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Written by Vijay Pattni
Today, the long and storied career of the venerable Land Rover Defender comes to an end.After 68 years of production, the last ever Defender will roll off the production line on Friday 28 January 2016, which means no more new, erm, old Defenders.The story began of course, all those years ago, when Rover engineer Maurice Wilks first traced the Defender"s outline into the sands at Red Wharf Bay near Anglesey. The full car was unveiled at the Amsterdam motor show in 1948, and went on sale soon after.The original brief of course, was to emulate the Jeep that Wilks used to run on his farm. But neither Wilks nor anyone at Land Rover could have imagined the success of this hardy little off-roader. Sales began to sky-rocket.Soon after, a number of bodystyles began appearing, and the company soon hit one million Defenders sold. Not surprising, given its go-anywhere ability and utilitarian cool. From the military to the silver screen via a certain James Bond, it seems everyone is fond of the ol" girl. Her Majesty the Queen is a big fan, too.But, this is all getting a bit sad. To celebrate the Defender, here are our top five adventures, from an experience behind the wheel of the car Bond drives in Spectre, to racing a Bowler rally-prepped version through lots of mud.
Date written: 29 Jan 2016
More of this article on the Top gear website
ID: 1904
Today, the long and storied career of the venerable Land Rover Defender comes to an end.After 68 years of production, the last ever Defender will roll off the production line on Friday 28 January 2016, which means no more new, erm, old Defenders.The story began of course, all those years ago, when Rover engineer Maurice Wilks first traced the Defender"s outline into the sands at Red Wharf Bay near Anglesey. The full car was unveiled at the Amsterdam motor show in 1948, and went on sale soon after.The original brief of course, was to emulate the Jeep that Wilks used to run on his farm. But neither Wilks nor anyone at Land Rover could have imagined the success of this hardy little off-roader. Sales began to sky-rocket.Soon after, a number of bodystyles began appearing, and the company soon hit one million Defenders sold. Not surprising, given its go-anywhere ability and utilitarian cool. From the military to the silver screen via a certain James Bond, it seems everyone is fond of the ol" girl. Her Majesty the Queen is a big fan, too.But, this is all getting a bit sad. To celebrate the Defender, here are our top five adventures, from an experience behind the wheel of the car Bond drives in Spectre, to racing a Bowler rally-prepped version through lots of mud.
Date written: 29 Jan 2016
More of this article on the Top gear website
ID: 1904