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Styling face-off: 2020 Land Rover Defender 90 v 2011 DC100 concept

The new Defender might feature a few throwback styling tricks, but let's not forget the showcar that previewed it...


Back in 2011, literally a century ago (okay, that's not how 'literally' works), well before I joined CarAdvice, I wrote about and drooled over the Land Rover DC100 concept. CarAdvice wrote about it too, of course.

Modeled as a potential preview of the new off-roading SUV that would replace the legendary Defender, the DC100 introduced a look that brought some modernity to the concept.

It was sleek yet boxy, fresh yet retro, strange yet familiar. For fans of the "it had to be retired" old Defender, it was the first proper confrontation with a thought they'd only skimmed the surface of: Could I ever like a Defender that wasn't an endearingly leaky box with no elbow room?

Luckily for me, I have none of the history with the Land Rover brand that both enriches the lives and clouds the minds of tragics, such as our off-road editor Sam Purcell. So… while many of the die-hards bemoaned the idea of any future where the DC100 would wear a Defender badge, I was all in.

I loved the look of the DC100.  It wasn't distinctly Defender, but I didn't care (and, indeed, neither did Land Rover design boss Gerry McGovern). It looked enough like a Land Rover, and it looked sweet.

Now, nearly 10 years later, we have the official new Defender. Rest in peace, old Defender.

That brings us to… a styling face-off! Don't bother comparing the new Defender to the old one, they obviously don't have loads in common.

Sure there are some details that are clearly inspired by the original, but I'm more interested in how much of the DC100 concept lives on in the new 2020 Land Rover Defender.

I want to know: did you like the DC100 at all? If you didn't, has the final Defender design won you over? If you did like the DC100, is the new Defender a faithful evolution or a step backwards?

Here are some comparison shots between the two thee-door designs. Jump into the comments and tell me what you think!





Tell us what you think!


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