No Expense Was Spared On This Custom LS3 Powered Land Rover Defender

East Coast Defender, otherwise known as ECD Design, is a Florida-based purveyor of high-priced custom Land Rover Defenders.

The company recently unveiled one of its most impressive projects yet, a custom Defender 130 that was built by the company’s high-end “Ultimate Vehicle Concept” (UVC) division.

Dubbed ‘Project Barge’, this Defender 130 features a Brazilian teak trimmed pickup bed, White Diamond Pearl exterior paint, 18-inch Kahn Mondial Retro wheels, and bronze exterior trim.

The cabin also features copper plated metalwork trim, soft brown Nappa leather seating, a Sony infotainment system, a full JL Audio sound system, onboard wi-fi, rear seat air conditioning controls and an aftermarket blind-spot monitoring system.

Of most interest to readers of this site will be the General Motors-sourced 6.2-liter LS3 V8 found under the hood. The LS3 is stock (though it’s still much more robust than any of the available factory Defender engines) and is paired with a six-speed automatic transmission. ECD Design’s Defender 130 also gets a 920 Engineering braking system, a custom aluminum radiator and a full Borla exhaust.

Tom Humble, co-owner of ECD Design, says this vehicle’s copper elements give it a purposefully aged look.

“We’ve effectively given a brand new built vehicle an aged patina. The look is quite superb,” he said.

You can check out ECD Design’s website for more information on the company’s various Defender-based custom builds. It also has custom two-door and four-door Defenders in addition to the four-door pickup truck variant shown here. The company has begun to restore and apply aftermarket upgrades to the Range Rover Classic as well.