Land Rover Defender Dakar SUV
The Land Rover Defender that won its class at the 2026 Dakar Rally raced under a power cap, its BMW-sourced V8 held to roughly 394 horsepower by regulation, down from the 626 horsepower it makes in the standard Defender OCTA it's built from. The new Defender Dakar, a street-legal special edition, restores that full output, giving the road car more power than the truck that won. It carries over the D7X-R's body and driveline, then adds a wider track, taller ride height, coil suspension with Bilstein dampers, and 35-inch all-terrain tires on forged 20-inch wheels. Land Rover also built a Flight Mode into the drive settings, alongside Dunes and Gravel, specifically to smooth landings after the truck goes airborne. It wears the winning livery, a Dakar Sand body under a Yanbu Turquoise roof, with a carbon fiber hood, raised carbon intakes, and riveted arch extensions, and inside, a 2+2 cabin with bespoke race seats and optional four-point harnesses.
