The Lander Rover Defender saw the final days of its U.S. production back in 1997, when safety regulations forced it off the market, but the vehicle lives on in Europe to this very day. Unfortunately, however, increasingly strict emissions requirements are phasing the off-road SUV out of the European production cycle too.

Originally, the Land Rover was expected to be retired from production in 2015, with a more efficient replacement model being introduced in the same year. Now, as it turns out, a source from Land Rover claims, "there are a number of changes to the legislation that mean we can keep the current Defender in production longer than we thought."¹

How much longer? According to the source, the Defender is now set to continue production through 2017, and some are even estimating that it could continue to stay into production until 2020. We should also note that the British automaker is planning to equip Future Defender models with a 2.2-liter diesel engine that should make it further compliant with current legislation, which is why they're guessing that it could stay on for an additional three years.

While the Defender will be sticking around a little longer, Land Rover isn't taking that time for granted. The new replacement model for the Defender is still expected to debut in 2015, as it will now help ease the transition from the Defender to whatever model Lander Rover has up their sleeve next.

Of course, the new Land Rover models that we know and love in the United States aren't going anywhere. We are, however, excited to learn if the Defender replacement will be making its way from overseas, to the U.S. market. If it does, Land Rover of Hoffman Estates, located at 1051 West Higgins Road in Hoffman Estates, IL 60169, promises you'll be among the first to know!

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