Land Rover News

Land Rover has turned to the dark side.The British brand has released a blacked-out version of its V8-powered off-road monster, dubbed the Defender Octa Black.It combines a potent 467kW/750Nm 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 and mild hybrid assistance with muscular off-road performance and primo luxury kit.The man in charge of the Defender program, Mark Cameron, said the Defender Octa is the tallest and widest Defender, enabling it to tackle even more extreme terrain.“The introduction of Defender Octa Black takes things up a notch,” said Cameron. “We know our clients love giving their Defenders all-black finishes, so our designers have applied this principle to every possible surface – inside and out – to create the ultimate tough luxury Defender Octa,” he said.Gloss-black finishes cover nearly all surfaces, including the exhaust tips, Land Rover oval badge, 22-inch inch alloy wheels and even underbody elements.Inside there is black leather upholstery and black seat backs, armrests and dashboard.It also comes with a whopping big 700W 15-speaker Meridian stereo, 13.1-inch multimedia screen and what Land Rover calls Body and Soul Seats that pump the audio signals from the stereo through the seats so passengers can “feel the music".There is advanced air suspension, which Land Rover claims responds to any driving style and gives the driver greater control over any terrain. The air suspension allows for a 323mm ground clearance and approach and departure angles of more than 40 degrees, along with a ramp angle of 29 degrees and a wading depth of 1000mm.This is coupled with a special Octa driving mode for off-road, which has a special ABS calibration that is designed for driving on gravel roads.Its beefy V8 can propel it to 100km/h from a standstill in 4.0 seconds on the way to a top speed of 250km/h. Fuel of 13.1 litres per 100km isn’t great.The Octa Black is only available in the 110 body style and is priced from $313,800 (before on-road costs), or about the same as three Toyota LandCruiser 300s.

The Land Rover Defender will gain more V8 options for the 2026 model year (MY26) as the British firm moves to rejuvenate the much-loved off-roader with design and tech updates.

After over a decade on sale, the Land Rover Discovery Sport has received yet another minor refresh with new trim levels and curated option packages.The line-up has now been paired back to just three variants across two trim levels called Landmark and Metropolitan. All Dynamic SE and HSE trims, along with the entry-level S model with the P200 turbo-petrol engine, have been axed.As a result, the entry price for the Discovery Sport has risen by almost $5000, but it gets the more powerful P250 turbo-petrol engine as standard, among other changes.The 2026 Discovery Sport line-up starts at $78,454 before on-roads for the Landmark P250, extending to $91,955 before on-roads for the Metropolitan P250.A table detailing the pricing for all Discovery Sport variants is at the bottom of this story.The Discovery Sport Landmark is now the entry point to the line-up, available in both P250 turbo-petrol and P300e plug-in hybrid guises. The latter offers up to 66km of electric range, according to NEDC testing.The Landmark name is a call back to the mountain range logo that was first seen on the original 1989 Land Rover Discovery.This logo features on the aluminium treadplates, along with Landmark script. The logo is also projected onto the ground from the side mirror puddle lights.In addition to having a digital instrument cluster, an 11.4-inch Pivi Pro curved glass touchscreen multimedia system, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and paddle shifters like all Discovery Sport models, the Landmark trim gains slide-and-recline functionality for the second row, a panoramic glass sunroof, ‘click & go’ media holders in the second row, and a surround-view camera.The Land Rover Discovery Sport Metropolitan, on the other hand, sits at the top of the line-up and is only offered with the P250 turbo-petrol engine.It can be distinguished by Atlas Silver Discovery script on the bonnet and tailgate, as well as Indus Silver front and rear undershields. The front grille also has a unique silver insert and there are 20-inch diamond-turned multi-spoke alloy wheels.Inside there are Metropolitan-branded treadplates, 14-speaker Meridian surround sound system, digital rear-view mirror, cabin air purification system, Windsor leather upholstery, and 14-way electrically adjustable front seats that are also heated and ventilated.In addition to this, there are now a range of new curated option packages.New Beach Days, Road Trip and Snow Days packages join the existing Biking Adventures and For Dogs packages.The Beach Days package adds a centre armrest cooler, tailored sunshades, as well as a collapsible organiser for the boot.The Road Trip package includes ‘click & go’ media holders in the second row, as well as cross bars and a roof box.The Snow Days package adds cross bars and a ski and snowboard carrier, rubber floor mats, as well as a ‘Snow’ traction control mode.As previously, the Discovery Sport comes standard with five seats, though it can be optioned with a third row, bring the total number of seats to seven.Land Rover claims there are 24 possible seating configurations thanks to the sliding and reclining second row, and with the third- and second-row seats folded there’s 1794 litres of boot space available.In the first five months of 2025, Land Rover has sold a total of 167 Discovery Sport examples. This is up 60.6 per cent year-on-year.

