AN iconic Land Rover Defender, a make which is a firm favourite of the Royal Family, has been given a touch of Essex class with an £89,000 makeover.

The ride was “pimped” by Colchester-based company Carisma Auto Design.

The firm, which is based on the Whitehall Industrial Estate, kitted out the Land Rover, which is known for its powerful off-road driving, but has a basic interior, with a drinks cabinet, fridge, computers and a state-ofthe art sound system.

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It also has dimmable mood lighting, crystal glassware and wi-fi.

The interior is decorated in Connolly hide and the ceiling and side panels are finished in a quilt trim.

The car, which has been named the Carisma Defender D1, belongs to a farmer who has asked not to be identified.

He approached the company and asked staff to design the one-off model.

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He paid £89,000 to have the interior completely designed, on top of the original car sale price of about £28,000.

Carisma Auto Design’s sales and marketing manager Clive Drake said: “The Land Rover Defender is an iconic British vehicle with legendary off-road capability.

“One day a client came to me wanting a vehicle that had all of the capabilities of the Defender, but with an interior ambience of a Range Rover with the feeling of pure exclusivity of a Rolls- Royce.

“The Carisma Auto Design conversion of the Defender was born.

“Satisfying special and unusual requests is a key part of our specialist skills and services.

Clients come to us because they know we can achieve the impossible and deliver a vehicle to them that exceeds their expectations.

“Trust me, we’ve been asked to incorporate some truly outlandish features, but we still manage to integrate them seamlessly into the vehicle’s interior.”

Carisma Auto Design was set up in 1998 to restore classic and custom cars.

In recent years, it has started to convert newcars into creative designs and its client list includes celebrities and top businessmen and women.