Speth, who said: “Today we celebrate what generations of men and women have done since the outline for the Land Rover was originally drawn in the sand. The Series Land Rover, now Defender, is the origin of our legendary capability, a vehicle that makes the world a better place, often in some of the most extreme circumstances. There will always be a special place in our hearts for Defender, among all our employees, but this is not the end. We have a glorious past to champion, and a wonderful future to look forward to.”
Nick Rogers, Group Engineering Director at Jaguar Land Rover, added: “This is a special day of fond celebration for Jaguar Land Rover. We all have personal memories of Defender. It’s a true motoring icon and is much loved around the world. The world has changed dramatically in the last 68 years, but this vehicle has remained a constant – something no other vehicle can claim. The last of the current Defender models embraces the vehicle’s simplicity, honesty and charm – it represents its Series Land Rover heritage.”
Tim Bickerton, the third of four generations to work with Series Land Rover and Defender at Solihull, said: “I am hugely proud of our special family tradition working on this remarkable vehicle. The Defender has become part of our family. We’re like a stick of rock with Defender running through us.”
The model’s passing was marked by a Defender Celebration, which saw more than 25 unique vehicles from Land Rover’s history come together in a procession around the Solihull plant, featuring the final current Defender vehicle off the line.
Land Rover fans can share their memories of the model online via the ‘Defender Journeys’ platform, a digital scrapbook which the manufacturer will open shortly. By preserving those memories of amazing adventures with Series Land Rover and Defender, its legend shall live on for future generations.
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