Something seemed different as I approached this Land Rover parked outside a local tire shop. Santana! And not Carlos, who actually used to live in our area, but a Spanish Land Rover manufactured for local and export markets. I’d heard of these, but didn’t know much about them, and my research revealed an interesting story.
While CC has covered the older “Series” Land Rovers a few times (for example here), I don’t think the Defender has had a CC of its own. I haven’t had any personal experience with them, but as I did research on this Santana, I learned and re-learned enough that I decided a bit of Defender history would be interesting, and would help put this blue Santana into context.
Similar to the classic Jeep, which didn’t get its now familiar “Wrangler” name until quite late in its history, the “Defender” name also came late to the Rover. Earlier Land Rovers went through Series I, II and III before being significantly redesigned in 1983. Above is a Series III, headlights moved outboard but still sporting the two piece folding windshield and skinny tires of the classic Land Rover. The parents of a high school friend had a two door (88″ wheelbase) Series II which I rode in quite bit, and drove once or twice.
And here’s the 1980’s redesign. The grille got bigger, the interior was modernized, and the track was widened with bold wheel arches added to cover the tires. The new models were known as both 90’s and Nineties, and 110’s and One Ten’s, those designations denoting the wheelbase in inches. There was also a very long wheelbase version referred to as both 127 and 130. Solid axles of course remained, but coil springs replaced semi-elliptic leaf springs. Other changes included a one piece windshield and the first optional fitment of the ex-BOP 3.5 liter aluminum V8 in a Land Rover, as opposed to Range Rover or Rover sedan. But even these significantly updated Rovers were not yet Defenders; that name only came along in 1991, to differentiate these Land Rovers from the new Land Rover Discovery.
A few years later the Defender was introduced to the US market, in both 90 and 110 versions, now with a 3.9 liter V8 (most other markets got turbo diesels) and 5 speed manual transmissions. The 110 was only offered the first year, 1993, and the Defender was dropped here in the US after 1997. They had some catchy advertising, and I still have this ad pulled out of a 1995 magazine, tacked on the wall of my garage.
When I was test driving SUV’s in 1995, before eventually buying a Toyota Land Cruiser, I drove a “unicorn” Land Rover Discovery with manual transmission. I remember seeing a few Defenders on the lot, but the salesman told me they weren’t moving; once potential customers tried the more comfortable Disco or Range Rover, the Defender was ignored. Quite a change from now, when used Defenders are considered desirable and command premium prices.
So where does this Santana I saw in California last week, fit in? And is the one I saw a Land Rover, a Santana, a Defender? Is it all of the above, as implied by the badging on the back, or just one or two of those things?
Santana Motor, a Spanish manufacturer, started assembling Series Land Rovers under license from Rover in 1961, starting with knocked-down kits but progressing over time to 100% in-house manufacturing. Above is a Spanish police Series III Land Rover Santana, using both names, with Land Rover more prominent on the grille. Within a few years, Santana was exporting Rovers outside Spain, and by the late 1960’s the company name changed to Land Rover Santana.
Over the years between 1983 and 1990, the two companies’ relationship evolved to one of coexistence rather than licensing. In some markets, the two competed with each other; in others they complemented one another. For example, the Spanish vehicles continued with leaf springs, targeting a heavier-duty (or more traditional) buyer than the British coil-sprung not-yet-a-Defender. By 1990, any formal relationship seems to have ended; the information I found online was conflicting, but it appears that the last Land Rover Santana was built around 1994.
Santana did briefly revive a derivative product, the PS10, some years later, powered by an Iveco diesel. The front end styling bears little resemblance to any British Land Rover, but the heritage is pretty obvious from there back.
In a further twist, the PS10 was made over by Giugiaro, reputedly, and marketed as the Iveco Massif and Campagnola for a few years. In addition, Santana had a relationship with Suzuki and built SJ’s, Jimny’s and Vitara’s in Spain. In 2011 the company permanently shut down.
So what exactly did I see? Definitely a Santana: the grille and headlight surrounds don’t seem to come from any Rover variant, the steering wheel hub had the Santana name molded in, and it had leaf springs. My research revealed only ambiguity about whether Santana had ever used the Defender name, so the badge on the rear of the one I saw may have been added later. Or maybe it came from Spain that way. As for the “Land Rover Four Wheel Drive Station Wagon” badge? I’m pretty sure that vintage badge was not original fitted to this car when it was built in Linares, Spain. But it highlights the heritage nicely. If anyone knows more details about these, please educate us.
Looks like it’s a Santana 2500.
They never really made a 90/110/Defender, they initially put the lookalike front end on the Series III and then made it look even more Defender like, but still with leaf springs.
2 out of those 3 badges will be from eBay.
When it ended production, the Santana factory was purchased by an Iranian national or an Iranian company and set up in Iran; I believe it is still making old-style Land Rovers.
