The 2021 Dakar Rally is just around the corner and the new Land Rover Defender will be present, sadly not to race but to support the efforts of the Prodrive-backed Bahrain Raid XTreme team, or BRX for short. A pair of production-spec Defender 110 P400 models will act as support vehicles for the BRX team, who will enter the iconic race with nine-time World Rally champion Sébastien Loeb and two-time Dakar Rally winner Nani Roma.
BRX’s Land Rover Defenders will be driven
on the definition of extreme conditions, traversing desert dunes, mud, and
rocks, carrying vital supplies and equipment, as well as the team’s crew who
will camp, eat, and sleep in them across the Dakar Rally’s 12 stages.
“Land Rover has a unique Dakar pedigree
having won the inaugural event in 1979, and the rally remains the ultimate
all-terrain endurance test,” said Finbar
McFall, Jaguar Land Rover Customer Experience Director. “While the Defenders
won’t be competing, they will have a vital role in supporting the team as they
navigate their way across thousands of miles of punishing desert terrain. The
fact these vehicles are unmodified is testimony to the intrinsic capability and
durability of our legendary 4×4, which has undergone the most demanding
engineering test and development programme in our history.”
Land Rover says that the two Defenders are
showroom-standard, finished in Indus Silver, and featuring the mild-hybrid
3.0-liter Ingenium straight-six engine with 394 HP. The cars are
fitted with factory options like the Explorer Pack, which includes the
Expedition Roof Rack, Raised Air Intake, wheel arch protection, and the
Exterior Side-Mounted Gear Carrier, as well as a deployable roof ladder that
provides access to a roof box.