It’s EOFY time again!

There’s a new budget-friendly Land Rover Defender-esque electric SUV on the horizon, and where else but China for such a vehicle to surface?

Want to know which new SUVs have the worst resale value before you buy? CarsGuide’s analytics team of data experts have crunched the numbers to find the models that lose their value the fastest. See if the SUV you’re about to buy is on the list.

There’s a lot of attention paid to the rise of Chinese auto brands in Australia and their ever-increasing market share.Brands like BYD, Chery, GWM, MG and newer marques like Deepal, Geely, JAC, Leapmotor and Zeekr have collectively taken a bite out of the sales of some long-standing brands.But it’s not all doom and gloom for the more established, non-Chinese makes. In fact, a number of them are performing quite well on the sales charts so far this year.However, it’s not mainstream legacy brands that are on the up. In fact, a lot of the top-10 brands are treading water.With the exception of Fiat Professional, whose sales are up by 120 per cent this year, all of the other brands experiencing strong growth in 2025 are exotic, premium or semi-premium offerings.One of the semi-premium brands doing well in 2025 is Cupra. Volkswagen Group’s Spanish performance specialist has seen its overall sales shoot up by 35 per cent so far in 2025 after a slower 2024.While a couple of its models - the ageing Ateca SUV and the Leon small hatchback - have gone backwards on the sales charts, the striking Formentor SUV has increased by 54.8 per cent in 2025. At 469 sales so far, it’s not a massive number but it represents a big uptick for a newish name.The Born EV is also up this year by 24.2 per cent, while the only just arrived Tavascan electric SUV is expected to further boost Cupra’s sales thanks to keen pricing and sharp design. Facelifted versions of the Leon and Formentor arriving this year should only help Cupra’s upward trajectory.Mini is another semi-premium brand having an excellent 2025. The BMW-owned marque’s sales are up by 69.4 per cent so far (1394 versus 823 units). And it’s largely thanks to one model.The new-gen Countryman SUV has proven to be a massive hit, recording 553 sales which equates to a 369 per cent increase on Q1 last year. As well as enjoying positive media reviews, buyers have clearly warmed to the new Countryman’s more family-friendly dimensions, new tech and the option of petrol and fully-electric powertrains.Of course the Cooper hatch remains the brand’s top seller, with petrol and electric versions combining for a total of 634 sales, up 29.7 per cent.It might not be a premium brand in its US home market, but in Australia, Chevrolet takes a more upscale position as it only sells high-end, full-size pick-ups and sports cars.That strategy is clearly working because Chevrolet sales are up by 12.8 per cent so far in 2025, on the back of interest in the Corvette sports car. Z06 sales are up 250 per cent and the Stingray has increased by 50 per cent. The Silverado 1500 truck is the biggest seller with 627 sold in 2025, up by 14.4 per cent.Two of Australia’s most popular premium brands are also having a good year - Lexus and Mercedes-Benz.What’s interesting about Lexus is that its growth is mostly down to the compact LBX SUV. The little crossover has recorded a massive 353 per cent increase on its Q1 2024 tally with 598 sales.The LBX is easily outselling its slightly larger UX sibling and is just ahead of the aforementioned Cupra Forementor (469 sales) and Mini Countryman (553), but trailing the Audi Q3 (676) in the premium small SUV segment.The Toyota Prado-based GX large SUV is Lexus’ other solid performer with 285 sales.Mercedes is having an exceptional start to the year with a 31 per cent boost thanks to big sales increases on a number of its model lines.Key models having a good year include the E-Class (+223 per cent) and S-Class (+300 per cent) sedans, GLA (+139.2 per cent), GLC (+82.5 per cent) and GLS (+72.6 per cent) SUVs and EVs like the EQB (+270 per cent).Despite double-digit sales drops for most of its Range Rover models - Range Rover, Evoque and Velar - Land Rover has seen strong interest in the Defender (+61.2 per cent) and the Discovery Sport (+57 per cent) for a Q1 boost of 13 per cent.As is often the case in harsh economic times, the top end of town is sailing through unaffected. That is evident in sales of exotic brands in Australia, which are largely in positive territory.Rolls-Royce may have small volumes, but sales are up by 111 per cent this year, while sports car brands like Aston Martin (+34.1 per cent), Ferrari (+7.4 per cent), Lamborghini (+78.3 per cent) and McLaren (+100 per cent) are all well in front of the year prior.

The Kia Tasman ute hasn’t even arrived yet, but the outcry over its looks has been huge, with people saying it’s not just the ugliest car they have ever seen but the ugliest thing they’ve seen ever, like in their entire lives.

Reports out of the UK this week point to development of a pure-electric version of the Land Rover Defender, most likely in the rugged off-roader’s next generation.

Range Rover has announced it will release a special edition SV model exclusively to the Australian market in a very limited quantity.