For a car designer it is always easier to create an entirely new vehicle, than trying to reinvent a legendary icon. Mercedes-Benz faced this challenge a couple of years ago, when their famous Geländewagen, the G, reached the end of its life circle, after almost 40 years. When the old one was terminated, the new one took over immediately. From a distance it still looks exactly like the previous one, despite being a completely new vehicle.

Land Rover had appointed no successor, when the popular Defender with a huge worldwide fanbase was officially terminated on 29th January 2016. Their last model was the Heritage, in a traditional green, which I took for an appropriate farewell trip to Namibia.

The Landy originated in 1947 on a beach. As a drawing of a square, utilitarian 4×4 in the sand. The ‘Series I’ was launched at the motor show in Amsterdam on 30th April 1948. In 1990, when Land Rover introduced a second model, the Discovery, the icon previously known as the short 90 and the longer 110, needed a real name as well. From then onwards it was known as the Defender.

In 2019 the New Defender finally made it’s debut. Proudly bearing both the name as well as the wheelbase number ‘110’ of the old one. And in Daniel Craig’s very last mission as the world’s most famous spy the modern Defender was supposed to have an impressive cinematic 007 action role in April 2020. But due to the worldwide pandemic, the premiere of the 25th Bond movie was delayed for an entire year.