Land Rover Series
Encyclopedia
The Land Rover Series I, II, and III (commonly referred to as "Series" Land Rovers, to distinguish them from later models) are off-road vehicle
s produced by the British manufacturer Land Rover
that were inspired by the US-built Willys Jeep
. In 1992 Land Rover claimed that 70% of all the vehicles they had built were still in use.
Series models feature leaf-sprung suspension with selectable two
or four-wheel drive
; the Stage 1 featured permanent 4WD. All three models could be started with a front hand crank and had the option of a rear power takeoff for accessories.
. Before the war Rover had produced luxury cars which were not in demand in the immediate post-war period and raw materials were strictly rationed to those companies building construction or industrial equipment, or products that could be widely exported to earn crucial foreign exchange
for the country. Also, Rover's original factory in Coventry
had been bombed during the war, forcing the company to move into a huge "shadow factory" it had built during the war in Solihull
near Birmingham
to construct aircraft. This factory was now empty but starting car production there from scratch would not be financially viable. Plans for a small, economical car known as the M Type were drawn up, and a few prototypes made, but would be too expensive to produce.
Maurice Wilks
, Rover's chief designer came up with a plan to produce a light agricultural and utility vehicle, of a similar concept to the Willys Jeep used in the war, but with an emphasis on agricultural use. He was possibly inspired by the Standard Motor Company
, who faced similar problems and were producing the highly successful Ferguson TE20
tractor
in their shadow factory in Coventry. More likely, he used his own experience of using an army-surplus Jeep on his farm in Anglesey
, North Wales. His design added a power take-off
(PTO) feature since there was a gap in the market between jeeps and tractors (which offered the feature but were less flexible as transport). The original Land Rover concept (a cross between a light truck and a tractor) is similar to the Unimog
, which was developed in Germany
during this period.
The first prototype had a distinctive feature—the steering wheel was mounted in the middle of the vehicle. It hence became known as the "centre steer
". It was built on a Jeep chassis and used the engine and gearbox out of a Rover P3
saloon car. The bodywork was hand-made out of an aluminium/magnesium alloy called Birmabright
, to save on steel, which was closely rationed. Paint was also in short supply, resulting in the first production vehicles making use of army surplus
green paint. The first pre production Land Rover's were being developed in late 1947 by a team led by engineer Arthur Goddard
.
(When Arthur Goddard
visited the Solihull factory in May 2010 he refuted the suggestion that surplus cockpit paint was used. With the company trying to establish the vehicle at maximum speed and minimum cost, they relied as much as possible on what they already had. He said that the colour was a stock Rover car one, available in the Paint Shop. This has yet to be verified.)
Tests showed this prototype vehicle to be a capable and versatile machine. The PTO drives from the front of the engine and from the gearbox to the centre and rear of the vehicle allowed it to drive farm machinery, exactly as a tractor would. It was also tested ploughing and performing other agricultural tasks. However, as the vehicle was readied for production, this emphasis on tractor-like usage decreased and the centre steering proved impractical in use. The steering wheel was mounted off to the side as normal, the bodywork was simplified to reduce production time and costs and a larger engine was fitted, together with a specially designed transfer gearbox to replace the Jeep unit. The result was a vehicle that didn't use a single Jeep component and was slightly shorter than its American inspiration, but wider, heavier, faster and still retained the PTO drives.
The Land Rover was designed to only be in production for 2–3 years to gain some cash flow and export orders for the Rover Company so it could restart up-market car production. Once car production restarted, however, it was greatly outsold by the off-road Land Rover, which developed into its own brand that remains successful today. Many of the defining and successful features of the Land Rover design were in fact the result of Rover's drive to simplify the tooling required for the vehicle and to use the minimum amount of rationed materials. As well as the aluminium alloy bodywork (which has been retained throughout production despite it now being more expensive than a conventional steel body due to its ideal properties of light weight and corrosion resistance) other examples include the distinctive flat body panels with only simple, constant-radius curves (originally used because they could be cut and formed by hand from aluminium sheet on a basic jig) and the sturdy box-section ladder chassis
, which on Series vehicles was made up from four strips of steel welded at each side to form a box, thus cutting down on the complex welding
operations required when making a more conventional U- or I-section frame.
Motor Show. It was originally designed for farm and light industrial use, and had a steel box-section chassis
, and an aluminum body.
Originally the Land Rover was a single model offering, which from 1948 until 1951 used an 80 in (2,032 mm) wheelbase
and a 1.6 litre petrol engine
producing around 50 bhp. The 4-speed gearbox from the Rover P3
was used, with a new 2-speed transfer box. This incorporated an unusual 4-wheel drive system, with a freewheel
unit (as used on several Rover cars of the time). This disengaged the front axle from the manual transmission
on the overrun, allowing a form of permanent 4WD. A ring-pull mechanism in the driver's footwell allowed the freewheel to be locked to provide more traditional 4WD. This was a basic vehicle, tops for the doors and a roof (canvas or metal) were optional extras. In 1950, the lights moved from a position behind the grille
to protruding through the grille.
From the beginning it was realised that some buyers would want a Land Rover's abilities without the spartan interiors. In 1949 Land Rover launched a second body option called the "Station Wagon
", fitted with a body built by Tickford
, a coachbuilder known for their work with Rolls-Royce
and Lagonda
. The bodywork was wooden-framed and had seating for seven people. Tickford was well equipped in comparison with the standard Land Rover, having leather seats, a heater, a one-piece laminated windscreen, a tin-plate spare wheel cover, some interior trim and other options. The wooden construction made them expensive to build and tax laws made this worse — unlike the original Land Rover, the Tickford was taxed as a private car, which attracted high levels of Purchase Tax. As a result, fewer than 700 Tickfords were sold, and all but 50 were exported. Today these early Station Wagons are highly sought after.
