Land Rover's iconic Defender SUV is set to be brought back from the dead .

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"Land Rover's iconic Defender SUV is set to be brought back from the dead after a British billionaire industrialist announced he was preparing to invest £600 million ($A1 billion) of his*personal wealth to*bring back the much-loved off-roader.
Plans*for "Projekt Grenadier” were revealed*at*the London pub which gave the rugged SUV project its name, and*the "son of Land Rover Defender" is the brainchild of Jim Ratcliffe, a wealthy financier, industrialist and founder of chemicals giant, Ineos.
Mr Ratcliffe, said to be worth more than*£3.2 billion ($A5.4 billion), announced*he hoped to make 25,000 SUVs*per year when production starts in 2020. The vehicle will be a direct replacement for the Defender.
Currently the legendary*off-roader's design is not*trademarked in the UK and Ratcliffe wants his creation to stay faithful to the 68-year-old original.
Despite no sign of a confirmed replacement, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) stopped making its Defender in 2016,*but the company says a new version will arrive by the "end of this decade".
Responding to the media coverage of Ratcliffe's*plans,*JLR announced to several British news outlets that the Defender’s design had been registered in many other countries.
The Tata-owned British car-maker also confirmed it is*in the process of making a trademark application for the UK.
Ratcliffe, meanwhile, is confident his SUV will be priced from £35,000 ($A60,000) when production begins in 2020.
Fuelling his enthusiasm*there will be a market for an uncompromising SUV like the original Defender, Ratcliffe has been quoted in interviews*referencing unconfirmed reports that Land Rover itself is working on a Defender replacement which*will sacrifice toughness in pursuit of lifestyle buyers.
According to the self-made billionaire, his chemical company Ineos is already in discussions with the British government to source further state-funding for a UK-based factory, although similar pre-existing plants in Germany are also being considered.
As well as factories, it's been reported that Ineos has out-sourced the design for a possible SUV if rights to use the Defender aren't secured.
A 3.0-litre diesel, 4.0-litre petrol and even a hybrid powertrain are already in consideration to power the future SUV, while Ineos claims it has employed a team of 200 engineers to work exclusively on the SUV.
Once production is confirmed, Ineos says it will employ a further 800 staff.
Speaking to the Telegraph, Ratcliffe dismissed concerns that he and Ineos have*no experience of the challenges involved in car-making, telling the British newspaper: "We would not be doing this if*we were not serious about it and thought we could make a profit."
Ratcliffe added: “We think we know a fair bit about manufacturing from the chemicals side of the business: putting in £600m is a lot of money and we have got to balance the books.”
https://carsales.mobi/editorial/details/ED-ITM-109059/