Going up for auction in London on September 6 is one of the surviving Land Rover Defenders from the last James Bond film, Spectre. Luckily, this example was only used in drive-by scenes in the film, so it’s in near perfect condition with only 145 miles on the clock — it’s barely broken in.
To make the Defender worthy of a Bond villain henchman, the Defender 110 was worked on by JLR’s Special Vehicle Operations and then Land Rover tuning specialists Bowler brought the SUV up to race spec. Aside from the obvious enhancements, the Defender was equipped with Bilstein rally dampers, a full roll cage, a power bump to 185 hp and 367 lb-ft of torque, Recaro seats and a hydraulic handbrake. So if you do happen to find yourself being chased through an alpine forest by a low flying plane, know that this Defender is literally prepared for it.
Personal opinions aside, there was at least one glaring problem with the last James Bond movie, SPECTRE: the cars. Bond’s rides and even the villains’ cars, historically, have all been real cars you can (probably) buy — Aston Martin DB4, Aston Marin Vanquish, Rolls-Royce Phantom III, etc. — but both main cars in SPECTRE were concepts. Bond’s DB10 and Mr. Hinx’s Jaguar C-X75 were undoubtedly cool, but they were also just for the silver screen. This Defender, though, is real and is ready for a new home.