In 1952 and 1953 the petrol engine was replaced with a larger 2.0 litre I4
unit. This engine was "siamese bore", meaning that there were no water passages between the piston
s. During 1950 the unusual semi-permanent 4WD system was replaced with a more conventional setup, with drive to the front axle being taken through a simple dog clutch. Around this time the Land Rover's legal status was also clarified. As mentioned above, the Land Rover was originally classed as a commercial vehicle, meaning it was free from Purchase Tax. However, this also meant it was limited to a speed of 30 mi/h on British roads. After an appeal to the Law Lords after an owner was charged with exceeding this limit, the Land Rover was classified as a "multi-purpose vehicle" which was only to be classed as a commercial vehicle if used for commercial purposes. This still applies today, with Land Rovers registered as commercial vehicles being restricted to a maximum speed of 60 mph (as opposed to the maximum 70 mi/h for normal cars) in Britain, although this rule is rarely upheld.
The 1954 Year Model saw a big change: the 80 in (2,032 mm) wheelbase model was replaced by an 86 in (2,184.4 mm) wheelbase model, and a 107 in (2,717.8 mm) "Pick Up
" version was introduced. The extra wheelbase was added behind the cab area to provide additional load space.
1956 saw the introduction of the first five-door model, on the 107 in (2,718 mm) chassis known as the "Station Wagon
" with seating for up to ten people. The 86 in (2,184 mm) model was a three-door seven-seater. The new station wagon
s were very different from the previous Tickford model, being built with simple metal panels and bolt-together construction instead of the complex wooden structure of the older Station Wagon. They were intended to be used both as commercial vehicles as people-carriers for transporting workmen to remote locations, as well as by private users. Like the Tickford version, they came with basic interior trim and equipment such as roof vents and interior lights.
The Station Wagons saw the first expansion of the Land Rover range. Station Wagons were fitted with a "Safari Roof" which consisted of a second roof skin fitted on top of the vehicle. This kept the interior cool in hot weather and reduced condensation in cold weather. Vents fitted in the roof allowed added ventilation to the interior. While they were based on the same chassis and drivetrains
as the standard vehicles, Station Wagons carried different chassis numbers, special badging, and were advertised in separate brochures. Unlike the original Station Wagon, the new in-house versions were highly popular.
Wheelbases were extended by 2 in (51 mm) to 88 in (2,235.2 mm) and 109 in (2,768.6 mm) to accommodate the new diesel engine, to be an option the following year. This change was made to all models with the exception of the 107 Station Wagon, which would never be fitted with a diesel engine, and would eventually be the last series I in production.
Finally, in 1957, the "spread bore" petrol engine was introduced, followed shortly by a brand new 2.0 litre Diesel engine
that, despite the similar capacity, was not related to the petrol engines used. The petrol engines of the time used the rather out-dated inlet-over-exhaust valve
arrangement; the diesel used the more modern overhead layout. This diesel engine was one of the first high-speed diesels developed for road use, producing 52 hp at 4000 rpm.
This engine was slightly longer than the original chassis allowed, so the wheelbase was increased from 86 to 88 in (2,235.2 mm) for the short-wheelbase models, and from 107 to 109 in (2,769 mm) on the long-wheelbases. The extra two inches were added in front of the bulkhead to accommodate the new diesel engine. These dimensions were to be used on all Land Rovers for the next 25 years.
to receive the attention of Rover's styling department- Chief Stylist David Bache
produced the familiar 'barrel side' waistline to cover the vehicle's wider track and the improved design of the truck cab variant, introducing the curved side windows and rounded roof still used on current Land Rovers. The Series II was the first vehicle to use the well-known 2.25 litre petrol engine
, although the first 1,500 or so short wheelbase (SWB) models retained the 52 hp 2.0 litre petrol engine from the Series I. This larger petrol engine produced 72 hp and was closely related to the 2.0 litre diesel unit still in use. This engine became the standard Land Rover unit until the mid-1980s when diesel engines became more popular.
The 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) Series II Station Wagon
introduced a 12-seater option on top of the standard 10-seater layout. This was primarily to take advantage of UK tax laws, by which a vehicle with 12 seats or more was classed as a bus
, and was exempt from Purchase Tax and Special Vehicle Tax. This made the 12-seater not only cheaper to buy than the 10-seater version, but also cheaper than the 7-seater 88 inches (2,235.2 mm) Station Wagon. The 12-seater layout remained a highly popular body style for decades, being retained on the later Series and Defender variants until 2002, when it was dropped. The unusual status of the 12-seater remained until the end—such vehicles were classed as minibuses and thus could use bus lane
s and (if registered correctly) could be exempt from the London Congestion Charge
.
There was some degree of over-lap between Series I and Series II production. Early Series II 88 inches (2,235.2 mm) vehicles were fitted with the old 2 litre petrol engine to use up existing stock from production of the Series I 107 inches (2,717.8 mm) Station Wagon continued until late 1959 due to continued demand from export markets and to allow the production of Series II components to reach full level.
. Body configurations available from the factory ranged from short wheelbase soft top to the top of the line five-door Station Wagon. Also the 2.6 litre straight six
petrol engine was introduced for use in the long wheelbase models in 1967, the larger engine complemented by standard-fit servo-assisted brakes. 811 of these were NADA (or North American Dollar Area) trucks, which were the only long wheelbase models made for the American and Canadian markets.
From February 1969 (home market) the headlamps moved into the wings on all models, and the sill panels were redesigned to be shallower a few months afterwards.
