Electric Land Rover Defender put through ‘real world scenarios’

Electric cars seem to be everywhere. And even though they haven’t flooded the GCC market yet, we have a feeling that we’re not too far off. And something that could support this statement would have to be the news that the electric powered Land Rover Defender has passed the “real-world scenarios” test.

Unveiled at this year’s Geneva Auto Show, it was reported that six Land Rover electric Defenders were produced to research the electrification of all-terrain vehicles in real-world test scenarios. And the first electric Defender to receive a test assignment was a four-wheel-drive 110 Pick Up, which was sent to the Eden Project in Cornwall, England, to pull the 12 ton four-carriage road train that transports visitors around the environmentally friendly plant research site.

The Electric Defender in its original, single-battery configuration can operate for up to 80kms, with a little over 19kms in reserve. And according to the company, if functioned at low speeds, the vehicle can pull carriages around the site for about eight hours before it runs out of juice. But the recent addition, which essentially adds a second lithium-ion battery should lengthen the Defender’s run time and also help stabilise the vehicle by improving weight distribution. All this done with a 94 hp motor, which produces 330 Nm of torque. And since electric motors have the ability to utilise full torque from the moment you put your foot down, off-roading will certainly become interesting.

And one of the new impressive technologies the Electric Defender is testing is a hill-descent function which is linked to the regenerative braking system. Up to 80 percent of the batteries’ power can be regenerated in this way. During each downhill trip made at the Eden Project, the SUV regenerated up to 30 kilowatts of power. Impressive?

It makes us wonder how well it will fare in a ‘real-world scenario’ of the scorching heat in the Middle-East deserts.