Man who bought 240 Land Rover Defenders to make huge profit reveals bizarre fate of what happened to #240
Published on Dec 04, 2025 at 3:46 AM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid
Last updated on Dec 04, 2025 at 11:58 AM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
When Jaguar Land Rover announced that it would be ending production of the Land Rover Defender in 2016, British businessman Charles Fawcett came up with an idea.
Fawcett, the founder of Twisted Automotive, reached out to JLR and negotiated a deal to buy 240 of the off-roaders for around £8 million – equivalent to over USD $10 million.
He planned to modify the Land Rovers and then sell them on for a profit.
It was a risky gamble, but it paid off.
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What happened to Land Rover Defender number 240?
Charles Fawcett recently appeared on the Resto Revival – Car Stories YouTube channel, where he opened up about the ‘biggest financial decision of his life’.
And, as you might have guessed, it’s an unusual story.
After managing to get himself a decent deal on the 240 cars, Fawcett was hit with his first stumbling block.
Fawcett’s original contract with JLR stated that the Land Rover Defenders would need to be ‘modified’ before he sold them.
This wasn’t a big deal, as Twisted Automotive planned to modify them anyway – that was the whole idea.
However, after the carmaker had delivered half of Twisted Automotive’s order, things abruptly ground to a halt.
JLR contacted Fawcett and told him he needed to clearly define what ‘modification’ actually meant and what it entailed before they could continue.
Fortunately, for Twisted Automotive, the two companies managed to even out that bump in the road.
But there was another problem on the horizon: the case of Land Rover Defender number 240.
“They started supplying them in June. I would pick up eight, and then the next month 12, and the next month 12, and it went on like that.
“Until June of 2016, when we got the final batch… eventually we got them all, bar one.
“They delivered 239.”
So what happened to the last of the 240 Land Rovers Fawcett bought?
“They lost one,” he explained.
It seems that Twisted never did get delivery of the last of its Defenders, but of the 239 it did receive, the company has around 20 left.
The gamble paid off for Twisted Automotive
Although buying the cars was a big risk, it paid off for Fawcett.
In the first few years, Twisted Automotive was selling vehicles for around $100,000 each.
The margin on those sales was good, but not as good as it could have been.
But the company was new and still building its reputation.
Fast-forward a few years, and some models Twisted sells can cost as much $200,000 or even $300,000.
You can listen to Charles Fawcett’s full, fascinating story in the video at the top of this page or over on the Resto Revival – Car Stories YouTube channel here.
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Claire Reid is a journalist who hails from the UK but is now living in New Zealand. She began her career after graduating with a degree in Journalism from Liverpool John Moore’s University and has more than a decade of experience, writing for both local newspapers and national news sites. Claire covers a wide variety of topics, with a special focus on cars, technology, planes, cryptocurrency, and luxury.