The Series IIA is considered by many the most hardy Series model constructed. It is also the type of classic Land Rover that features strongly in the general public's perception of the Land Rover, from its many appearances in popular films and television documentaries set in Africa throughout the 1960s, such as Born Free
. In February 1968, just a few months after its manufacturer had been subsumed, under government pressure, into the Leyland Motor Corporation, the Land Rover celebrated its twentieth birthday, with total production to date just short of 600,000, of which more than 70% had been exported. Certainly it was whilst the Series IIA was in production that sales of utility Land Rovers reached their peak, in 1969-70, when sales of over 60,000 Land Rovers a year were recorded. (For comparison, the sales of the Defender in recent years have been around the 25,000 level since the 1990s.) As well as record sales, the Land Rover dominated many world markets- in Australia in the 1960s Land Rover held 90% of the 4x4 market. This figure was repeated in many countries in Africa and the Middle East.
The Series IIB FC produced from 1966 was similar to the Series IIA Forward Control but added the 2.25 litre diesel engine as an option. The 2.6 litre engine was the standard engine for this model, the 2.25 litre engine being only available for export.
Heavy duty wide-track axles (designed by ENV) was fitted to improve vehicle stability, as was a front anti-roll bar and revised rear springs which were mounted above the axle rather than below it. In the process the wheelbase was increased to 110 in (2,794 mm). Production ended in 1974 when Land-Rover rationalised its vehicle range. Many IIB components were also used on the "1 Ton" 109" vehicle.
In 1980 the 4-cylinder 2.25 litre engines (both petrol and diesel) were updated with five-bearing crankshafts to increase strength in heavy duty work. At the same time the transmission
, axle
s and wheel hubs were re-designed for increased strength. This was the culmination of a series of updates to the transmission that had been made since the 1960s to combat the all-too-common problem of the rear axle half-shafts breaking in heavy usage. This problem was partly due to the design of the shafts themselves. Due to the fully floating design of the rear wheel hubs, the half shafts can be removed very quickly without even having to jack the vehicle off the ground. The tendency for commercial operators to overload their vehicles exacerbated this flaw which blighted the Series Land Rovers in many of their export markets and established a reputation that continues in many markets to the present day. This is despite the 1982 re-design (mainly the changing of the driveshafts from 10 driving-spline
s to 24 to reduce stress) all but solved the problem.
Also, new trim options were introduced to make the interior more comfortable if the buyer so wished (many farmers and commercial users preferred the original, non-trimmed interior).
These changes culminated in April 1982 with the introduction of the "County" spec Station Wagon Land Rovers, available in both 88 inches (2,235.2 mm) and 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) types. These had all-new cloth seats from the Leyland
T-45 Lorry, soundproofing kits, tinted glass and other "soft" options designed to appeal to the leisure owner/user.
Of more interest was the introduction of the High Capacity Pick Up to the 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) chassis. This was a pick-up truck load bay that offered 25% more cubic capacity than the standard pick-up style. The HCPU came with heavy-duty suspension and was popular with public utility companies and building contractors.
"Stage 1" refers to the first stage of investment by the British Government in the company to improve the Land Rover and Range Rover product offerings, which eventually led to the Land Rover 90 and 110. The use of the Range Rover engine and drive train made it the only Series III vehicle to have permanent four wheel drive.
Only 170 IIa and 275 (approx) Series IIIs (1 Ton) were built for the home market.
The Series III continued this success in the early 1970s, but from the middle of the decade sales declined. A large coal export deal to Japan relied on the subsequent import of Japanese cars and other goods, a combination of this increasing competition and increasingly poor quality of the components being shipped from Britain meant that Land Rover's dominance slipped. A problem specific to Australia was the always-limited supply of new Land Rovers. Leyland's factory never had the capacity to meet possible demand and the need to import almost the entire vehicle in kit form from Britain restricted the supply and manufacturing process further. This led to a long waiting list developing for the Leyland product whilst commercial operators could receive large fleets of Japanese vehicles very quickly. The other problems faced by Land Rover were the same throughout its export markets- compared to the Japanese competition, the Land Rover was underpowered, unreliable and slow with a poor ride quality, despite their superior off-road ability. Poor rust-proofing and low-quality steel
used in comparison to the Japanese vehicles turned the buyers away in large numbers and by 1983, with the introduction of the One Ten, the Toyota Land Cruiser became the best selling 4x4 in Australia.
In the early 1980s, Land Rover Australia had made some changes to the vehicle to try to combat this sales decline. As well as the fitting of the V8 petrol engine in the 1979 "Stage One", as in the rest of the world, Australia also received the same vehicle with the option of a 3.9 litre 89 hp 4 cylinder Isuzu
diesel engine. This helped slow the sales decline, but the rest of the vehicle's shortcomings let it down. The One Ten was also available with this engine, and a turbocharged version producing in excess of 100 hp powered the military 6x6.
used Series Land Rovers in large numbers (and continues to use the modern Defender versions). The British Army tested the 80 inches (2,032 mm) Series I Land Rover almost as soon as it was launched in 1948. At that time, the Army was more interested in developing a specially designed military utility 4x4 (the Austin Champ
). However, the Champ proved too complex, heavy and unreliable in battlefield conditions so the Army looked to the Land Rover. In the late 1940s the Ministry of Defence
was keen on the standardisation of its vehicles and equipment. Part of this plan was to fit Rolls-Royce
petrol engines to all its vehicles (even though most were not actually built by R-R). A batch of Series I Land Rovers were fitted with Rolls-Royce B40 4-cylinder engine, which required modification to an 81 inches (2,057.4 mm) wheelbase). However, the engine was too heavy and slow-revving, which stunted performance, and produced torque that the Rover gearbox could only just cope with. Rover convinced the MOD that, considering the quantities of Land Rovers they were considering ordering, that the standard 1.6 litre engine would suffice. The MOD started ordering Land Rovers in batches from late 1949. The initial batches were for 50 vehicles, but by the mid 1950s the Army was buying Land Rovers 200 vehicles at a time.
