‘Groundbreaking’ Defender Octa Confirmed for SA in Limited Numbers
Scheduled to make its official debut on 3 July, 2024, Jaguar Land Rover South Africa has confirmed the local introduction of the ‘groundbreaking’ Defender Octa. Here’s what you can expect from the upcoming model…
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Billed as a high-performance, all-terrain hero, the Defender Octa “will be synonymous with mastering epic adventures in heightened luxury”, says the British marque. Although technical specifications and performance figures have yet to be announced, the Coventry-based brand has confirmed the new addition to its Defender line-up will be powered by a twin-turbocharged, V8 petrol engine, which incorporates mild-hybrid technology.
Twin-Turbocharged V8 Defender OCTA Debuting Later This Year
“[The] Defender Octa will offer an unparalleled breadth of capability, comfort and composure, whether on-road or off-road … It lives up to its billing as the toughest and most durable model in the unstoppable Defender family,” said the automaker.
To ensure this Land Rover Defender derivative’s “unparalleled” capability, comfort and composure, on top of the standard testing regimes carried out on the Defender, Jaguar Land Rover’s engineers have conducted “more than” 13 960 additional tests, which included “high-performance” handling and durability at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, ice driving in Sweden, desert driving in Dubai, Moab rock crawls in the USA, and rally-raid stages at Lastours, France. In addition, the company says the Defender Octa has “conquered” every “extreme” trail at its Eastnor testing facility in the UK.
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To ensure exclusivity, only a limited number of Defender Octa examples are destined for South African shores, with the local arm of the firm saying prospective clients interested in putting pen to paper for one of the first units in SA should contact their Land Rover retailers now.
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