The Defender Dakar, a street-legal version of the rally raid vehicle, will be available for reserve starting in early 2027. Jaguar Land Rover revealed a preview model at the Monterey Car Week on Friday.

It is based on the Defender D7X-R that won the Dakar Rally’s Stock class in January, which in turn was built atop the platform of the Defender OCTA. Defender Rally is fielding three such cars in this year’s World Rally-Raid Championship, where Rokas Baciuška currently leads the standings over Stéphane Peterhansel and Sara Price after three rounds.

The road-faring model uses the same D7x body structure, transmission, and driveline as the rally version. However, the 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8 engine will be unrestricted (FIA regulations have a cap that limit their to pspeed to 170 km/h).

Flight Mode, a setting on the D7X-R that adjusts torque delivery from the engine to the wheels when the vehicle is airborne, is installed too. Other features include Dunes and Gravel Drive modes, forged 20-inch wheels with 35″ tires on them, and optional racing harnesses and rear storage for helmets.

“We’ve pushed our engineers to go further than they’ve ever gone before,” said Defender managing director Mark Cameron. “First, we evolved Defender OCTA into D7X-R and then we asked: could we make the Dakar Rally-winning D7X-R road legal? The result is the Defender Dakar.

“It’s the ultimate expression of adventure and is a true reflection of how we embrace the impossible. It embodies not only the spirit of the Defender Rally team but our continued and historic legacy of off-road innovation. This limited-run model will showcase everything we’ve learned in some of the toughest environments and most competitive conditions imaginable. An authentic Defender, made from unstoppable DNA.”

The Defender Dakar will be avialable in various color options, with the base paint scheme being the beige-and-turquoise livery currently used on the W2RC cars.

Featured image credit: Jaguar Land Rover