Land Rover is a brand of predominantly four-wheel drive (4WD), off-road capable vehicles. The Land Rover name was created in 1948 by the Rover Company.
It was originally meant for a functional 4WD off-roader, but today the brand comprises vehicles entirely occupying the luxury sport utility car market. It is owned by Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), which from 2008 has been a subsidiary of Tata Motors.
In 1951, Land Rover was granted a Royal Warrant by King George VI, and in 2001 it received a Queen’s Award for Enterprise for outstanding contribution to international trade. From the original 1948 model through until 1997, Land Rovers and Range Rovers relied exclusively on their boxed-section vehicle frames. Land Rover used boxed frames until the end of the original Defender in 2016, with the last body-on-frame model replaced by a monocoque in the 3rd generation Discovery in 2017. Since then, all Land Rovers and Range Rovers have a unified body and frame structure.
In 2010, Land Rover also introduced two-wheel drive (2WD) variants, both for the Freelander and the Evoque. The 2WD Freelander has been succeeded by a 2WD Discovery Sport. The badge today includes two models of Discovery, four distinct models of Range Rover, and a second generation of Defenders went into production for the 2020 model year, using both short or long wheelbase, as they once had.