Land Rovers were deployed to the Korean War
and the Suez Crisis
, and became standard light military vehicles throughout the Commonwealth.
However, as the 1960s progressed, more and more specialised versions were developed. As well as the standard 'GS' (General Service) vehicles, a common variant was the 'FFR' (Fitted For Radio', which had 24-volt
electrics and a large engine-powered generator to power on-board radios. There were also Ambulances on the 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) Series II chassis. A well-known version was the LRDPV (Long-Range Desert Patrol Vehicle), commonly called the 'Pink Panther', on account of their distinctive light pink sand camouflage. These 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) Series IIs were stripped of doors and windscreens and fitted with grenade
launchers, a machine gun
mounting ring and long-range fuel tanks and water tanks. They were used by the SAS
for desert patrol and special operations.
By the late 1970s the British Army had acquired around 9,000 Series III models, which were mainly a special 'Heavy Duty' version of the 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) Soft Top. These models had improved suspension components and a different chassis cross-member design. These were produced in 12-volt 'GS' models and 24-volt 'FFR' versions. A small number were 88 inches (2,235.2 mm) GS and FFR models, but in general the Army used the Air-Portable 1/2 ton, 88 inches (2,235.2 mm) "Lightweight"
version. The Lightweight was in service by many armies all over the world. In Europe even the Dutch Landmacht and the Danish Army used the Land-Rover Lightweight. Instead of the petrol engine the Dutch and Danish Lightweights had diesel engines. Instead of the canvas top the Dutch ones had PVC tops like the modern Landrover Wolf.
In addition, there were also 101 inches (2,565.4 mm) Forward Control
models, 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) FV18067 ambulance
s built by Marshall Aerospace
of Cambridge.
The Royal Navy
and Royal Air Force
also acquired and maintained smaller Land Rover fleets during the 1960s and 1970s. The RAF used 88 inches (2,235.2 mm) models for communications, liaison, personnel transport and airfield tractor duties. The Royal Navy's fleet was, understandably, small and consisted mainly of GS-spec and Station Wagon versions for personnel and cargo transport.
In the Falklands War
of 1982 the British Army deployed several hundred Land Rovers to the South Atlantic. These never reached the Falklands as they were transported on the requisitioned merchant ship Atlantic Conveyor which was sunk in an airstrike. The loss of their light 4x4s caused numerous logistical problems for the British forces. After the conflict to replace the lost vehicles the Army ordered 200 Series III Land Rovers in 'Commercial Utility' specification (i.e. the most basic). These lacked the upgraded chassis and suspension that military-spec Land Rovers had and also had features such as the standard civilian front bumper, civilian headlights with trim surrounds and interiors that lacked the extra switch panel that was installed for military customers. These civilian-spec vehicles served alongside the dedicated military specification fleet for over 10 years and proved to be just as robust. The Army's experience with these standard Land Rovers played a part in determining the specification for the Army's Ninety/One Ten fleet of later years, which were much closer to standard specification.
All British military Land Rovers used the 2.25 litre 4-cylinder
petrol engine. However, some overseas customers (such as The Netherlands) specified the 2.25 litre diesel unit instead.
The Land Rover is also the basis for the Shorland Internal Security Patrol Vehicle developed by Short Brothers
.
Minerva of Belgium
produced a vehicle called a Standard Vanguard
, which was produced in Belgium, under licence of the Standard Motor Company
.
When Belgium's army needed a lightweight 4x4 vehicle, the head of Minerva, Monsieur van Roggen approached the Rover company in the spring of 1951. On 21 June, Rover discovered that they were competing against Willys Jeep for the contract. In October 1951, the deal was agreed and in 1952, the Minerva-Land Rover was produced.
The Rover company supplied technical support for Minerva and allowed Minerva to produce Land Rovers under licence to Rover. Arthur Goddard
, Rover Assistant Chief Engineer and head of Land Rover development was in charge of approving the changes Minerva wanted to make to the Land Rover as well as setting the factory up to assemble the vehicles.
Off-road vehicle
An off-road vehicle is considered to be any type of vehicle which is capable of driving on and off paved or gravel surface. It is generally characterized by having large tires with deep, open treads, a flexible suspension, or even caterpillar tracks...
s produced by the British manufacturer Land Rover
Land Rover
Land Rover is a British car manufacturer with its headquarters in Gaydon, Warwickshire, United Kingdom which specialises in four-wheel-drive vehicles. It is owned by the Indian company Tata Motors, forming part of their Jaguar Land Rover group...
that were inspired by the US-built Willys Jeep
Willys MB
The Willys MB US Army Jeep and the Ford GPW, were manufactured from 1941 to 1945. These small four-wheel drive utility vehicles are considered the iconic World War II Jeep, and inspired many similar light utility vehicles. Over the years, the World War II Jeep later evolved into the "CJ" civilian...
. In 1992 Land Rover claimed that 70% of all the vehicles they had built were still in use.
Series models feature leaf-sprung suspension with selectable two
Two-wheel drive
Two wheel drive or 2WD describes vehicles with a drivetrain that allows two wheels to receive power from the engine simultaneously.-Four wheeled vehicles:...
or four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive, 4WD, or 4×4 is a four-wheeled vehicle with a drivetrain that allows all four wheels to receive torque from the engine simultaneously...
; the Stage 1 featured permanent 4WD. All three models could be started with a front hand crank and had the option of a rear power takeoff for accessories.
