Heritage Customs from the Netherlands, which is co-owned by designer Niels van Roij, presented the first sketches of the Valiance Convertible, a soft-top model based on the Land Rover Defender that will be produced in a limited number of five units for 2022 through the Carchitecture program. The conversion is based on the two-door short-wheelbase Defender 90. It includes cutting off the roof and the rear quarter panels/windows and replacing them with a “semi-electric” foldable soft-top. This brings an open-air feeling to passengers of both rows, while retaining the original structure of the A- and B-pillars.

The vehicle comes in custom exterior shades, with a handcrafted bespoke interior featuring spinneybeck leather upholstery, Magic Metal elements, handmade enamel Heritage Customs emblems, and a variety of forged wheel designs. The company has teased three different configurations for the Valiance Convertible, inspired by beautiful beaches and Land Rovers’ heritage – the Côte d’Azur, the Solihull Sand, and the Kokkini Paralia.

 

The Côte d’Azur, named after the Mediterranean coast of southeastern France is painted in blue, with black inserts on the bumpers, Magic Metal Copper accents, cognac roof, and 22-inch Space Cowboy wheels shod in white-wall tires. Inside it gets sports seats, a classic steering wheel, and Magic Metal Copper details. The Solihull Sand, inspired by the “Hue I66” which was the first Land Rover that came out of production, is painted in green with gray bumper inserts, Magic Metal Gun Metal accents, sand roof, and white 20-inch Rock Dust wheels. This one gets classic seats, a classic steering wheel, and Magic Metal patinated Copper accents.

Last but not least, the Kokkini Paralia is named after the famous Red Beach of Greek island Santorini. Fittingly, it is painted in a dark matte red exterior shade combined with black bumper inserts, Magic Metal Gun Metal accents, black roof, and 22-inch Supersonic Wheels. Inside we find sports seats, a sports steering wheel, plus Magic Metal Tin accents. The indicative price is € 138,500 or US$ 160,000, excluding any taxes. For comparison, prices for the three-door Land Rover Defender 90 in the US start from US$ 52,300 for the base-spec with the 2.0-liter P300 four-cylinder engine, all the way up to US$ 111,400 for the V8-powered Carpathian Edition flagship.

Whoever wants one of the five bespoke convertible off-roaders should contact Heritage Customs before it’s too late due to the limited availability of the model.