Aye Caramba! Not something I’d known about or if I did it washed up on the banks of a muddy river long ago…
These 90s always seemed to me like what was the point vs a Wrangler here in the US unless someone really wanted to spend even more money. I don’t think the “new” current Defender really replaces it either, coming across more as a rugged-looking Discovery (i.e. more like the original Discovery than what it has morphed into). The Wrangler has certainly changed too over the years but not that much, proving the original idea can be preserved.
A good find though, especially in that cloudy blue.
I’m curious how VW aquired the Santana trademark for their Chinese-built vehicles too. A Abraxis and Supernatural editions are sure things in the future, especially i retro Series garbl
Not sure about the legal aspects, but the Chinese Santana VW’s were sold under that name in a few other countries as well as China, and VW’s were built and sold as Santana’s in Brazil and some other LatAm countries … as well as with Ford names. Badge engineering at its finest.
Yes US market missed the turbo diesel manual models but now has some, my late brother had a Landrover repair and wrecking operation in Queensland for a while and mailed a few powertrains to the US they were worth good coin apparently.
Do the Chinese even recognise US trademarks? US law ends at the border.
The Defender badge is aftermarket. Santana always used leaf springs, even on the PS10/Anibal(Hannibal)/Iveco Massif. Santana did a lot of independent development in the late 70s and 80s including six cylinder gas and diesel engines based on the Land Rover four, a turbo diesel and a 5 speed before the 110 and fiberglass roof panels. Santana also built their own takes on the forward control 109 and the Lightweight. The Santana Ligero used unique bodywork and was made as both an 88 and 109 and the 88 was sold as a civilan model as well as military contracts
This was a bit of an education. It’s easy to forget how some of these small regional offshoots developed lives of their own. Reminds me a bit of the Mahindra Jeep line’s evolution.
I spotted a PS10 with UK number plates (but right-hand-traffic headlamps) in Seattle in 2009. Here’s the front:
…and the back:
A lot more exotic looking than my find!
To me, definitely a Santana – your last paragraph is spot-on.
The front grille and lights are not Land Rover, Defender or otherwise. I suspect the Land Rover Solihull and Defender badges are add ons. Interesting, too, to see that Santana has rubber wheel arch extensions which to the UK are the preserve of the coil spring models.
Santana originally started as a way of avoiding import taxes on built cars, which Rover probably lacked volume to assemble anyway.
Santana Anibal entry in wikipedia
https://es.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santana_An%C3%ADbal
CC scores again! I think I knew of the Santana, but that Iveco version really intrigues me. I lived pretty close to Italy for a long time, went there a few times too, but I never saw one of those alternate universe Landies or even knew of them.
Thanks for all the informative comments. I was quite sure as soon as I saw the Land Rover-Solihull badge, that it was an add-on. I wasn’t so sure about the Defender badge though it looked even more tacked on. I don’t really see the appeal of adding them; it’s like having a rare (in the US) Mitsubishi or Mahindra Jeep, and adding a Willys and Wrangler badge. Maybe the owner got tired of explaining what it is. But it encouraged me to learn more about the Santana and even the details of the Land Rover 90 to Defender transition, that were all new to me.
Interesting that it has a Spanish plate. Is that just for decoration – ie did it have a local plate on the back?
Defenders were selling for crazy prices stateside (especially 110s), to the point where people were changing VINs to get around the 25 year rule, and customs were crushing them.
Santanas are cheaper, LHD, and generally not rusty – unlike UK Defenders – so they started to crop up as imports, and be advertised in Spain as potential imports. I looked for a genuine Defender in Spain and found that people were listing wanted ads for them.
I wonder if the Spanish seller threw those badges on for his ebay photos or whatever. When advertised for sale, the word Defender is usually thrown in, even though it’s inaccurate.
This Santana had a local (California) plate on the rear. California does require front plates; it’s unlikely but not unheard of, to be cited for missing a front plate. Usually from a parking officer, not police.
I became familiar with the Santana version of the Land Rover when I owned a Series IIa 109 station wagon some years ago. The stock brakes on the 109 are fine going forwards, as they have dual leading shoes in the front, but they are not so great in the reverse direction, which can be a problem if you are stopped going uphill on a steep slope. Moreover, the front drums have a tendency to go out of round if overheated and improperly adjusted, as I found out to my dismay while driving in the mountains of the Cascade range of Southern Oregon.
The reason the Santana is relevant is that it retained the original solid front axle suspension system, as mentioned above, but used disk brakes instead of drums. As a result, there were conversion kits for Series Land Rovers that used the Santana brakes as an easy brake upgrade. The kit bolts on, replacing both front and rear drums, and the only modification was the need to use spacers if the stock wheels were retained. Switching to the dual-circuit master cylinder of the Series III was also recommended for earlier Land Rovers.
I wound up not doing the conversion as I sold the Land Rover to finance the restoration of a Triumph Spitfire, but that’s a story for another time.