Last year was the 70th anniversary of the Land Rover marque. One of the commemorative events involved a visit to a remote community in West Bengal, deep in the Himalayas. Known as the “Land of Land Rovers,” they are reliant on a fleet of dozens of meticulously maintained Series Land Rovers dating back as far as 1957. The video shows the 31km journey made frequently by the residents of Maneybhanjang, which sits at an altitude of 3,636m.
Link to this beauty (I assume they were all out of every other color) showed up in comments on another post. Restoration by Classic Car Studios in St. Louis. Figured it deserved a post. But I’d be much more likely to buy this truck before one of the new Land Rovers.
“This is the sort of vehicle that most of us need, one that is entirely practical… there is no carrying about of weight more or less uselessly devoted to fashionable appearance and not really essential luxury.” — The Autocar (1948)
Came across the quote above in a magazine. True in 1948, less so today (okay, not at all). I’ve been driving mine almost daily for seven months and still having a blast. More Rover love:
“Perfectly reasonable people seem to take leave of their senses upon first meeting a Land Rover. It is less a car than a state of mind. Its owners are the most partisan group imaginable and its would-be owners are legion.” — David E. Davis, Car and Driver
“Yes, it’s loud, and rough, and slow, and unreliable. Yes, the Jeep Wrangler is better than the Defender in every objective way. But that’s the point of the Defender: it’s unique. It’s special. It’s unusual. The Jeep Wrangler is for people who leave their dealership license plate frame on. For people who drive past six gas stations to get to a Texaco two miles from their house because gas there is three cents cheaper.” (Jalopnik)
A gutsy offering from the Cool & Vintage guys. Photos of some of their restorations got me started down the Land Rover path.
“When the original Land Rover had been drawn up, there had been no proper styling team at Solihull. The appearance of the vehicle had been dictated partly by its intended function and partly by manufacturing requirements, and nobody had worried too much about what it looked like. This was, after all, a commercial vehicle and buyers were unlikely to set too much store by aesthetics as long as it did the intended job.”
— Land Rover: 65 Years of the 4 x 4 Workhorse by James Taylor (Amazon)
I received this as a Christmas gift. I don’t know if you would have to own and drive one of these old trucks to appreciate the Land Rover story. Maybe. Packed with history.
“An 87-year-old woman received the reunion of a lifetime when she got to spend time in an original Land Rover she worked with 70 years ago.
Dorothy Peters told her story to Land Rover, which in turn granted her time with the car she kept pictures of for decades to come. According to the woman, she and her mother went to the Land Rover factory (then called Rover) as she looked for employment opportunities in July of 1946. She was 15 when the automaker hired her as part of the service department at the Lode Lane factory working alongside the first series Land Rovers to be built at the site.” Motor Authority
I found what must be the largest collection of vintage Land Rovers in mid-Missouri. (The owner prefers to remain anonymous) His shop(s) is filled with Land Rovers waiting to be restored and while he identified the model and year of each truck, I was so mesmerized I didn’t take notes. In addition to Land Rovers he had a 1970-something Rolls Royce Silver Shadow. I hope he invites me back (when it’s warmer) so I can get a bit more info on these beauties. [middleton]
“Used examples of the North American Spec (NAS) Defender can cost between $70,000 and $150,000 while the same car in Europe can be had for as little as $10,000.” (CARSCOOPS)
When I started lusting for a Land Rover it was the Defender the turned my crank. I was completely unaware of the Series Rovers but SO glad I got nudged in that direction.
George K. spotted this beauty in Columbia, MO yesterday. I had heard rumors there were some older Land Rovers up there but this is the first sighting.
UPDATE: Got in touch with the owner of this 1969 Series IIa. “It is largely original except the frame has been replaced and the charging system upgraded with an alternator. I just use it around the farm and for hunting and fishing. I bought it off the estate of an obstetrician in Pennsylvania. The doc used it to get around the mountains to deliver babies.”
The history of Land Rover is rich and long and you can read about it here but the video above tells you all you need to know. My truck was assembled in Spain by the Santana Motor Company (which makes it something of a bastard to Land Rover purists). Over the last 18 months I’ve come across the abbreviation “CKD” but never knew what it meant until I found the following reference in the latest issue of Rovers Magazine:
Santana, or more formally, “Metalurgica de Santa Ana, SA,” started in 1956, and by 1958, had signed an agreement with Land Rover for CKD [Completely Knocked Down] kits; literally, a shipment of parts from Solihull that when assembled at their Lenares factory, avoided steep tariffs. Given their contemporary road conditions and weaker economy, the “Land Rover Santanas” provided the country with a workhorse that could tackle the challenging environment.
As Land Rover wound down Series III production, it chose to end its CKD agreement with Santana in 1983, just prior to the introduction of the 90/110 coil sprung models. Santana continued to manufacture its own version of the Series III with worthwhile enhancements. Santana introduced comfort features, such as better seats and a more stylish fascia, and by the 1980s, had created more contemporary styling than just the plastic grille and “safety dashboard” of the Series III. As Spain attracted more ex-pats and vacationers, Santanas became more lifestyle vehicles, although the Spanish police forces retained them for their use.
Ed Starr, the owner/operator of Resurrected Rovers, Chocorua, MM, has worked on them and become a fan. “Santana made some needed modifications to the Series Land Rovers to make them even better,” Ed noted. “They put an oil cooler on the base models before Land Rover introduced them on the MoD ones. A different sized oil bath filter made it easier to service. And, of course, they went to parabolic springs to improve the ride over the standard leaf spring. They’re just as easy to work on as a UK Series Rover.”
If your truck wasn’t one of the first hundred to roll off the assembly line in jolly old Solihull, England, well, it ain’t a real Rover, mate (to The Purists). You’d have to sneak in to the Tri Delt house to find a snobbier bunch of ladies.