Development
The Land Rover was conceived by the Rover Company in 1947 during the aftermath of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Before the war Rover had produced luxury cars which were not in demand in the immediate post-war period and raw materials were strictly rationed to those companies building construction or industrial equipment, or products that could be widely exported to earn crucial foreign exchange
Foreign exchange market
The foreign exchange market is a global, worldwide decentralized financial market for trading currencies. Financial centers around the world function as anchors of trading between a wide range of different types of buyers and sellers around the clock, with the exception of weekends...
for the country. Also, Rover's original factory in Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
had been bombed during the war, forcing the company to move into a huge "shadow factory" it had built during the war in Solihull
Solihull
Solihull is a town in the West Midlands of England with a population of 94,753. It is a part of the West Midlands conurbation and is located 9 miles southeast of Birmingham city centre...
near Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
to construct aircraft. This factory was now empty but starting car production there from scratch would not be financially viable. Plans for a small, economical car known as the M Type were drawn up, and a few prototypes made, but would be too expensive to produce.
Maurice Wilks
Maurice Wilks
Maurice Cary Ferdinand Wilks was an automotive and aeronautical engineer, and by the time of his death in 1963, was the chairman of the Rover Company, a British car manufacturer...
, Rover's chief designer came up with a plan to produce a light agricultural and utility vehicle, of a similar concept to the Willys Jeep used in the war, but with an emphasis on agricultural use. He was possibly inspired by the Standard Motor Company
Standard Motor Company
The Standard Motor Company was founded in Coventry, England in 1903 by Reginald Walter Maudslay . The Standard name was last used in Britain in 1963, and in India in 1987.-1903–1914:...
, who faced similar problems and were producing the highly successful Ferguson TE20
Ferguson TE20
The Ferguson Model TE20 was a British agricultural tractor. It was Harry Ferguson's most successful design, commonly known as the Little Grey Fergie. It was manufactured from 1946 to 1956...
tractor
Tractor
A tractor is a vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery used in agriculture or construction...
in their shadow factory in Coventry. More likely, he used his own experience of using an army-surplus Jeep on his farm in Anglesey
Anglesey
Anglesey , also known by its Welsh name Ynys Môn , is an island and, as Isle of Anglesey, a county off the north west coast of Wales...
, North Wales. His design added a power take-off
Power take-off
A power take-off or power takeoff is a splined driveshaft, usually on a tractor or truck, that can be used to provide power to an attachment or separate machine. It is designed to be easily connected and disconnected...
(PTO) feature since there was a gap in the market between jeeps and tractors (which offered the feature but were less flexible as transport). The original Land Rover concept (a cross between a light truck and a tractor) is similar to the Unimog
Unimog
Unimog is a range of multi-purpose auto four wheel drive medium trucks produced by Mercedes-Benz, a division of Daimler AG. The name Unimog is pronounced in German and is an acronym for the German "UNIversal-MOtor-Gerät", Gerät being the German word for machine or device...
, which was developed in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
during this period.
The first prototype had a distinctive feature—the steering wheel was mounted in the middle of the vehicle. It hence became known as the "centre steer
Centre Steer
The Centre Steer is the name given by enthusiasts to the prototype of the Land Rover 4x4 automobile. Being a prototype, only one example was built and the production vehicle differed significantly in many ways...
". It was built on a Jeep chassis and used the engine and gearbox out of a Rover P3
Rover P3
The Rover P3 car produced by the Rover company in 1948 and 1949 was very much an interim model.For the post-war market Rover had a new engine that had been in preparation since the late 1930s with overhead inlet and side exhaust valves. It was made in two version for the car, the "60" had a...
saloon car. The bodywork was hand-made out of an aluminium/magnesium alloy called Birmabright
Birmabright
Birmabright is a trade name of the former Birmetals Co. for various types of lightweight sheet metal in an alloy of aluminium and magnesium. The constituents are 7% magnesium, sometimes 1% manganese, and the remainder aluminium...
, to save on steel, which was closely rationed. Paint was also in short supply, resulting in the first production vehicles making use of army surplus
Military surplus
Military surplus are goods, usually matériel, that are sold or otherwise disposed of when no longer needed by the military. Entrepreneurs often buy these goods and resell them at surplus stores. Military surplus rarely includes weapons or munitions, though they are occasionally found in such stores...
green paint. The first pre production Land Rover's were being developed in late 1947 by a team led by engineer Arthur Goddard
Arthur Goddard Engineer
Arthur Goddard was born on 31 January 1921 the second son of John Newman Goddard. Arthur went to, the Little Sutton C of E School in Bromborough. After schooling he completed a Mechanical Engineering Certificate at a college in Liverpool.-Rover:...
.
(When Arthur Goddard
Arthur Goddard Engineer
Arthur Goddard was born on 31 January 1921 the second son of John Newman Goddard. Arthur went to, the Little Sutton C of E School in Bromborough. After schooling he completed a Mechanical Engineering Certificate at a college in Liverpool.-Rover:...
visited the Solihull factory in May 2010 he refuted the suggestion that surplus cockpit paint was used. With the company trying to establish the vehicle at maximum speed and minimum cost, they relied as much as possible on what they already had. He said that the colour was a stock Rover car one, available in the Paint Shop. This has yet to be verified.)
Tests showed this prototype vehicle to be a capable and versatile machine. The PTO drives from the front of the engine and from the gearbox to the centre and rear of the vehicle allowed it to drive farm machinery, exactly as a tractor would. It was also tested ploughing and performing other agricultural tasks. However, as the vehicle was readied for production, this emphasis on tractor-like usage decreased and the centre steering proved impractical in use. The steering wheel was mounted off to the side as normal, the bodywork was simplified to reduce production time and costs and a larger engine was fitted, together with a specially designed transfer gearbox to replace the Jeep unit. The result was a vehicle that didn't use a single Jeep component and was slightly shorter than its American inspiration, but wider, heavier, faster and still retained the PTO drives.
