Club chairman, Tim Hodgkiss, recently visited the Land Rover Experience center at Eastnor Castle, Herefordshire to test drive the new 2007 Defender and discover its new features.
The morning of the 14th of May dawned cold and wet, in other words Land Rover weather. After a brief two and a half hour trip through the Midlands second largest car park (the M42) Tracey and I arrived at the spiritual off-road home of Land Rover, Eastnor Castle.
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We were greeted at the gate by one of the Driving Experience staff and pointed in the direction of the castle itself. After a brief stroll through the grounds we arrived at the entrance to the castle. Passing through the gates the first thing that struck you were the two huge banners showing the range of Defender body styles available for 2007. Directly below these was a 110 S/W with the roof cut-away to display the changes to the interior and dash.
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On entering the castle we were again met by Driving Experience staff for registration and to allocate us a vehicle for the mornings driving activity. We were scheduled for the 11:45 session and based on our background with ‘Trevor’ decided to opt for a 110 to try off road. We were also told about the other activities that had been laid on for the day, but more of that later. After registering we were pointed in the direction of the fresh coffee and hot bacon rolls, much appreciated after the long journey.
Over breakfast we chatted with some of the other ‘guests’. I guess it shows the draw that Land Rover has when you consider there were people from as far a field as Kent and Scotland who had come down for the day and would be travelling back after the event. As usual with Land Rover events everyone seemed to talk to each other and the day settled into a relaxed mood fairly quickly.
As I mentioned previously there were a number of other activities available around the castle grounds. We were given a map and brief information about times etc but generally left to our own devices. Located on the castle terrace where a selection of Land Rover bikes including a number of G4 Challenge refugees. This seemed the perfect way to explore the grounds although we both felt that the engines were a bit underpowered and the heating could do with improvement!
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Riding around the lake we stumbled across a small hut where more Driving Experience staff were serving up cups of fresh Land Rover coffee. We asked if it was available to buy and were swiftly given a packet to take away FOC. Again more stunning Land Rover hospitality and we had yet to get near a Defender! By the time we had finished our coffee it was nearly time for our drive so we pedalled back to the castle our briefing.
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At 11:45 we were called into the Drawing room where we were greeted by multiple screens displaying the famous green-oval. As we seating ourselves around the room we were treated to a brief presentation from a member of the marketing department outlining the changes we would find in the vehicles outside and also reiterating Land Rovers commitment to the Defender as the core of its brand image. Next there was a short talk on the driving procedures for the off road drive, nothing out of the ordinary but I suppose LR have to cover themselves. I was quite surprised to learn that we would not be accompanied by any LR staff in the vehicle, only at the front, centre and rear of the convoy in DE disco 3’s. After this we headed outside and the day could begin in earnest……
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Our vehicle for the mornings drive was a 110 Station Wagon of a pretty high specification, A/C, electric windows, half leather trim etc, just a shame about the colour but you can’t have everything! The changes to the interior were apparent as soon as you opened the door. The familiar passenger grab-handle on the side of the dash has now moved to the front of the dash directly in-front of the passenger seat. The familiar shelf is also long gone but there is some storage space for bits and bobs, although you’re very aware that the dash seems to be a lot closer to you than previously and there seems to be a lot more of it. This is especially true for the centre section where the new ‘bug-eyed’ air vents sit on top of a wall of plastic containing the controls for heating, windows, A/C, headlamp levelling and the radio.
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From the driver’s side of the vehicle the changes are again striking but effective. The new instrument panel features large white-on-black dials for speed and RPM with the smaller fuel and temperature gauges located between them. Compared to what we’re used to the steering wheel seemed very small but quite chunky at the same time with good feel. The gear lever fell readily to hand in the familiar fashion but to be honest that was where any similarity stopped. The new 6-speed gearbox has a very short and narrow gate. This was especially noticeable when changing down from 6th to 5th, not exactly a problem when off-road though!
As we fired up and left the castle it has to be said that first impressions were very good. The engine seemed fairly quiet and pulled well, we trickled along in 2nd gear down to the main road where we crossed over into the deer park and headed towards the famous Eastnor woods. Bouncing down the broken tarmac we noticed that not all was well with our vehicle. The battery warning light had remained on since we started and despite our attempts to put it out (in other words blipping the throttle) it stayed lit. We radioed through to the convoy leader, we were concerned the battery could go flat, stopping the engine (ah the joy of electronically controlled diesels!). Pulling up to the woods entrance we queued up as the DE staff checked we had engaged low-range and diff-lock. Our guide popped his head through the window to have a look at the battery lamp “must be a bit of water in a sensor” he told us, we weren’t convinced. While we had his attention we asked about disabling the traction control only to be told “that’s not possible on your vehicle as some of the others don’t have tc”.
