Past Commission • Not for Sale

Ritter · A Custom Land Rover Defender D90 Soft Top A re-engineered classic Defender 90. Featured here as a reference. Not for sale.

A featured past commission. Shown here as a reference for what a Helderburg can be.
Read the Story See Available Helderburgs Ask Paul
The Commission

Features

  • 300 TDi Turbo Diesel
  • 5 Speed Manual
  • Stainless Steel Exhaust
  • Fox Offroad Suspension
  • Maxxis 315/75 16 Mud Tires
  • Locking Differentials
  • Alpine Apple CarPlay/Android Auto Touch Screen with Camera
  • Black Sand Pebble Texture Leather
  • 4 Season Soft Top
  • 6 Point Roll Cage (attached to frame)

Every line above is the result of upgrades engineered in-house, found in no other custom or restomod Defender in the world.

See Helderburg's Proprietary Upgrades
The Build Film · From Paul

Paul walks around Ritter the way every Helderburg is meant to be seen.

Step back ten feet. Then twenty. Study the seams. The paint. The exhaust note. The interior. By the end you will know what to look for, and how to compare any custom Defender build.

Ritter build film thumbnail

Filmed at Haldenmere · The Ozarks

Three Ways to a Helderburg

The next one is yours.

What carries over is not this truck. It is the way it was made. There are three ways to begin, and they differ mainly in one thing. How soon you want to be driving.

Commission Range
$288K to $480K+
Set before the build begins
Time to Drive
2 Weeks to 16 Months
Available now, or fully commissioned
Ready to Drive Available Now

A small number of finished Helderburgs are complete and sorted, built to the same house standard as a commission. For the owner who wants a Helderburg without the wait.

Delivered in weeks, not months.

See What Is Available
Reserve a Build Underway In Progress

Helderburgs are underway now. Reserve one and shape what is still open, the leather, the finish, the cabin. Delivered well ahead of a commission begun today.

Sooner than a new commission.

See the Builds Underway
Built Around You Commission Most Owners Begin Here

A conversation, not a configurator. A Helderburg drawn around the way you drive, in a color of your own, then retired. Built for one person, not designed to appeal to others.

Roughly twelve to sixteen months.

Begin a Commission

Not sure which path is yours? Ask Paul. He reads every message and answers personally.

Four Styles, One Custom Process

A Helderburg is not one look. It is your own.

Ritter is one direction. Every Helderburg is custom, designed around the owner rather than chosen from a catalogue, and most commissions draw from one or two of these four. The expedition build is the one most people picture first. It is only the beginning of what a custom Defender by Helderburg can be.

Expedition — a Helderburg expedition build
Expedition
Explore →
Heritage — a Helderburg heritage build
Heritage
Explore →
Metropolitan — a Helderburg metropolitan build
Metropolitan
Explore →
Coastal — a Helderburg coastal build
Coastal
Explore →
Explore the Four Styles
Why a Helderburg Drives Differently

The difference is not cosmetic alone.

The architecture itself has been re-engineered. If you want the full picture of what is under a Helderburg before you speak to Paul, two doorways.

The Twelve Systems

Ritter carries twelve proprietary Helderburg systems, found in no other restored, custom or restomod Defender. The drivetrain on the original block. A suspension with the body roll engineered out, widened at the chassis, not with spacers. A cabin built for the eighth hour, not the first.

See Helderburg's Proprietary Upgrades →

Three Approaches. Only one is a Helderburg.

A classic Defender can be restored, restomodded, or re-engineered. A restomod replaces the body and drops in a GM V8 crate motor, no longer numbers matching. Respectfully, a kit car. A Helderburg keeps the original chassis and block, and re-engineers everything else.

What is a Helderburg →
Past Commissions

Every one built once. None of them again.

Ritter is one of many. Each Helderburg is built for a single owner, then never repeated. A few of the commissions that came before.

Rocco
Rocco
Defender D110 · Rocco Red, retired
Theo
Theo
Defender D110 · Dynamic Blu Metallic, retired
Ashcomb
Ashcomb
Defender D90 · Aintree Green
See All Past Commissions
Films

See more, by the way you like to watch.

More than a hundred films. The drives, the walk-arounds, the honest questions, and the quieter moments. Start wherever you like.

The Drive No Destination, Just the Ozarks
No Destination, Just the Ozarks

A typical Sunday in the Ozarks: no destination, just a Helderburg drive beyond the pavement, where adventure is measured by where you’re willing to go.

The Helderburgs Rocco: The Boldest Helderburg Yet
Rocco: The Boldest Helderburg Yet

Rocco is the moment you realize a classic Defender can be both unapologetically bold and quietly refined.

The Questions Restored Land Rover Defender Review: Sarge
Restored Land Rover Defender Review: Sarge

Take a front-row seat as Paul Potratz, founder of Helderburg, takes you on a spirited test drive of “Sarge”—a fully restored Land Rover Defender 110 that redefines what it means

From Paul Presence | Sundays at Haldenmere
Presence | Sundays at Haldenmere

A single handcrafted Leica lens, one trip to Italy, and a reminder that character outlives perfection. Step inside the story of presence, imperfection, and choosing the few objects that truly matter.

More than one hundred films. All the custom Defender questions answered.

Watch the Films

Ritter stays with the family it was built for.

A few Helderburgs are available now, ready sooner than a full commission. Or begin a commission in Ritter's spirit, with a color of your own.

See the Helderburgs Available Now
Or begin a commission of your own
A Direct Line to Paul

The next Helderburg will be built around you.

If Ritter stirred something, the next conversation is about your Helderburg. Ask anything, about a build in progress now or a commission of your own. Paul reads every message and answers personally.

Paul Potratz · Founder, Helderburg · Twenty years in automotive marketing · Featured in the Wall Street Journal, Robb Report, Road & Track, Carscoops, and the Collector Car Podcast

Contact Paul Directly
+1 518.788.4724