New Land Rover Defender Octa Special Debuts With 626 HP V8, ROI Opened Locally

This is the new and limited Land Rover Defender Octa special.

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) expanded its latest-generation Defender 4x4 SUV range earlier today by revealing a special new addition to which. Christened as the Land Rover Defender Octa, JLR bills this as the most extreme, powerful and capable variant of the latest-gen Defender ever built.

The move to base this special on the Defender 110 was deliberate – JLR says it’s the ideal way of showcasing the peak capabilities of the brand. “This is a Defender on steroids – the pinnacle,” reportedly said brand boss Marc Cameron to UK title Autocar.

Yes, this is a Defender built for maximum driving fun both on- and off-road!

The first offering spawned from the Octa sub-brand tasked with building special edition Defender models sees a BMW-derived 4.4-litre V8 twin-turbo mild hybrid (MHEV) primed under its hood, boasting beefy outputs of 635 PS (626 HP) and 750 NM.

Despite tipping the scales at a claimed 2,510 KG, said powerplant still enables the Defender Octa with a rapid 0-100 KM/H sprint time of 4 secs plus an electronically capped V-max of 250 KM/H. This puts the Defender Octa close in terms of pace with the Range Rover Sport SV.

Though it has supercar-like on-road speed, the Defender Octa remains focused at providing greater levels of off-road performance than any other Land Rover to date. This stems form its beefed up chassis that was developed through 13,960 tests covering various terrain and climate types.

A critical new addition here is the 6D Dynamics suspension tech. Derived from the Ranger Rover Sport SV, this hydraulically-interlinked setup fitted for the first time in the Defender features extensive hardware and geometry changes to deliver uncompromised driving fun, both on- and off-road.

Unlike the base Defender 110, the Defender Octa sits 68 MM wider and 28 MM taller. It also boasts enhanced clearances all around to make it a much better off-roader.

This perhaps explains the Defender Octa’s 68 MM wider and 28 MM taller stance over the base Defender 110. Other key enablers here include revised suspension with longer and tougher wishbones, unique active dampers with separate accumulators, and top-shelf Brembo anchors.

Altogether, the Defender Octa sees its water-wading depth increase by 100 MM to a total of 1 Metre, whilst new front and rear bumper also deliver improved 40-degree approach and 42-degree departure angles with a 29-degree breakover angle.

Available as an option are special bespoke all-terrain tyres developed by Goodyear, though these have a limited on-road speed of 160 KM/H.

Another unique addition here are optional bespoke Goodyear Advanced All-Terrain tyres shod on each specially designed 20-inch wheel the Defender Octa rolls on. However, unlike the standard-equipped road-focused tyres, these optional all-terrain tyres are limited to a speed of just 160 KM/H.

Besides bespoke wheels, the Defender Octa also sport unique aesthetics touches like the new, more open grille design, diamond Octa badge in the C-pillar, as well as its flared wheel arches, though the latter does pale in contrast to what 4x4 specialists Arctic Trucks recently built.

Unique design touches to the Defender Octa include its bespoke front bumper design, diamond Octa badge in the C-pillars, and exclusive gloss black-finished roof and tailgate.

That aside, all Defender Octa units will feature a gloss black-finished roof and tailgate. Inside, the treatment includes new performance seats with an integrated headrest and seamless finish upholstered with a 3D-knit texture. The latter will soon be a new option in other JLR models.

Other key bits primed on board include JLR’s top-shelf 11.4-inch infotainment suite, centre console fridge, and Burnt semi-aniline leather upholstery as standard. There will also be a special launch edition trim that adds retractable side-steps, plus 22-inch wheels too.

The performance seat design are new and will soon be available in other JLR models as an option.

Set to publicly debut at this year’s edition of the Goodwood Festival of Speed, JLR says it will begin accepting orders for the Land Rover Defender Octa starting July 31. Just 1,070 units will be built, with deliveries slated to begin later this year.

Locally, JLR Malaysia has confirmed that local prospects can register their interest for the special online via this link – Land Rover Defender Octa ROI. No local price figure was revealed, but things start from £145,300 in the UK, or roughly RM869,932.