So I got an invitation to a private unveiling of the OCTA. Anyone else? Would you go, if only out of curiosity?

 

Yes. Planning to go today. Brooklyn.

 

I went and it was worth it. It’s a special vehicle for people who love the new Defender.

Lots of JLR HQ staff at the Thursday night one, was awesome to talk shop with them.

 

did they mention the wheel size on the OCTA?

 

Did they let you take any photos? What is obviously different from the V8 version that warrants an 80K premium?

 

I plan on going to the LA event in June. I know we all signed a NDA but any feedback would be appreciated.

 

According to a friend who went to the event in NY on Saturday, there is a LOT of really cool features. Think of OCTA like a Ford Raptor - capable of doing 100+ mph over rough terrain. 35" tires with 20 or 22" rims, Bowler front end with the large grille, dual raised air intakes, an extra 4" of ground clearance, full underbody skid plates and more. BMW V8 is producing the same 626 hp from the SV, and the seats have the massage and vibrators like the SV, as well as forged carbon fiber trim on the interior and exterior. It has a completely redesigned rear bumper to fit the 35" tires. Pricing is around $150k. There will be 90 and 130 versions coming down the road.

 

Thanks Cincyrover. Previous reports have suggested 110 only. I am most interested in the 90 and in no hurry. Good news. Probably absurd, but what the heck.

 

I want one.

 

Although I'm sure this will sell, JLR had to first pass over a more broadly desirable opportunity to correct their MASSIVE manufacturing error when they failed to put 18"s on the P400 - why not spend time on a successful "everyday" Defender? That would have gone to far greater # of sales than a "trophy" Defender like this. With 35" tires will it look a bit exaggerated? But no doubt probably awesome for sure. I see Wranglers similar and all I can think is "how's the extra wide tires with hydroplaning?" What folks don't want to tell senior JLR management is that Octa myopia kept JLR from making the P400 a grand slam with greater revenue potential. A 265/70/18 would make sooooo many Defender folks happy with tire choices in the aftermarket. Instead we get a trophy Defender few will ever likely challenge - or buy. If folks that buy it don't drive it much, how's the aftermarket sales at the dealership going to go? Swing and a miss IMO. Is it better than a G? I'd say so. But Mercedes doesn't sell alot of Gs each year, so JLR is limiting the buying pool. An 18" rim P400 would directly challenge the new GX/LC configurations (and win). Those will adopt 265/70/18, giving owners sooooooo many tire choices in the aftermarket. the GX & LC models are going to swamp the sales of Octa. why make a trophy SUV for a 1,000 customers when you can make a P400 and sell that to a pool of tens of thousands? The GX will have probably 70+ tire choices at that rim size. A 19" rim has about 6-8 tire choices (and it's not much better at the 20" rim). I love the idea of the Octa, and don't blame JLR for doing it. But it's the wrong time to do it. Making the right decision at the right time is a business decision, and preferring to make an academically awesome Octa before a practical everyday Defender is a business mistake IMO. JLR wasted effort today on imaginary drivers when they could have sold a Defender folks wanted to buy in the multiples of what the Octa will sell. GX/LC sales will ramp up in the years ahead, and JLR should have spent time on making the Defender a direct competitor with zero weak points (like intentionally using a rim that is not industry standard and leaves owners with few aftermarket tire choices. Fix current stupid before going all imaginary potential.... Lots of marketing suggests the GX OT is targeting Defender. But Defender is maybe 20,000/year. (only looking US). On the other hand Wrangler/Bronco are likely close to 200k/year in annual sales -and a GX targeting some of those owners that want a nicer drive on a daily basis is a much bigger market. Is the GX looking to "steal" 10% of Defender's market (what's that, 2,000 sales?) when it can try for 5% of Wrangler/Bronco owners that are ready for a nice cabin, quite drive, and still off road capable (that's 10,000 sales). If you've driven a Wrangler for a while you get it: off road awesome, but on road there's some trade-offs. The market for folks with those SUVs that may consider a trade-up is huge. Not having the correctly sized rim/tire for a P400 is a massive, flagrant, "Houston we have a problem" level manufacturing error - JLR (if they want to make money) should have focused on making money - fish in the pond where the fish are: at a 265/70/19, the pond is stocked. If you sell a trophy, it's going to stay in "park," and that won't generate as much in sales and service at dealerships, where they probably benefit more from daily drivers racking up mileage and thus needing service. At what point does JLR step back and wonder: "how about making a configuration everyone seems to want and has a huge pool of potential buyers, instead of a trophy SUV few can buy and likely fewer will use daily?" Great SUV, but crazy bad decision to think it was more important to manufacture an SUV like Octa than to fix a known problem in the P400, which is in a competitive space and about to be more so...