Forget 50% price-cut on Defender SUV due to FTA: Expected prices explained

Forget 50% price-cut on Defender SUV due to FTA: Expected prices explained Tezzbuzz | 17/05/2025 10:24:14

The recently-signed India-UK Free Trade Agreement has raised hopes for substantial price cuts on British-made luxury cars. With the agreement slashing import taxes from over 100% to just 10% under a quota, many potential buyers are sitting on fences to see if popular models like the Land Rover Defender will see massive price reductions. Well, there’s good news for these customers but it isn’t because of the FTA. We explain why.

Why the FTA won’t halve Defender prices

While the FTA is expected to make UK-manufactured cars like Rolls-Royce, Aston Martin, Bentley, and Jaguar Land Rover models more affordable, the Defender won’t be part of this trade agreement. This is because the Defender is not manufactured in the UK. Instead, it rolls out from JLR’s Nitra facility in Slovakia. As a result, it is not eligible for the same tax cuts as its UK-built siblings.Moreover, JLR already assembles several models locally in India through the CKD route at its Pune facility. This list includes the Range Rover, Range Rover Sport, Evoque, and Velar. As a result, the FTA won’t be impacting the prices for these models either.

Defender’s popularity in India and expected price drop

Currently, the Land Rover Defender is priced between Rs 1.05 crore and Rs 2.79 crore in India, with the Octa Edition One launched in March 2025 positioned at the top end. However, during its recent earnings call, JLR announced plans to begin local assembly of the Defender in India. Though no specific timeline has been shared, the move is expected to reduce its cost by around 20%.If local assembly kicks off as planned, the Defender’s starting price could drop to approximately Rs 84 lakh, ex-showroom. This, of course, is a significant cut, but far from the 50% many were hoping for. Also, it’ll take some time for the Defender local assembly to start and it isn’t expected in the immediate term.

JLR’s local manufacturing driving growth

JLR’s decision to localise manufacturing has already paid off handsomely. The company reported record-breaking sales of 6,183 units in FY25, a 40% YoY increase. Notably, the Defender led the sales surge with a 90% jump, followed by the locally assembled Range Rover and Range Rover Sport, which grew by 72% and 42%, respectively.As a result of its strong performance, JLR now stands third at the luxury car market’s rostrum, overtaking Audi India. When the local manufacturing of Defender begins, the price cut won’t be as steep as 50%, but the expected 20% reduction after local assembly is still a promising step. It is expected to further the demand of this popular, mammoth-esque SUV in the sea that has loads floating.