SHORT STACK

IT’S not every day you get to drive a stripped-back base model short-wheel base four-wheel drive, with a price tag of more than $95,000. It was certainly a first for me, but it’s exactly what this D200 Land Rover Defender 90 you see before you is. In saying that, it’s really hard to say this is a pov-pack model, far from it. In this current Defender line-up though, this is essentially as basic as it gets. And I for one, am fine with that.

This particular example has been decked out with a bunch of factory accessories, such as alloy wheels (yes, I know, you all want the white steel wheels), a folding canvas electric roof and a smart rear-view mirror. Inside though, it’s still a mostly practical affair, clad with rubber flooring and cloth seats. This Defender as tested, is also riding on coil springs, not the optional air-suspension which we’ll touch on later.

I wanted to focus largely on the off-road ability of the Defender 90 in this review, because this is where a SWB 4x4 should shine. With that out of the way, let’s get down and dirty and see what