Land Rover to launch Defender pickup to rival Mercedes X-Class

Land Rover is reportedly working on a pickup version of its upcoming Defender off-roader in a bid to take on Mercedes’s new X-Class.

According to Autocar, the pickup is likely to take the form of a single-cab vehicle, since it would be “easier to adapt the Defender’s platform” to that layout than to a double-cab format.

Further details are scarce, but the magazine predicts that the new vehicle will house both petrol and diesel variants of Land Rover’s 2.0-litre Ingenium engines. The pickup market is “not geared up” for hybrid or electric motors, so they are unlikely to be offered, Autocar adds.

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The new Mercedes X-Class is one of the most premium pickups on the market, so Land Rover will need to offer the single-cab Defender with a “luxed-up spec” in order to compete with its German rival, says Motor1.

Industry insiders are predicting that Land Rover will also offer a more “spartan version” of the Defender pickup that will be similar to its original Series 1 from 1948.

Although the pickup isn’t expected to arrive until 2020, Auto Express says that the base model of the all-new Defender will be revealed later this year, to celebrate the company’s 70-year anniversary.

According to the magazine, the basic model is likely to feature a short wheelbase design and fixed roof at launch, and Land Rover plans to add a host of new models based on Defender platform following its release - including the rumoured pickup.