4×4S.ORGTHE REGISTRY NAMED MODEL · 1994–97
NAMED MODELSpecial · Low volume runsUnited Kingdom

NAS Defender 90

The North American Specification Defender 90, sold in the United States and Canada from 1994 with the 3.9-litre V8 and, for 1997, the 4.0-litre V8 with automatic gearbox — a soft top (later also station wagon) with a black external roll cage, brush bar and Freestyle alloys.

Sources & evidence
NAS Defender 90 — A NAS Defender 90 soft top — the reference for this model; linked only.Thinkpins · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗
BASE VEHICLEDefender 90BUILT BYLand Rover (Defender 90 NAS)IN SERVICE1994–97OPERATED INUnited States, CanadaPRODUCTIONAbout 6,800LAYOUT4 wheels · 90″

The record

After the 1993 NAS 110, Land Rover North America followed with the Defender 90 for the 1994 model year: a two-door soft top built to Federal standards with the 3.9-litre fuel-injected V8, five-speed manual, external roll cage, brush bar, Freestyle alloy wheels and a choice of bright colours, later joined by a hard top and, for the final 1997 season, a station wagon with the 4.0-litre V8 and four-speed automatic before airbag rules ended Defender sales in the US. Around 6,800 NAS 90s were sold, and they remain the most valuable Defenders on the American market. The Wikimedia Commons photograph shows a white example with glazed rear quarters, a pale roof, black cage, roof rack, snorkel and lamps on the brush bar.

The registry model is rebuilt on the same shared Defender assembly as the NAS 110, using the 90 wheelbase, glazed rear quarters and pale roof shown in the reference. It uses the shared black NAS cage, roof basket, pillar mirrors, brush bar, rectangular lamps, five-spoke Freestyle alloy wheels and rear spare.

Specification

MANUFACTURERLand Rover (Defender 90 NAS)
MANUFACTUREDNAS 90 model years
ENGINERover 3.9 L V8 (1994–95) / 4.0 L V8 with automatic (1997)
PRODUCTION RUNAbout 6,800
COUNTRY OF ORIGINUnited Kingdom
OPERATED INUnited States, Canada
STATUSpreserved
FITTINGSExternal roll cage, brush bar, Freestyle alloys
VARIANTSSoft top, hard top, 1997 station wagon
RECORD KINDNamed model
MODEL LINEDefender
WHEELS4
NOMINAL WHEELBASE90″
CATEGORYSpecial · Low volume runs

Catalogue fields describe the vehicle's structure and body as this registry records it. They are not certified factory measurements, and no performance figures are published here.

AI rendering impression

An AI rendering impression starts from a 3D model of this vehicle, which an image model then paints into a scene. It is an artist's impression of the type, made to give a feel for the vehicle in its element — not a photograph, and not a record of any particular vehicle.

Proportions, fittings, markings, colours and the setting can all drift from the original in the process. For the vehicle's actual details, rely on the specification, the photographs and the cited sources on this page.

Where it was

US United States1994–2026CA Canada1994–2026
  1. BuiltLand Rover, Lode Lane, SolihullUnited Kingdom · 1993–199752.43, -1.78

Sources

  1. 1Land Rover Defender (L316) ↗Wikipedia · accessed 2026-09-11SOURCE
  2. 2File: NAS Land Rover Defender 90.jpg ↗Wikimedia Commons · accessed 2026-09-11SOURCE
  3. 3https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_Rover_Defender_(L316)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_Rover_Defender_(L316) ↗REFERENCE

Registry record updated 2026-09-16T05:55:32.036Z · status: researched