1997 Land Rover Defender 90 Factory BMW M52 5-Speed
Vehicle Details
- Year: 1997
- Make: Land Rover
- Model: Defender 90
- VIN: SALLDVB97VF822264
- Mileage: 291,551km
- Transmission: Manual
- Title Status: Clean
- Color: Santorini Black
- Seller Type: Dealer
- Location: Atlanta, GA 30319
- Dealer Fees: None
- Lot #: V-0031269
Offered exclusively by Land Rover South Africa during a time when the group was owned by BMW, a Defender model was available between 1997 and 2001 featuring BMW’s M52 2.8-liter straight-six engine. This 1997 Land Rover Defender is among 1,395 of these examples ever produced and is said to have been completely restored by the specialists at Made You Look (MYL) of Hermanus, South Africa. It features a 5-speed manual transmission with a dual-range transfer case along with custom exterior accessories, upgraded shocks, Nappa leather upholstery, and a modern stereo system. The vehicle was imported to the U.S. by its seller earlier in 2023 and is now being offered for auction out of Georgia.
During its restoration by MYL, the body of the vehicle was separated from its frame, sandblasted, and refinished in the classic Land Rover color of Santorini Black. Accessories were added including painted wheel arch extensions, billet aluminum door handles and hinges, side steps, modern LED headlights, a tubular steel rear bumper, mud flaps, a front skid plate, and a steel front bumper with integrated LED lighting. This Defender rides on 16” Sawtooth wheels finished in black with machined surfaces and BF Goodrich Mud-Terrain T/A tires. Detailed images are provided in the gallery along with photos from the restoration.
The righthand drive interior has been reupholstered in brown and black Nappa leather including a pair of replacement front seats and rear inward-facing jump seats. The cabin was also lined with new black carpeting and sound insulation. Accessories include billet aluminum trim components, a two-spoke leather-wrapped steering wheel, air-conditioning, a center console storage compartment, a dash-mounted USB charging port, a sound system with speakers mounted below the dashboard, and a double-din head unit with an integrated backup camera.
This rare South African Defender came originally equipped with a BMW 2.8-liter M52 inline-six engine rated at 192 HP and 207 lb.-ft of torque. All four wheels are driven by way of a 5-speed manual transmission and a dual-range transfer case. The seller indicates the engine and drivetrain were completely overhauled during the restoration along with the suspension which includes upgraded Terrafirma Long Travel shock absorbers. Stopping power comes from new disc brakes at each corner.
This sale will include a clean title.
The seller would like you to know: “Thank you for viewing this auction. This is an extremely rare Defender 90 with a factory BMW M52 in-line 6-cylinder motor. Only 656 Defender 90s were built with this motor. These vehicles were only built in the late 90s in South Africa. This was the fastest production Defender ever built. We left the vehicle right-hand drive for import restrictions and authenticity. We can discuss the option to convert to left-hand drive. There are no others on the market finished to this level of restoration. Good luck and I look forward to working with you.”
Auction Results
- Highest Bid: $45,000
- Auction End: Jun 30, 2023 08:03:12PM UTC
- Number of Bids: 9
Comments (26)
Bid in the amount of $45,000
Bid in the amount of $42,290
Bid in the amount of $42,000
Bid in the amount of $40,290
@Aquaboy2u This is the original chassis. It was sand blasted then galvanized for longevity.
Never mind, I see the original frame and galvanized swap from pics. Must have missed that the first time around
Were these built on a galvanized chassis or was there a swap?
Wonder why these have flown so under the radar! Astounded that only 656 of these D90's were ever produced - it must be one of the rarer of Defenders produced?
@Dom33 I agree! Great setup in the Defender.
This is how all the defenders should have been made, the M52 sounds so good!
@34NorthDefenders not sure what options are for California but if you title in Montana using https://www.49dollarmontanaregisteredagent.com you don't need emissions. My assumption is that California has cracked down on this but in Georgia it's a great way to get around ad valorem tax and emission issues.
@mccand Thank you for the message. I recently went down this path on a previous 2.8 and a client from California that was interested. From what we could gather, it was about a $10,000 project to go through all the procedures to be California compliant. I believe there is a company out there that will handle alot of the process for buyers. I know it can be done, I just cannot confirm the cost. I hate that it is this difficult for California buyers. Maybe someone else on here can chime in that has been through it on another classic. You are welcome to give me a call to discuss further. Jason. 34North Defenders
This may be tough to field, but do you know the likelihood of this vehicle being smog compliant in CA? I think the argument would have to go something along the lines of it meets the CA emissions req’ts of 1997, where maybe the BMW engine and emissions system were present in other BMW contemporary cars. It would probably/possibly need some sort of EPA label as well.. and I assume it is at minimum OBD2? This thing is super cool and CA is always tough in this regard…
Bid in the amount of $40,000
Bid in the amount of $35,000
Thanks for the reply @34NorthDefenders. Interesting story indeed, just read it on the web. To those who haven't seen this, definitely worth a read.
https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/car-accessories/a31958/engineers-cars-the-red-mamba/
Bid in the amount of $22,000
Bid in the amount of $20,000
@africa Thank you for the compliment. This is a fantastic motor in these vehicles. Alot of Defender fans are not aware of this option and it is an interesting part of Land Rover history in the late 90s on how the BMW motor ended up in the Defender. This motor provides good acceleration and is very comfortable at 75 mph on the highway. I have comfortably run around at 75-80 mph. This was also the fastest Defender ever produced. Not an M3 by any means, but good power for this type of vehicle. Compared to the tdi, definitely more power, but less efficient than a diesel. That's going to be the biggest difference.
Bid in the amount of $10,000
Super cool build. Love the attention to detail. Never knew that BMW motors were fitted OEM in these. How do these compare to Tdi's, and what kind of highway speeds do they do?
This right hand drive makes this vehicle very unique in the US. I sure wouldn’t change it.
@iykyk Thank you for the nice comment. It is about a $10k-$12k swap. I have had no issue driving on the right hand side. Some buyers may need to swap or be more comfortable and I wanted to let bidders know it could be done. Being these were only built in S Africa, we felt it was best to leave as built. It really comes down to personal preference. The dash is swapped and in the engine bay we would install a left hand drive steering pump, swap out the heater box and a few other swaps.
Super cool car! Can you please elaborate on “the option to convert to left-hand drive”? Curious as to the approximate cost and feasibility of doing so…thanks
Thank you for visiting our auction for this beautiful and very unique Defender 90. I will do my best to respond promptly to any questions. I look forward to working with all perspective buyers.