Once a month during the summer, people bring their vintage cars and trucks to the local mall for a sort of mini rally. Very little organization but I consider that a feature. People sitting around in lawn chairs, strolling up and down, peering into engine compartments. Didn’t see any other Land Rovers but didn’t really expect to.
I’m a fan of Matthew Hampshire’s photography but also wanted to see how the Flickr embed code is working these days.
Spotted this monster in the supermarket parking lot.
These are the guys that lit my Land Rover fuse. I agree with Ricardo. The Land Rover is “the most photogenic” of all cars.
From the shop of Paul Bandelier: “Essentially, every part had to be created or custom fit to work. Virtually no easy bolt-on equipment. The engine is a new crate motor from Cummins called the R2.8. It’s a pretty popular re-power option for a lot of vintage trucks.” Here’s a great video of the Commando on (and off) the road.
An ex-Forest Service truck. The entire drivetrain is from a 1992 Dodge Cummins donor truck. Thus there was no need to fabricate and engineer every single piece. With some work, all of the ’92 parts fit in the ’72 body and frame. The pride and joy of Paul Bandelier.
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.
In a few days I will have been driving the Land Rover for six months. I’ve grown comfortable sitting up high, bouncing and rattling along, trailed by a faint mist of diesel carbon.
I spend a good bit of time shifting up and down and today I became aware of how I can feel the gears through the shifter, meshing and engaging. All the sounds have now become familiar. My entire body is involved in turning and breaking (both manual). I imagine myself in one of those robot-like loaders Ripley operated in Alien. The machine an extension of my body (or the other way round).
On those rare occasions when I rent a car for a road trip I’m immediately aware of how little the vehicle needs me to get where we’re going. A little pressure on the accelerator, a light touch on the steering wheel. The Rover is a visceral experience. A feint reminder of what a thrill it must have been to drive those early automobiles.
