Land Rover Series History
Along with the Rolls, the Bentley, the Jaguar
, the MG and the black umbrella, nothing is more British than the Land Rover. Its just plain tragic that none of these automotive marques remain in the hands of the Brits. But in a way, its comforting to note that the Tata Motors Group that now own the Jaguar Land Rover company is managed by Brits at the helm, Carl Peter Foster and is still made in the historic city of Solihull, West Midlands in England. The highly iconic British automotive landmark remains as British as ever.
The Series History
The history of the Land Rover Series starts from its pioneering days at the Amsterdam car show in 1968. It was unveiled up to the time the Land Rover Series III ended its production run in 1983 to give way to the Landrover 90, 110 and 127 that later became the Defender line.
The Landy, as the Land Rover was affectionately called, can be considered the father of the Sport Utility Vehicle or SUV dating back to post-war 1948 when the military wanted a similar all weather, all terrain, utilitarian vehicle to replace the ubiquitous Ford Wileys Jeep.
It did replace the jeep not only in the British army, but is virtually all the militaries of Northern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, China, Australia and South America. You can even see variant of the Land Rover alongside the mighty Hummer in the US Army. It actually saw combat as part of the personnel and ammunitions carrier in the Gulf War.
No other 4X4 vehicle is as versatile. Starting with is bare-boned profile and ladder frame chassis, its after market conversion kit allowed it to become an ambulance, a police car, a delivery van, a pick-truck, a family station wagon, a farm tractor, an amphibious military vehicle, an armored personnel carrier, a patrol car and even a street cleaner.
Since 1948, the basic spartan Land Rover profile remained unchanged even when the Series line has been ended. The Series I lasted for 10 years during which time its 2 liter engines and permanent 4WD system made the marque a favourite among explorers around the world and cemented its iconic place in the world of automobiles.
1958 saw the Series II with its first 2.25 litter petrol engine and a longer 10-12 seater station wagon version. The Series IIA followed in 1967 with a larger engine that now featured the marque first 2.5 liter diesel engine.
This is the model considered by motorists as the most durable of the Series line with features that have strongly ingrained the Land Rover look and styling to the general public. It was featured in the 1060 movie Born Free. A year after, the Rover company was subsumed under the British Leyland Corporation were it celebrated its 20th anniversary.
In 1971, the Land Rover Series III entered into production and would reign as the definitive Land Rover SUV until 1985, its last production year, a good two years after renaming the Series into the Defender line.
by: Simon Drew
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