No doubt many of you reading this will already be driving something rather tasty. The problem, of course, is that there’s every chance someone in the office next door owns the same thing.
In an era where even six-figure SUVs are becoming commonplace, standing out is harder than ever. Thankfully, there is a solution
Enter Urban Automotive.
Founded in 2013 by Simon Dearn, the Milton Keynes–based company was born out of frustration with the aftermarket scene. Too often, modifications were either shouty or sloppy, lacking the restraint and coherence expected by luxury-car owners. Urban Automotive set out to do things differently: high-end, bespoke enhancements that look considered, contemporary and, crucially, as though they could have left the factory that way.
That philosophy runs through everything the brand does. With a team of highly skilled craftsmen working from its UK workshops, Urban Automotive transforms standard production cars into genuinely individual machines. The brand even manufactures its own carbon-fibre components, allowing for a level of customisation well beyond bolt-on parts.
The result is a British success story with an increasingly global reach. Urban Automotive now counts an international clientele, particularly in the US, and its customer list includes Kim Kardashian, Romeo Beckham, Anthony Joshua and many Premier League footballers.
There are two routes into the Urban Automotive world. Clients can ask the company to source a brand-new vehicle and then rework it to their specification, or they can bring an existing car and let Dearn’s team take over. Either way, the emphasis is on collaboration rather than prescription. Urban has a catalogue of proven upgrades, but anything bespoke is very much on the table.
Walk through the Urban Automotive showroom and you’ll find everything from Rolls-Royce and Bentley to Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz. Yet one marque, more than any other, has become synonymous with the brand: Land Rover. In fact, it was the original Defender that helped put Urban on the map, reimagining a utilitarian workhorse as something altogether more metropolitan.
The current Land Rover Defender remains one of Urban Automotive’s most popular canvases – and it’s one we’ve experienced first-hand. Our donor vehicle was a Defender X, powered by Land Rover’s 419bhp 5.0-litre V8. Bought straight from a dealer, you’d be looking at £101,125.
Hand the keys to Urban Automotive and the conversation quickly becomes about possibility. Some upgrades are readily available; others can be created from scratch. Our example, broadly representative of the Widetrack Defender you see here, came in at £114,975. So where did the extra £14,000 go?
The exterior modifications are centred around Urban’s Widetrack kit, which is available across several models. On the Defender, this includes widened wheel arches housing 23-inch forged WX-5 alloy wheels, revised front lower spoiler, square daytime running lights and a dramatic carbon-fibre roof light bar. There’s also a new rear spoiler, side steps, Urban spare-wheel cover and discreet Urban-branded vents on the bonnet.
Inside, the brief is entirely open. New seats, alternative leathers, bespoke colours, upgraded technology – almost anything is possible. Yet restraint remains key. The Defender Widetrack we sampled felt purposeful rather than theatrical: tougher, more assertive, but never overdone.
That, ultimately, is the point. Urban Automotive doesn’t aim to shout. Its goal is to enhance, refine and personalise, producing vehicles that feel cohesive and considered rather than modified for the sake of it. For buyers who want something genuinely individual – and done properly – it remains one of the most convincing options in the business.
See more at urban-automotive.com