The Land Rover was designed to only be in production for 2–3 years to gain some cash flow and export orders for the Rover Company so it could restart up-market car production. Once car production restarted, however, it was greatly outsold by the off-road Land Rover, which developed into its own brand that remains successful today. Many of the defining and successful features of the Land Rover design were in fact the result of Rover's drive to simplify the tooling required for the vehicle and to use the minimum amount of rationed materials. As well as the aluminium alloy bodywork (which has been retained throughout production despite it now being more expensive than a conventional steel body due to its ideal properties of light weight and corrosion resistance) other examples include the distinctive flat body panels with only simple, constant-radius curves (originally used because they could be cut and formed by hand from aluminium sheet on a basic jig) and the sturdy box-section ladder chassis
Chassis
A chassis consists of an internal framework that supports a man-made object. It is analogous to an animal's skeleton. An example of a chassis is the underpart of a motor vehicle, consisting of the frame with the wheels and machinery.- Vehicles :In the case of vehicles, the term chassis means the...
, which on Series vehicles was made up from four strips of steel welded at each side to form a box, thus cutting down on the complex welding
Welding
Welding is a fabrication or sculptural process that joins materials, usually metals or thermoplastics, by causing coalescence. This is often done by melting the workpieces and adding a filler material to form a pool of molten material that cools to become a strong joint, with pressure sometimes...
operations required when making a more conventional U- or I-section frame.
Series I
Land Rover entered production in 1948 with what was later termed the Series I. This was launched at the AmsterdamAmsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
Motor Show. It was originally designed for farm and light industrial use, and had a steel box-section chassis
Chassis
A chassis consists of an internal framework that supports a man-made object. It is analogous to an animal's skeleton. An example of a chassis is the underpart of a motor vehicle, consisting of the frame with the wheels and machinery.- Vehicles :In the case of vehicles, the term chassis means the...
, and an aluminum body.
Originally the Land Rover was a single model offering, which from 1948 until 1951 used an 80 in (2,032 mm) wheelbase
Wheelbase
In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels.- Road :In automobiles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the center of the front wheel and the center of the rear wheel...
and a 1.6 litre petrol engine
Petrol engine
A petrol engine is an internal combustion engine with spark-ignition, designed to run on petrol and similar volatile fuels....
producing around 50 bhp. The 4-speed gearbox from the Rover P3
Rover P3
The Rover P3 car produced by the Rover company in 1948 and 1949 was very much an interim model.For the post-war market Rover had a new engine that had been in preparation since the late 1930s with overhead inlet and side exhaust valves. It was made in two version for the car, the "60" had a...
was used, with a new 2-speed transfer box. This incorporated an unusual 4-wheel drive system, with a freewheel
Freewheel
thumb|Freewheel mechanismIn mechanical or automotive engineering, a freewheel or overrunning clutch is a device in a transmission that disengages the driveshaft from the driven shaft when the driven shaft rotates faster than the driveshaft...
unit (as used on several Rover cars of the time). This disengaged the front axle from the manual transmission
Manual transmission
A manual transmission, also known as a manual gearbox or standard transmission is a type of transmission used in motor vehicle applications...
on the overrun, allowing a form of permanent 4WD. A ring-pull mechanism in the driver's footwell allowed the freewheel to be locked to provide more traditional 4WD. This was a basic vehicle, tops for the doors and a roof (canvas or metal) were optional extras. In 1950, the lights moved from a position behind the grille
Grille
A grille or grill is an opening of several slits side by side in a wall or metal sheet or other barrier, usually to let air or water enter and/or leave but keep larger objects including people and animals in or out.-Spelling:In the United States, "grille" is used to differentiate the automotive...
to protruding through the grille.
From the beginning it was realised that some buyers would want a Land Rover's abilities without the spartan interiors. In 1949 Land Rover launched a second body option called the "Station Wagon
Station wagon
A station wagon is a body style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door , instead of a trunk lid...
", fitted with a body built by Tickford
Tickford
Tickford is an automobile engineering and testing company with a history of coachbuilding and tuning and is famous for such products as the 140 mph Tickford Turbo Capri.-Early years:...
, a coachbuilder known for their work with Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce Limited
Rolls-Royce Limited was a renowned British car and, from 1914 on, aero-engine manufacturing company founded by Charles Stewart Rolls and Henry Royce on 15 March 1906 as the result of a partnership formed in 1904....
and Lagonda
Lagonda
Lagonda is a British luxury car marque, founded as a company in 1906 in Staines, Middlesex by a former opera singer from Ohio, but of Scottish ancestry, named Wilbur Gunn . He named the company after a river near the town of his birth, Springfield, Ohio, United States...
. The bodywork was wooden-framed and had seating for seven people. Tickford was well equipped in comparison with the standard Land Rover, having leather seats, a heater, a one-piece laminated windscreen, a tin-plate spare wheel cover, some interior trim and other options. The wooden construction made them expensive to build and tax laws made this worse — unlike the original Land Rover, the Tickford was taxed as a private car, which attracted high levels of Purchase Tax. As a result, fewer than 700 Tickfords were sold, and all but 50 were exported. Today these early Station Wagons are highly sought after.
