2025 Land Rover Defender OCTA

Off-Road · 4.4L Twin-Turbo V8 · 4WD

88/100

AutoVault's overall score, weighted for what a off-road is actually for — performance, technology, comfort, reliability, safety and value.

Specifications

Engine	4.4L Twin-Turbo V8
Horsepower	626 hp
Torque	553 lb-ft
0–60 mph	3.8 sec
Top speed	150 mph
Drivetrain	4WD
Seats	5
Combined MPG	19 mpg (17 city / 22 hwy)
Range	396 miles
MSRP	$172,000
Body style	Off-Road

The verdict

What's good

OCTA-spec suspension absorbs trail impacts without rattling the cabin
Twin-turbo V8 delivers supercar-grade straight-line speed in a truck body
Wading depth and approach angles exceed almost any stock off-roader
Interior fit rivals Range Rover despite the go-anywhere mission

What's not

High insurance premiums reflect the performance and replacement parts cost
Limited dealer network makes scheduling specialized service inconvenient
Forward visibility is restricted by the tall hood and chunky A-pillars
Daily driving manners feel firm and busy on broken city pavement

The engine

S68

Twin-Turbo 4.4L V8

A muscular hot-vee twin-turbo V8 with a deep, hard-edged growl, delivering ferocious mid-range torque that makes these heavyweight Land Rovers shockingly quick and angry-sounding.

This is BMW's S68 engine, the M-division-developed evolution of the N63, supplied to JLR and tuned with Land Rover-specific ECU, intake, and exhaust hardware.

The S68 is the same engine family found in the BMW M5 and XM, making the Defender OCTA effectively a BMW M-powered off-roader.
Unlike the M5's wet-sump setup, the Land Rover application runs dry-sump lubrication so oil supply survives the steep angles of serious off-roading.
In the Defender OCTA and Range Rover Sport SV it produces 626 hp and 750 Nm, making the OCTA the most powerful production Defender ever.

See the rest in AutoVault

The six sub-scores behind the 88 — performance, tech, comfort, reliability, safety and value
Market value today and year-by-year value history
All 5 trims with pricing
Studio photography — exterior, rear and interior
Side-by-side comparison with up to four cars

Open in AutoVault