desert ship

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You don’t need to know the Land Rover Defender’s long ancestors to guess: That can’t be all. Even in the time of the original Defender, there was an XXL version called the 130, which represented the extended wheelbase. Strictly speaking, even though it’s only 127 English inches, that’s the equivalent of 3.23 metres.

Speculation at the premiere of the current Defender is now over because with the 130 there is actually a third body variant. The long version is eight-seater, at least that’s how it’s advertised. But when the third row of seats is occupied by three half-grown people, things take an uncomfortable turn. With only two people sitting in the back, the Defender 130 surprises with a decent amount of space and a lot of comfort. Even those with long legs over 1.80 meters can easily cope here thanks to the heated seats and USB ports.

big body

But full occupation should remain the exception. In the US, the Arab world or China, where XXL SUVs are particularly popular, anyone choosing the 130 wants more space. But beware: With the third row of seats upright, there is only 290 liters of luggage space. If the rear row of seats is folded almost flat, that’s over 1000 liters. If you fold the second one, 1900 liters will fit in the back.

Space for boarding is hardly plentiful. If you want to work your way back, you have to bend yourself. Because the space gain compared to the regular five-door Defender 110 is not due to the extension of the wheelbase, but to the rearward extension by 34 centimeters. Advantage: There is no difference between the 110 and 130 in terms of agility – at most, due to the additional weight of the long version of a good 120 kilograms. But when it comes to rapid changes of direction, precision in bends and mobility in heavy stationary traffic, the long version no longer hesitates.

But the greater protruding extension means a weaker angle of separation at the rear. “We knew this was going to be a particular challenge and we paid a lot of attention to it and came up with solutions,” says Stuart Frith, chief engineer. At almost 29 degrees, the angle at which the rear doesn’t scratch the ground on slopes is smaller than that of the Defender 110, but wider than that of many other all-terrain vehicles. Sand, rocks or mud are no problem, thanks to the smart all-wheel drive system, air suspension and off-road programs.

Three drives up to 400 hp

As with the engines, the 130 inherits infotainment, comfort equipment and driver assistance systems that have been updated and adapted from 110: 249 hp (183 kW, from basic version CHF 101,000) and two diesel six-cylinder engines with 300 hp ( 221 kW), 400 hp (294 kW) petrol Six-cylinder engine for Star starts at 111,200 francs. The smooth-running 3.0-litre engine accelerates the 130 from 0 to 100 km/h in 6.6 seconds if needed – but at least half a second slower than the 110.

However, three mild hybrid units with a small 48-volt electric motor are the only approach to electrification. The plug-in hybrid drive included with the Defender 110 is not available for the long version. In principle, it would also be interesting for many customers there, but there is a problem of space: the retractable third row of seats takes up too much space to accommodate the high-voltage battery. “We also didn’t want to put it on the roof rack,” Frith laughs.

Source: Blick