In 1952 and 1953 the petrol engine was replaced with a larger 2.0 litre I4
Straight-4
The inline-four engine or straight-four engine is an internal combustion engine with all four cylinders mounted in a straight line, or plane along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a common crankshaft....
unit. This engine was "siamese bore", meaning that there were no water passages between the piston
Piston
A piston is a component of reciprocating engines, reciprocating pumps, gas compressors and pneumatic cylinders, among other similar mechanisms. It is the moving component that is contained by a cylinder and is made gas-tight by piston rings. In an engine, its purpose is to transfer force from...
s. During 1950 the unusual semi-permanent 4WD system was replaced with a more conventional setup, with drive to the front axle being taken through a simple dog clutch. Around this time the Land Rover's legal status was also clarified. As mentioned above, the Land Rover was originally classed as a commercial vehicle, meaning it was free from Purchase Tax. However, this also meant it was limited to a speed of 30 mi/h on British roads. After an appeal to the Law Lords after an owner was charged with exceeding this limit, the Land Rover was classified as a "multi-purpose vehicle" which was only to be classed as a commercial vehicle if used for commercial purposes. This still applies today, with Land Rovers registered as commercial vehicles being restricted to a maximum speed of 60 mph (as opposed to the maximum 70 mi/h for normal cars) in Britain, although this rule is rarely upheld.
The 1954 Year Model saw a big change: the 80 in (2,032 mm) wheelbase model was replaced by an 86 in (2,184.4 mm) wheelbase model, and a 107 in (2,717.8 mm) "Pick Up
Pickup truck
A pickup truck is a light motor vehicle with an open-top rear cargo area .-Definition:...
" version was introduced. The extra wheelbase was added behind the cab area to provide additional load space.
1956 saw the introduction of the first five-door model, on the 107 in (2,718 mm) chassis known as the "Station Wagon
Station wagon
A station wagon is a body style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door , instead of a trunk lid...
" with seating for up to ten people. The 86 in (2,184 mm) model was a three-door seven-seater. The new station wagon
Station wagon
A station wagon is a body style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door , instead of a trunk lid...
s were very different from the previous Tickford model, being built with simple metal panels and bolt-together construction instead of the complex wooden structure of the older Station Wagon. They were intended to be used both as commercial vehicles as people-carriers for transporting workmen to remote locations, as well as by private users. Like the Tickford version, they came with basic interior trim and equipment such as roof vents and interior lights.
The Station Wagons saw the first expansion of the Land Rover range. Station Wagons were fitted with a "Safari Roof" which consisted of a second roof skin fitted on top of the vehicle. This kept the interior cool in hot weather and reduced condensation in cold weather. Vents fitted in the roof allowed added ventilation to the interior. While they were based on the same chassis and drivetrains
Powertrain
In a motor vehicle, the term powertrain or powerplant refers to the group of components that generate power and deliver it to the road surface, water, or air. This includes the engine, transmission, drive shafts, differentials, and the final drive...
as the standard vehicles, Station Wagons carried different chassis numbers, special badging, and were advertised in separate brochures. Unlike the original Station Wagon, the new in-house versions were highly popular.
Wheelbases were extended by 2 in (51 mm) to 88 in (2,235.2 mm) and 109 in (2,768.6 mm) to accommodate the new diesel engine, to be an option the following year. This change was made to all models with the exception of the 107 Station Wagon, which would never be fitted with a diesel engine, and would eventually be the last series I in production.
Finally, in 1957, the "spread bore" petrol engine was introduced, followed shortly by a brand new 2.0 litre Diesel engine
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
that, despite the similar capacity, was not related to the petrol engines used. The petrol engines of the time used the rather out-dated inlet-over-exhaust valve
Valve
A valve is a device that regulates, directs or controls the flow of a fluid by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are technically pipe fittings, but are usually discussed as a separate category...
arrangement; the diesel used the more modern overhead layout. This diesel engine was one of the first high-speed diesels developed for road use, producing 52 hp at 4000 rpm.
This engine was slightly longer than the original chassis allowed, so the wheelbase was increased from 86 to 88 in (2,235.2 mm) for the short-wheelbase models, and from 107 to 109 in (2,769 mm) on the long-wheelbases. The extra two inches were added in front of the bulkhead to accommodate the new diesel engine. These dimensions were to be used on all Land Rovers for the next 25 years.
Series II
The successor to the successful Series I was the Series II, which saw a production run from 1958 to 1961. It came in 88 in (2,235.2 mm) and 109 in (2,768.6 mm) wheelbases (normally referred to as the 'SWB' and 'LWB'). This was the first Land RoverLand Rover
Land Rover is a British car manufacturer with its headquarters in Gaydon, Warwickshire, United Kingdom which specialises in four-wheel-drive vehicles. It is owned by the Indian company Tata Motors, forming part of their Jaguar Land Rover group...
to receive the attention of Rover's styling department- Chief Stylist David Bache
David Bache
David Ernest Bache was a British car designer. For much of his career he worked with Rover.-Early life:Bache was born in Worcestershire, the son of Aston Villa and England footballer Joe Bache...
produced the familiar 'barrel side' waistline to cover the vehicle's wider track and the improved design of the truck cab variant, introducing the curved side windows and rounded roof still used on current Land Rovers. The Series II was the first vehicle to use the well-known 2.25 litre petrol engine
Petrol engine
A petrol engine is an internal combustion engine with spark-ignition, designed to run on petrol and similar volatile fuels....
, although the first 1,500 or so short wheelbase (SWB) models retained the 52 hp 2.0 litre petrol engine from the Series I. This larger petrol engine produced 72 hp and was closely related to the 2.0 litre diesel unit still in use. This engine became the standard Land Rover unit until the mid-1980s when diesel engines became more popular.
