Land Rover produces the ONLY approved Defender Book!

On this day 69 years ago a legend was born as the first Land Rover was revealed to the world at the Amsterdam Motor Show. Over the next seven decades the rugged 4×4 visited all corners of the world as it wrote its name into automotive folklore.

Painstakingly Researched

As Land Rover begins the countdown towards its 70th anniversary celebrations on 30 April 2018, the perfect gift for Defender lovers across the globe has been announced. Icon is the definitive official book celebrating Series and Defender models. It hits the shelves in July.

The carefully curated and beautifully produced hardback charts the legendary expeditions, humanitarian projects and adventures undertaken by these incredible machines and the people who brought them to life.

The collector’s item will be available online and at selected showrooms and Experience Centres.

“It had to be a long-wheelbase version to satisfy the dreams of 10-year-old me” writes Richard Hammond

“The size and capacity of it sang of purposefulness, of having a job to do whenever it got to whatever inaccessible place it was headed.”

ICON the book 70 years in the making

It features carefully chosen archive images, vivid first-hand accounts and exclusive interviews with the people behind the most recognisable 4×4 on the planet, including production line employees, significant customers and company executives. The team responsible for the next generation Defender, Chief Design Officer Gerry McGovern and Executive Director – Product Engineering, Nick Rogers, also share their thoughts on what makes Defender so special.

Series and Defender models have been a popular choice for politicians, celebrities and even Royalty over the last 69 years, so well-known contributors also share their experiences. The foreword is provided by world famous Land Rover customer and The Grand Tour presenter Richard Hammond, while adventurer and broadcaster Bear Grylls, fashion legend Ralph Lauren and Rugby World Cup winner and former South Africa captain John Smit are just a few of the other famous names to grace the pages.
Icon stretches over 10 chapters and more than 200 pages and captures the essence of the Series and Defender models through the vehicles themselves and the people who have loved, driven and relied upon them over the last 69 years.

I am looking forward to getting my hands on a copy, well two in-fact (Am I greedy? I want one to read and one as a collectors item)

When it’s in my hands I will be doing a proper review of it for you.

DIALS

The very basic instrumentation layout featured a key ignition (many were fitted without). The green ‘OIL’ light is now an incredibly rare pare, only fitted to early examples. These pre-production vehicles used a Rover P3-based car engine and that car’s oil/petrol combination gauge. This was a temporary fit as the petrol-only gauge wasn’t ready at this time.

The definitive story of Series and Defender models will be available in hardback in July priced at £50 (RRP)

This feels expensive at almost 25p per page but we have to remember we love our Land Rovers. So I’m looking forward to handing my money over and waiting at the letter box.

Copies will be available online at the official Land Rover shop and customers can register to be among the first to take delivery of Icon.

Sadly it looks like at the moment they are not handling any deliveries outside of the UK. So expect if you want one overseas you’ll have to visit an Experience Centre or showroom and cross your fingers they are in stock.