The 15 Best Land Rovers Of All Time

Following the Second World War, British manufacturer Rover was looking for ways to expand its lineup into new segments. One of the most capable vehicles to emerge as a result of the war was the Willys-Overland Jeep, a favorite of both American and British soldiers. Rover decided to develop its own version of the Jeep, designed primarily for use on agricultural land. Christened the "Land Rover," the car launched in 1948 and quickly gained popularity, selling 8,000 units in its first year and attracting the attention of the British Army.

The following year, the Army commissioned Rover to build a military version of the agricultural vehicle, and shortly after that, the Royal Family requested its own custom-built "State Review" car. Since those initial successes, Britain's original SUV has been through countless evolutions, with a focus in recent years on luxury and off-road capability. Its priciest models are a world away from the brand's humble roots, but no matter what, Land Rover has always ensured that its vehicles remain some of the most capable off-roaders on the market.

The original Range Rover is widely considered to be the world's first luxury SUV, and it paved the way for every other "chelsea tractor" on the market today. When it first debuted in 1970, it still had a typical Land Rover interior, which could be hosed clean after a long day's work on a farm or country estate. However, its popularity with wealthy landowners meant that it quickly became more luxurious inside, with a level of fit and finish on par with a luxury passenger car. Prince Charles, as he was then known, was very fond of the Range Rover Classic, and was often seen driving one around his Royal estates.

Plusher inside than any off-road vehicle before it, the Range Rover lost none of its all-terrain capability in its push upmarket. In 1977, a modified Range Rover won its class in the London-Sydney marathon, an 18,750-mile event that remains the longest speed-based car rally ever created. Two years later, a Range Rover won the first-ever Paris-Dakar rally, and in 1981 it took a second outright victory, (via Land Rover). Despite these successes and its popularity among Britain's wealthiest drivers, it took until 1987 for the Range Rover to be launched in North America. It was only on sale for seven years before it was replaced by the second-generation Range Rover, the P38a.

The enduring popularity of the original Defender meant that when the new generation debuted in 2020, it had some seriously big shoes to fill. However, it proved to be worth the wait, with more off-road capability than ever and a premium-yet-functional interior. It's smoother on the road than the rather agricultural original Defender, with plenty of punch available from the 3.0L inline-6. Although it's clear that Land Rover are catering more to the suburban masses than farmers with the new generation of the car, the Defender does retain the winning combination of thoughtful practicality and go-anywhere capability that made the old car such a good agricultural workhorse.

The four-door 110 is the variant that most buyers will want, but the two-door 90 variant offers the more traditional, squared-off look that differentiates it from other SUVs. The 90 is also equally good to drive, more nimble and playful than buyers might expect. There's even a Sport mode for some extra power at the lights, although buyers of the inline-6 and V8 versions shouldn't be left wanting more even in Auto mode.

The LR4, or Discovery 4 as it was known in its home market, took many of the best elements of the brand's other vehicles and combined them into one versatile SUV. It was very much a family-oriented SUV, albeit one that could handle rough terrain a lot better than the average mall crawler. In many ways, it was more "wholly dedicated to the brand's original SUV formula" than most of Land Rover's other offerings at the time. With an old-school ladder frame construction and a 3.0L supercharged V6, the LR4 didn't feel as sedan-like to drive as its German rivals, instead feeling sturdier and smoother.

It was quite happy as a spacious commuter vehicle, shuffling the kids to school and doing the grocery run, but take it outside the comforts of asphalt roads and it came into its own. The car's Terrain Response System and optional low-range four-wheel drive ensured that the LR4 could tackle terrain much rougher than anything a BMW or Audi could handle, with ice, mud, and rocks being no trouble at all.

Built for the most elite unit of the British Army, the SAS, the "Pink Panther" was given its name thanks to its unique paint scheme. It was a specially-modified Land Rover Series 2A built to survive the deserts of the Middle East, and the pink color was used because the SAS discovered it was the most effective means of camouflage in the unique environment. The story goes that this discovery was made entirely by accident, as the secretive division had originally painted an aircraft pink to make it highly visible, but crashed it in the desert, and then found it impossible to locate. The pink color was found to blend in very well with the sand, and so it was decided that the SAS' new Land Rovers should also be this color.

There was no need for the Pink Panther to feature doors, a windshield, or a roof. Instead, the car was loaded with shovels, navigation equipment, jerry cans, and of course, plenty of guns. Only 72 Pink Panthers were ever made, and only around 20 survived their military service, reports Silodrome. They were sold off to private collectors, and thanks to their rarity and unique backstory, they're among the most collectible Land Rovers on the market today.

The original production run of the Defender ended in 2016, but two years later, Land Rover celebrated its 70th birthday by announcing a "new" variant of the classic model. These weren't actually new Defenders, but instead, 2015 and 2016 model year cars that had been re-acquired by Land Rover and sent back to its specialist Classic division for an upgrade. Each car was refitted with a brand new V8 engine making 400 horsepower and 380 lb-ft of torque, mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission with the "trigger" shifter taken from the Jaguar F-Type (via Auto Express).

A number of upgrades helped the Defender manage its power upgrade, including new springs, anti-roll bars, and performance brakes. The car sported new 18-inch alloys and BFGoodrich off-road tires to differentiate it from other, lesser variants. The Defender Works V8 was limited to just 150 units, and build slots sold out quickly upon launch.

The first Land Rover ever made wears the registration plate HUE166, and it's referred to as "Huey" by fans of the brand. It was sold to a local farmer, then eventually restored and brought back to factory spec by Land Rover. It might be an icon, but Huey isn't the easiest to drive, with one reviewer calling it "a culture shock" after a morning of driving a modern Range Rover. The car packs a meager 50 horsepower and gear changes require the use of a lever that juts out of the bare metal floor, while almost every mechanical element of the car makes its own crunch or whine.

It might have been rudimentary, but the original Land Rover triumphed in one key way that its inspiration, the Willys-Overland Jeep, did not: it didn't get bogged down in thick British mud. That alone was enough to make it a hit with farmers all over the country, and soon Rover's books were filling with thousands of orders both from home and abroad, according to The National. After being bought back and restored by Land Rover, Huey now sits in the company's heritage collection, and it's now on permanent display at the British Motor Museum in Warwickshire.

Combining two classic British icons into one, the Defender SVX Spectre was built especially for the James Bond movie of the same name. Each one was based on a 110 pickup and featured a number of modifications to tackle the tough terrain that was used for filming. To prepare the cars, Land Rover enlisted the help of racing specialist Bowler, who had been making competition-spec Land Rovers for decades. Bowler added extra body protection to guard against bumps and scrapes, and huge 37-inch Maxis Trepador tires that were bolted onto Beadlock alloy wheels.

The car's power output was boosted to 185 horsepower from 120 horsepower, and Recaro seats with four-point harnesses ensured that drivers were kept firmly in place throughout chase scenes (via Tom Hartley Jnr). Not every Spectre Defender survived filming, and some that did were never registered for the road. However, a small handful did get registered and sold off to private collectors. They rarely come up for sale, and when they do, they command prices that a top-spec Range Rover would struggle to reach. At the time of writing, one is currently for sale at a British specialist dealer for £245,000 ($271,000).