Towards the end of its life the Original Defender had become cool. Not just cool, but fashionably cool. There was a growing market for bespoke builds and there was (and still is) a whole raft of aftermarket companies willing to turn the old work horse into a trendy go anyway fashion statement. Twisted and Kahn (AKA the Chelsea Tractor company) are probably the best known but there are many other companies besides. Fancy alloys, external cosmetic enhancements and luxury interiors are all available. For those who want to go more than skin deep big V8 engines and automatic gearboxes can also be fitted. Even Land Rover has got into the act with its Land Rover Works division. The question is, when did this journey start?

Pretty much all Land Rovers since have been available with a soft top option. Cool, yes but not fashionably cool. For that to start we must go to September 1987 when Land Rover’s Cariba concept appeared in the pages of the newly launched Land Rover Owner magazine.  

The starting point was a standard V8 Land Rover Ninety (Before the Defender name was introduced) and first things first, the roof was removed. The doors were modified to make them frameless, and a unique soft top bikini hood arrangement fitted. A padded roll bar, more for style than protection, with a central post joining the wind screen added and the interior was fitted with two comfy seats.  At each corner were wide, white lettered all terrain tyres fitted to chrome eight spoke wheels, the spare being fitted to a swing away carrier at the rear. Staying with the rear, the usual grab handles mounted to the rear cross member were replaced by bumperettes. At the front the bumper was split with the central section removed to give a appearance akin to the Mark 2 Escort rally car look, and finished off with a metal bush bar and a pair of Hella spotlights.

The paint was something special, a metallic silver covered the vehicle with wing mirrors, fuel cap, headlight surrounds and grill all being colour matched. Even the flexible wheel eyebrows didn’t escape a liberal coating of silver.  Being the 1980’s no build was complete without its decals and the Cariba was no exception. Side stripes were applied. The public reaction was positive, and several companies jumped on the band wagon and started to make Land Rovers with a similar look. However despite this, Land Rover never took the project forward. It remained a one off marketing exercise, sold to a private owner via the Cheltenham Land Rover Centre. After a spell in Malta, it came back to light in a field, the previous owner having passed away. Looking tired and in desperate need of TLC, the Cariba reappeared with a for sale notice. It is now in the hands of a private collector who is restoring the vehicle back to its former glory.

In keeping with the rules of cool, the NAS 90 was available as a soft top only.  The front doors were Series 3 items with lift handles and removable door tops, the rear door having a side hinge rather than the usual tailgate style. A padded robust roll over frame was fitted and up front sat the V8 petrol. The roof was fabric and could be removed, but as an option, a GRP removable hard top option was made available. This option, as far as I know, was only available for the North American Market and is very rare. Freestyle alloy wheels and chunky BFG tyres gave the NAS 90 full wheel arches and to finish it off vibrant colours such as Red and Yellow were available. Sold in limited numbers, the NAS 90 was a hit. The NAS 90 was sold in 1994, 1995 and 1997. In its final year it was available with a factory fitted automatic transmission and was available as a station wagon too, but hey – that wasn’t as cool as the soft top variety.

Around the time the NAS was being introduced, Europe too got a factory supplied fashionista. The Land Rover 90 SV. Fitted with the same robust padded roll cage and soft top arrangement, the 90SV was somewhat tamer by comparison. No roaring V8 up front, instead the standard 200 Tdi powered this one. All Land Rover 90SV’s came with a unique metallic green hue and five spoke alloy wheels, and despite slower than expected sales are now quite rare and sort after.

The X-Trem was a short wheel based 300 Tdi with a unique roof designed and manufactured locally. Featuring an A-frame with a pair of spotlights up front and the same Freestyle alloy wheels as the NAS 90, it was certainly a looker.

The Defender SVX concept from 1999

Inspired by the 1999 SVX concept vehicle, which in my eyes is the best Defender to come from the factory all be it a one off, this SVX had a chunky roll cage, differing from those found on the NAS and SV. Based on the recently introduced Puma Defender, it had gloss black paint with silver headlight surrounds and grill. The wheels were unique to the SVX, in that they were five spoke, but with the words Defender machined into one of the spokes. Subtle black on black side graphics finished off quite a stealth look. Only 180 SVX’s came to the UK so once again the chance of seeing one is quite rare.

And that was it, convertible Land Rovers were done. Or were they? The last Defender ever made was a Green Soft top, more of a nod to the original rather than lifestyle vehicle, however it still was cool.