Motor show sidelines are some of the best places to catch official representatives revealing (semi-official) clues in regards to their future plans, and it was in New York that Land Rover’s design director, Gerry McGovern, dropped hints as to what they were going to do with the Defender name plate.

We already know that, like Discovery, it will no longer designate a specific model, but an entire family of models. However, up until now, we weren't entirely sure what those models were going to be like.

According to Car&Driver, McGovern let slip that he’d “be worried if lots of traditional Discovery owners looked at [the Discovery Vision concept] and said, “I love it!” Because it has moved on. It’ll be Defender, the new Defenders—and I wouldn’t take note of those concept vehicles we did a couple of years ago—that’ll show you that sense of overt ruggedness.”

In addition, he also suggested that the name Defender would still be built upon the same core pillars as before: durability, ruggedness and the option for buyers to get their vehicle fairly cheap, by not specifying any luxuries.

Interestingly, the design boss did however point out that, while even older Defenders and Discoveries were very different in principle, construction and intended utilization, they both eventually ended up being used mostly on the road, “shuttling around kids, carrying groceries” and “heading off to the mountains for a ski weekend.”

Do also check out the video test drive review of the topless DC100 concept - it's currently the closest thing we have to a new Defender.

Won't look like the DC100 concept

Land Rover introduced the DC100 concept nearly three years ago but Autocar is reporting the company has just finalized the design of the next-generation Defender.

Little is known about the model but the magazine is reporting it won’t be a direct replacement for the current Defender. The publication goes on to say the production model will "look very different" from the DC100 concept.

The company is still debating on when to introduce the next-generation Defender but speculation suggests they could unveil a new concept to preview the updated design.

To be substantially lighter

British media is reporting the next generation Land Rover Defender will go into production in the summer of 2016.

Land Rover's plan to overhaul its lineup has already started with the Discovery Sport and now focus is being shifted towards a replacement for the aging Defender. The company's design director Gerry McGovern has already said it "will have to wash its face" and "will be more desirable to look at" while having a "distinctive silhouette" without looking "overly functional."

Now, Autocar is saying the design has been signed off and according to Jaguar Land Rover group marketing director the next-gen Defender will have the biggest "breadth of capability" of any Land Rover so far. It will allegedly make use of an aluminum monocoque with a more substantial aluminum superstructure to make the Defender as stiff as possible while being substantially lighter.

Promising to provide "premium durability", the next-gen Defender will be equipped with four-cylinder Ingenium gasoline and diesel engines as well as by a range of V6 motors working with eight- or nine-speed automatic transmissions whereas the availability of a manual gearbox is unknown at this moment.

The new Land Rover Defender is expected to enter production in the summer of 2016, around the same time when another old school off-roader is due to be overhauled, the Mercedes-Benz G-Class.

The company's design director Gerry McGovern has already said it "will have to wash its face" and "will be more desirable to look at" while having a "distinctive silhouette" without looking "overly functional."

Getting at least five body styles

A new report indicates the next generation Land Rover Defender will be introduced sometime in 2018.

Land Rover has announced the legendary Defender will be phased out in December 2015 while official news about a successor is not available at this point. However, British media previously reported a new model will be out in 2016 but now Automobile Magazine says the all-new Defender is scheduled for a 2018 market launch and will be sold in United States as well.

There will be at least five body styles to choose from: short wheelbase two-door with metal roof, short wheelbase two-door with soft top, long wheelbase four-door with metal roof, short wheelbase two-door pickup and a long wheelbase four-door pickup. All these versions will be equipped with JLR's latest Ingenium gasoline and diesel engines which will work with either a six-speed manual transmission or a nine-speed automatic gearbox. Both will be available at an additional cost with a low-range transfer case and two differential locks.

The live axle won't be positioned in the iron ladder frame as Land Rover’s engineers plan to connect two subframes to an all-new lightweight unibody benefiting from increased rigidity. The report also says a special Terrain Response system tailored to the new Defender is in the works along with hill climb & descent systems, adaptive extended range headlights and surround-view cameras while active body control and air suspension are ruled out.