subject: Land Rover History [print this page] Nothing is as unmistakably British as the Land Rover. The pioneering Land Rover utility vehicle got its inspiration from the Ford / Willys Jeep after the Second World War. The UK Military needed something similar but as a modern all weather, all terrain, all purpose 4WD vehicle able to do the same odd job of transporting personnel and assuming various peace and combat roles.
Early History
Enter the Land Rover Series I built by the Rover Company and got its world debut at the 1948 Amsterdam Motor show. Just like the Ford Motor T, you could order one in any color as long as its green. Since then, it wasnt only British roads and off-roads that saw the familiar Land Rover profile, but just about all the explorable jungles of the Amazon, the safari preserves of Africa and the tundras of Siberia and Antarctica have become familiar terrain for the rugged, bare to the bone, all terrain, all wheel drive Land Rover.
The 60s and 70s
The marque enjoyed a history of changing hands that would seem to make it one of the most attractive properties in automotive history. In 1967 the Rover Company became part of the government owned Leyland Motors that eventually became British Leyland. During this time, the Land Rover was lightly updated 10 years after it went into production with the Land Rover Series II which made all earlier models a Series I by implication.
Another update went into the Series IIA in 1961 with the Series III taking over in 1971. In 1970, the Range Rover was introduced and in 1976, the one millionth Land Rover Series left the production line.
The 80s and 90s
In 1983, the Land Rover 90, 110 and 127, representing three variants based on wheelbase length, were introduced that effectively ended the production of the Series III line. This will be renamed the Defender series in 1990. In 1986, the British Leyland was renamed Rover Group Plc after it was privatized and then sold off to British Aerospace in 1988. A year later, the Land Rover Discovery model was introduced.
In was in 1994 that the Land Rover badge finally slipped out of British hands when the company was bought by Germanys BMW. Over the next 6 years, the Land Rover Defender line continued its production run. The Special Edition Discovery line with the now famous yellow paint was introduced in 1997 and was produced only for the North American markets. Only 25 of these yellow SUVs were made and became part of the Official Camel Trophy Owners Club. That same year saw the introduction of the Freelander model.
The 21st century
In 2000, BMW sold its Land Rover division to Ford Motors which continued to produce the Land Rover Defender, Discovery and Range Rovers until 2008 when the cash strapped Ford sold its entire Land Rover and Jaguar line to Indias Tata Motors. The sale ran smack into the economic recession and it was not until 2010, that the new Jaguar Land Rover Company saw its first operational profit.
