This is the Land Rover Defender that will compete in the Dakar

Land Rover has revealed the Defender that will compete in the Dakar Rally in January.

It’s called the Defender Dakar D7X-R, and to allow it to compete in the new ‘Stock’ category of the World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) it started its life as a production-spec Defender OCTA.

That means it gets a 4.4-litre V8 that’s mechanically unchanged from the standard car’s, although there’s improved cooling with 12V fans and a single large radiator replacing the three from the production car. There’s also a particle filter to stop sand getting into the air intakes, and a restrictor on said intake to limit the engine’s power. In production form it makes 626bhp, but that’ll need to be reduced to comply with the FIA regs. In the Dakar it’ll run on sustainable fuel.

The eight-speed auto gearbox is the same as the one in the road-going OCTA, although there’s a lower final drive ratio for maximum torque at low speed. There are new bespoke brakes and Bilstein dampers, plus a 550-litre fuel tank for the ludicrously long Dakar stages. There’s also a new motorsport control unit to manage all the electronics.

Track width has been increased by 60mm, and the ride height has also been pumped up. There are 35in tyres (with the rear seats removed and three spare wheels in the back), extended arches and modified bodywork to increase the approach and departure angles. As you might expect, there’s also extended underbody protection.

Inside there’s a competition-spec roll cage, an FIA-regulated navigation system and racing seats. The three cars will be driven by 14-time winner Stéphane Peterhansel, Rokas Baciuška and Sara Price.

We’re told the livery is inspired by “the tones and textures of the desert”.