Land Rover Defender and Discovery production stopped by semi-conductor shortage

Production of the Land Rover Defender and seven-seat Discovery has ground to a halt in Slovakia due to the ongoing semi-conductor shortage which is affecting the global electronics industry.

According to Autocar, the temporary halt at the Jaguar Land Rover plant in Nitra, Slovakia, is affecting the supply of both the new-look Defender and Discovery, having been unfazed by a closure of the Castle Bromwich and Halewood plants earlier in the year.

In 2019, a total of 40,000 cars came off the production line at the Nitra plant, with 38,000 Discoverys and 2000 Defenders being produced before the Covid-19 pandemic hit last year.

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A JLR Australia spokesperson told WhichCar its supply issues are similar to other manufacturers worldwide and it is in dialogue with suppliers to keep stock of current vehicles.

"Like other automotive manufacturers, we are currently experiencing some Covid-19 supply chain disruption, including the global availability of semi-conductors, which is having an impact on production," they said.

"As a result, we have adjusted production schedules for certain vehicles which means some of our manufacturing sites will be operating some limited periods of planned non-production.

"JLR Australia continues to see strong customer demand for our range of vehicles, including the Defender. We are working closely with affected suppliers to resolve the issues and minimise the impact on customer orders wherever possible."

Last year in Australia, Defender sold 519 units while Discovery sold 795 vehicles, not including the UK-built Discovery Sport which sold 1205 units.