Land Rover gave the Defender an extremely subtle facelift for the 2026 model year, but what’s most interesting about this updated 4×4 is what isn’t new: Its supercharged 5.0-liter V-8. Yes, the Defender V8 gets a stay of execution, living alongside the new, twin-turbo V-8 Defender Octa for the immediate future. Land Rover hasn’t confirmed US specs for the 2026 Defender yet, so we’ve reached out to see if we’ll get the 5.0-liter here, and we’ll update if and when we hear back.
This supercharged V-8 is one of the oldest engines on the market. Jaguar developed this, the AJ-V8, in the mid-1990s under Ford ownership. The 5.0-liter version debuted in 2009, and for a while, it was available in many models across the Jaguar Land Rover lineup. But with Jaguar soon ending gas-car production entirely—the F-Pace is still soldiering on for a bit—and Range Rover models all switching to a BMW-sourced 4.4-liter twin-turbo V-8, the Defender is very likely the last car to get this supercharged engine.
Photo by: Land Rover
The changes for the 2026 Defender are very minor otherwise. Exterior changes are a new headlight design, standard fog lights, smoked taillights, revised trim pieces, plus new colors and wheel designs. Inside, things are mostly the same, except for a 13.1-inch infotainment display in place of the old 11.4-inch unit.
The Defender gains the option of Land Rover’s Adaptive Off-Road Cruise Control system, which automatically adjusts speed depending on obstacles. This, Land Rover says, contributes to “unruffled” off-road driving. How very English. And with the three-row Defender 130, Land Rover offers an in-built air-compressor for airing up your tires after off-roading.
In Europe, the 2026 Defender is already on sale, but presumably, we’ll have to wait a bit longer to get it in the US. And while our emissions regulations are more lax than those elsewhere, we can’t imagine the supercharged V-8 is long for this world. Get one while you still can.
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