New Land Rover Defender Rescues 20-tonne Truck

Before the recent press launch of the new Defender, two new Land Rover Defenders had to rescue a truck that had been stuck in the Namib Desert for three days.

Unsealed 4X4 attended the recent Land Rover Defender launch in Namibia (stay tuned for our first drive and African adventure which will drop on 25th March) but before journalists arrived, two Defenders were called on to rescue a semi-trailer that had been stranded for several days.

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The Land Rover Defenders were on a pre-launch expedition when they came across the stranded truck. The driver had been stuck with no communications equipment and hadn’t seen another vehicle for three days when the Defenders found him.

While Land Rover admits that the new Defender has a claimed 3500kg towing capacity “but with the Scania prime mover and its tri-axle trailer weighing around 20 tonnes (20,000 kilograms) it is likely the Defenders may have exceeded their official towing capacity – and all on a slippery, sandy surface” via towing ropes. The two Land Rover 110s (a D240 SE and a P400 S) were able to haul the truck and its trailer from the sand.

Professional photographer Damian Blakemore, who was part of the Land Rover Defender team in Namibia, described the rescue as: “International Rescue, New Defender style”. Posting on Facebook, Damian said: “The driver and his truck had been stuck in this dry riverbed for three days, miles from anywhere. What a car! What a team!”

All-new Land Rover Defender 110 five-door will go on sale in Australia in August with pricing starting from $69,990 (plus on-road costs). The new short wheelbase Defender 90 First Edition P400 will follow in October with the full three-door Defender 90 range expected to be available from December.