New Defender 130 pickup breaks cover, minds
The last time Heritage Customs showed a Defender, it was a soft-top. This time it's gone more hardcore...
You’ll recall Heritage Customs’ last creation because it was also a Defender and also pretty wild. Niels van Roij’s convertible (which later added a V8 model) was revealed in production format last year to near-universal acclaim - or ‘pram’, as the first PHer announced it in the comments. Its followup is unlikely to elicit a less forthright response because it’s a bespoke pickup based on the Defender 130, a car so large that even Land Rover is willing to privately concede that it’s not ideally suited to the UK. Or indeed the rest of Europe.
But it’ll take more than basic common sense to stop Heritage Customs. The firm says it ‘believes it was time to push the boundaries of the Defender again’ - and has drawn on (admittedly plentiful) examples of Land Rover classic vehicles which were built to do more than crawl around central London. Not that the Valiance Pickup won’t do that, of course - after all, it ‘embodies the spirit of bespoke luxury and engineering performance while offering unmatched versatility and utility’ - but there is a diesel 130 under there, which means you’re getting a (sort of) usable truck bed.
As you might expect, Heritage Customs is keener to talk more about bespoke pain and unique upholstery than it is load capacity, although it does suggest that its ‘designers have created a range of unique accessories to enhance each Defender's style, ensuring customers feel like the king of the road - and desert!’ We’d be more concerned about which way the tailgate opens than the choice of 20- and 22-inch wheels on offer, but when you’re dealing with ‘skilled artisans’ you have to choose your battles wisely.
For what it’s worth, Land Rover is widely known to have toyed with the idea of a modern pickup Defender, and the introduction of options like the Ineos Grenadier Quartermaster - not to mention the Ford Ranger on every corner - ought to have provided it with sufficient evidence about the concept's viability. It’ll probably declare itself less interested in the Heritage Customs version, although it will have quietly noted the asking price: 155,000 euros, excluding VAT. And that accounts for the Defender 130 X Dynamic SE donor car. The coachbuilder says it will take approximately three months and wants half the cost upfront. Expect a few brave souls to take the plunge.
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