Switching to diff-lock and low-range again served to remind us that we were in a 2007 vehicle. The transfer box lever seems to have a much shorter travel than I remember with the difference between H and L being very small. To begin with I didn’t think the lever had gone in but as we looked up the new LOW lamp was illuminating the dash. Diff-lock was easily engaged and the familiar orange linked axles appeared in speedo.
So, now the fun could really begin. Trickling into the woods we edged up behind the black 110 hard-top in front only to see it dip into a series of ruts and cock a rear wheel in the Moments later we were in the same position, the result, no fuss, no drama. The TC light flicked on we drove straight out the other side without even blinking. It soon became apparent that with low-range, diff-lock and traction control all working in our favour there was going to be very little that could stop the 2007 Defender. The new Transit lump seems to have plenty of low down grunt and with the additional ‘anti-stall’ feature it was a doddle to drive. At one point we were travelling uphill, in third gear, with no throttle applied and the thing just kept going. OK the steering wheel was trying to leap off the dashboard but it wouldn’t stall.
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Progressing round the course we came to the first descent of the day. As instructed over the radio we snicked the new gearbox into first, dropped the clutch and almost stopped. In 1st Low and idle the vehicle speed is ridiculously low. In fact at some points we were tempted to crack the throttle because we were just bored going downhill at less than walking pace. Don’t get me wrong the amount of traction was fantastic it was just so slow!
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Once we had conquered this descent the rest of the course was almost too easy. The Defender took everything that was thrown at it without a hic-up to the extent that we took to taking the wrong line at obstacles, trying to find the nasty ruts that had tree roots in them, in short anything that might trip the Defender up. The result, nothing, it just did it and came back for more.
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So at the end of the best part of two hours off-roading what conclusions could we reach? Well the Defender is as capable as ever and then some. Land Rover have taken the best off-roader in the world and made it better. Better to the point where it’s almost too good. Because it just keeps going you become more and more ambitious with your driving and this is where the problem lies. With old Defender you knew you were starting to get out of your depth and could back off. On new Defender I don’t believe this will happen, the amount of trouble you could get yourself into is far greater than ever previously possible so when things do go wrong its probably going to mean somebody being on their roof, side etc.
Returning to the castle it was time for a fantastic lunch including Mrs Bagleys famous @land Rover Pudding’ (or treacle sponge to you and me). After lunch we chatted with the DE staff and booked a slot to test the on-road ability of the ‘07 defender. We were scheduled to got out at 3:00 so we had time on our hands. As we wandered round the site we came across an empty Clay pigeon stand which killed about half an hour, again all FOC.
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At 3:00 we returned to the castle forecourt to pick up our vehicle. Unfortunately there were not any 110’s available so we took a 90 hard-top. Each vehicle was equipped with a sat-nav unit and a pre-determined route that covered motorway, A-Road, B-road and town driving. Overall the drive took about an hour with a driver change half way through the route. Once again it was a case that first gear is too low for normal driving, indeed we took to pulling off from rest in second as it was quicker, and safer, than first.
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On the motorway 6th gear is fantastic. Once your up to speed you can cruise quite happily at 70 with engine ticking over at 2500rpm. Normal conversation is possible which was a bit of a shock to us as we’re used to shouting over a flapping soft-top! On road the engine pulls well and the gearbox is easy to use although you do have to remind yourself that it’s a 6 speed from time to time. Wind the engine up and there is a little audible turbo noise but nothing to get upset about and there seems to be enough torque to pull you out of corners very nicely.
Returning to the castle we popped the bonnet to see what all the fuss was about. The 4 cylinder lump seems to sit quite tall in the engine bay and a long way from the front of the vehicle. Looking at it from the side you can see how much of an angle the engine sits at, hence the bonnet bulge.
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To sum up the 2007 Defender is a fantastic leap forward compared to any Defender we had driven previously. The new dashboard takes some getting used to but works well. The six speed box is light and easy to use but you’ll only ever need first on the road if you’re towing a trailer and the Transit derived lump is well matched to its new home.
Land Rover laid on a fantastic day which more than exceeded any expectations we had. If you ever get the opportunity to attend one of these days grab it with both hands!
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