Defender Octa (2025) International Launch Review

The Defender Octa demonstrates the extremes to which JLR’s engineers are willing to push the model to show how capable they can make it without compromising on- or off-road ability. We got to grips with it on the Cederberg’s endless gravel roads.

What is a Defender Octa?

The name Octa comes from the shape of a diamond, a precious mineral that the brand hopes to emulate with the Defender’s hardiness and desirability. The Defender Octa is a showcase of what JLR can do with this platform and the types of technology it can incorporate to differentiate itself from rival brands.

This technology comes in the form of a sophisticated air suspension system (which I’ll go into later), a powerful V8 turbopetrol engine, as well as an Octa drive mode that allows for controlled launches on dirt (yes, you read that correctly) with an extra 50 Nm of torque available for those lightning fast pull aways.

To add to the uniqueness of the Octa, the model also gets a large price hike (it costs R3.5 million), a wider track (68 mm wider) and more ground clearance (28 mm higher). JLR says the Octa has been subjected to 1 300 more tests than the standard model, including more time on gravel at high speeds and on road durability.

Defender Octa Engine

JLR may have shelved its venerable supercharged 5.0-litre V8, but that doesn’t mean it will be outdone in the power department – the 4.4-litre twin-turbopetrol V8 under its bonnet is sourced from BMW. The engine did duty in the previous generation BMW M5, X5 M and X6 M to mention a few models. With peak outputs of 467 kW and 750 Nm of torque (800 Nm in launch mode, remember?), the Defender Octa rockets when accelerating from any speed. Zero to 100 kph takes just 4.0 seconds! It’s mind-boggling how a 2.5-tonne SUV that’s essentially shaped like a Maersk container gets to 100 kph that quickly.

While there is plenty of power and torque on demand, the Defender Octa’s performance never feels brutal or uncontrollable, the linear acceleration and smooth V8 feel are perfectly matched to a car this size without making it feel like the engineers tried to make a performance SUV in the way Mercedes-Benz make a GLE 63 S or BMW make an X5 M. Compared with its Teutonic peers, the Octa uses its high-power delivery more subtly, and it’s also refreshing that JLR went the route of a higher capacity engine here. If it had opted for a 4-cylinder powerplant with a complex hybrid system, I don’t think it would have had the same smoothness and luxurious delivery even if the power outputs had been higher.

What’s the Octa like to drive?

Now, let me attempt to explain the Defender Octa’s trick suspension setup in the easiest way possible. Land Rover has always promoted air suspension and, as time has gone on, one would expect that JLR has made the systems better and more reliable (you hope). The Octa takes air suspension to another level. Where there would usually be a management system for compression and rebound, the Octa has a 3rd management system that controls pitch and roll. What this means is that the Octa does without anti-roll bars (stabiliser bars), which gives it better ground clearance and allows for more wheel articulation.

While quite a technical system, it’s immediately noticeable when you start driving the Defender Octa. Its body control on-road, especially on twistier routes, is excellent and then when you ramp the speed up on gravel it’s undeniably the most controlled riding vehicle I’ve ever experienced.

Over the 3 days of driving the Octa, we traversed the Cederberg mountain range multiple times. During this arduous journey, the newcomer traversed every kind of dirt road condition imaginable – from smooth to washboard to downright rocky – and the reduced body roll means you don’t get thrown around in the cabin nearly as much as in a traditional off-roader; it leaves you far less fatigued after long driving days.  

You can also engage Octa mode via a button on the bottom of the steering wheel, which to me felt like a Sport mode for gravel. It pumps up the engine and exhaust note and makes the throttle more responsive.

In a way, this is the closest you’re going to get to a Dakar spec Rally Raid car from a production vehicle. There were times when we truly “stretched the legs” of the Octa on the vast dirt roads, sliding the car into and out of the corners, exploring just how controlled the Octa’s body is under extreme conditions.

These almost abandoned areas represent a playground that doesn’t exist for performance cars outside of a race track. Obviously, if you get it wrong out here, there is little in the way of assistance or cell signal. Our Defender Octas were fitted with the optional Goodyear 3-ply casing 33-inch diameter tyres on 20-inch wheels that look like the design was borrowed from a Lancia Delta rally car (I am in favour of this).

Defender Octa interior upgrade

Given its rarefied performance and abilities, the Octa has some special features inside. The seats have been upgraded to sports seats that offer more lateral support (for when you’re doing your best Dakar drift impression). The seats also have a new fabric finish, which is more breathable and comfortable in the heat than traditional leather.

Aside from that, the Octa isn’t much different from the standard vehicle on the inside. There’s plenty of space within the cabin to store things, a multitude of USB ports to charge devices and a fridge in the centre console, which is more than handy on those 40-degree days in the Cederberg! 

How much does a Defender Octa cost in SA?

The prices (January 2025) include a 5-year/100 000 km warranty and a 5-year/100 000 km maintenance plan.

Summary

The initial Defender Octa production run is limited to just 2 000 units, 50 of which have been earmarked for the South African market. The entire first production run has been sold, but there is the intention of creating more Octa production runs in the coming years. The Octa is a statement vehicle (or halo model) for Land Rover; it showcases what can be produced when the price point doesn’t need to be kept down. 

Its multi-terrain ability is 2nd to none and while we can’t yet speak to the reliability of its extremely fancy, but also extremely effective, air suspension, the body control and improvements and stonking V8 engine combine into a special, even bespoke, driving experience. In an era where it’s difficult to access the full performance capabilities of sportscars, the Octa raises the question: Can you have similar levels of fun off-road? The answer, found on the very empty roads and trails of the Cederberg, is a resounding: “Yes!”