There is still time before we see an electric Land Rover Defender

The EV version will have to represent "a significant step in the evolution of the Defender," said JLR Operations Director Hoornik

Land Rover Defender 2024

By: Eleonora Lilli

Published by: Brian Potter

Jan 22, 2025 at 1:23am ET

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2025 is a very important year for Land Rover in terms of the transition to electric. The British brand is completing testing on the battery-powered Range Rover and continues to work on a second EV model, but Jaguar Land Rover's chief operating officer, Lennard Hoornik, told Autocar that an electric Land Rover Defender needs more time.

The EV version will have to represent 'a significant step in the evolution of the Defender', he explained. Why do we need to be patient? The answer lies in the platform.

The D7x platform

Hoornik explained that electrifying the current L663 car, on its D7x platform, is not what the company wants. 'The L663,' he said, 'is brilliant at what it does, and we already have a plug-in hybrid [four-cylinder] version, but it's not easy to find the extra space we need within that chassis for batteries.'

Internal company sources quoted by Autocar, but who remained anonymous, would add that the current platform would also prevent the Defender's switch to the six-cylinder plug-in hybrid powertrain with a larger battery.

"We have said that we will make an electric model for each of our brands [Range Rover, Defender, Discovery and Jaguar] and we remain committed to that," Hoornik continued. "But finding the space on the current Defender platform is really, really difficult, so we will have to use something different."

The electric Range Rover and desert testing

Photo by: Land Rover

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The Dakar 2026 will be a big test

The most likely scenario, in light of Hoornik's statements, is that an electric Defender could arrive with the generation change and the arrival of a new platform. The manager, however, did not want to comment on this idea, rather, speaking to British journalists, he was keen to reiterate Jaguar Land Rover's motivation for participating in the Dakar and FIA World Rally-Raid Championship in 2026 with two race cars derived from the Land Rover Defender Octa.

Land Rover Defender Octa

"We will learn a lot by participating," Hoornik said. "Taking on the world's most challenging rally-raid event represents the ultimate test for what is, to date, our most extreme Defender yet," Defender Managing Director Mark Cameron had commented on making the announcement.