The 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) Series II Station Wagon
Station wagon
A station wagon is a body style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door , instead of a trunk lid...
introduced a 12-seater option on top of the standard 10-seater layout. This was primarily to take advantage of UK tax laws, by which a vehicle with 12 seats or more was classed as a bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
, and was exempt from Purchase Tax and Special Vehicle Tax. This made the 12-seater not only cheaper to buy than the 10-seater version, but also cheaper than the 7-seater 88 inches (2,235.2 mm) Station Wagon. The 12-seater layout remained a highly popular body style for decades, being retained on the later Series and Defender variants until 2002, when it was dropped. The unusual status of the 12-seater remained until the end—such vehicles were classed as minibuses and thus could use bus lane
Bus lane
A bus lane or bus only lane is a lane restricted to buses, and generally used to speed up public transport that would be otherwise held up by traffic congestion...
s and (if registered correctly) could be exempt from the London Congestion Charge
London congestion charge
The London congestion charge is a fee charged for some categories of motor vehicle to travel at certain times within the Congestion Charge Zone , a traffic area in London. The charge aims to reduce congestion, and raise investment funds for London's transport system...
.
There was some degree of over-lap between Series I and Series II production. Early Series II 88 inches (2,235.2 mm) vehicles were fitted with the old 2 litre petrol engine to use up existing stock from production of the Series I 107 inches (2,717.8 mm) Station Wagon continued until late 1959 due to continued demand from export markets and to allow the production of Series II components to reach full level.
Series IIA
The SII and the SIIA are very difficult to distinguish. There were some minor cosmetic changes, but the most significant change was under the bonnet in the guise of the new 2.25 litre Diesel engineDiesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
. Body configurations available from the factory ranged from short wheelbase soft top to the top of the line five-door Station Wagon. Also the 2.6 litre straight six
Straight-6
The straight-six engine or inline-six engine is a six-cylinder internal combustion engine with all six cylinders mounted in a straight line along the crankcase...
petrol engine was introduced for use in the long wheelbase models in 1967, the larger engine complemented by standard-fit servo-assisted brakes. 811 of these were NADA (or North American Dollar Area) trucks, which were the only long wheelbase models made for the American and Canadian markets.
From February 1969 (home market) the headlamps moved into the wings on all models, and the sill panels were redesigned to be shallower a few months afterwards.
The Series IIA is considered by many the most hardy Series model constructed. It is also the type of classic Land Rover that features strongly in the general public's perception of the Land Rover, from its many appearances in popular films and television documentaries set in Africa throughout the 1960s, such as Born Free
Born Free
Born Free is a 1966 British drama film starring Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers as Joy and George Adamson, a real-life couple who raised Elsa the Lioness, an orphaned lion cub, to adulthood, and released her into the wilds of Kenya. The movie was produced by Open Road Films Ltd. and Columbia...
. In February 1968, just a few months after its manufacturer had been subsumed, under government pressure, into the Leyland Motor Corporation, the Land Rover celebrated its twentieth birthday, with total production to date just short of 600,000, of which more than 70% had been exported. Certainly it was whilst the Series IIA was in production that sales of utility Land Rovers reached their peak, in 1969-70, when sales of over 60,000 Land Rovers a year were recorded. (For comparison, the sales of the Defender in recent years have been around the 25,000 level since the 1990s.) As well as record sales, the Land Rover dominated many world markets- in Australia in the 1960s Land Rover held 90% of the 4x4 market. This figure was repeated in many countries in Africa and the Middle East.
Series IIA Forward Control
The Series IIA FC launched in 1962 was based on the Series IIA 2.25 litre petrol engine and 109 in (2,769 mm) chassis, with the cab positioned over the engine to give more load space. Export vehicles were the first Land-Rovers to get the 2.6 litre petrol engine. Most examples had an ENV rear axle, a matching front axle came later. Tyres were large 900x16 types on deep-dish wheel rims to provide extra floatation for this heavy vehicle. These vehicles were somewhat underpowered for the increased load capacity (1.5 LT (1,524.1 kg)), and most had a hard working life. Less than 2,500 were made, and most had a utility body, but surviving examples often have custom bodywork. With an upgraded powertrain, they can be used as a small motorhome.Series IIB Forward Control
Heavy duty wide-track axles (designed by ENV) was fitted to improve vehicle stability, as was a front anti-roll bar and revised rear springs which were mounted above the axle rather than below it. In the process the wheelbase was increased to 110 in (2,794 mm). Production ended in 1974 when Land-Rover rationalised its vehicle range. Many IIB components were also used on the "1 Ton" 109" vehicle.
Series III
The Series III had the same body and engine options as the preceding IIa, including station wagons and the 1 Ton versions. Little changed cosmetically from the IIA to the Series III. The Series III is the most common Series vehicle, with 440,000 of the type built from 1971 to 1985. The headlights were moved to the wings on late production IIA models from 1968/9 onward (ostensibly to comply with Australian, American and Dutch lighting regulations) and remained in this position for the Series III. The traditional metal grille, featured on the Series I, II and IIA, was replaced with a plastic one for the Series III model. The 2.25 litre engine had its compression raised from 7:1 to 8:1, increasing the power slightly (the high compression engine had been an optional fit on the IIa model for several years). During the Series III production run from 1971 until 1985, the 1,000,000th Land Rover rolled off the production line in 1976. The Series III saw many changes in the later part of its life as Land Rover updated the design to meet increased competition. This was the first model to feature synchromesh on all four gears, although some late H-suffix SIIA models (mainly the more expensive Station Wagons) had used the all-synchro box. In keeping with early 1970s trends in automotive interior design, both in safety and use of more advanced materials, the simple metal dashboard of earlier models was redesigned to accept a new moulded plastic dash. The instrument cluster, which was previously centrally located, was moved to the driver's side. Long-wheelbase Series III vehicles had the Salisbury rear axle as standard, although some late SIIA 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) vehicles had them too.In 1980 the 4-cylinder 2.25 litre engines (both petrol and diesel) were updated with five-bearing crankshafts to increase strength in heavy duty work. At the same time the transmission
Transmission (mechanics)
A machine consists of a power source and a power transmission system, which provides controlled application of the power. Merriam-Webster defines transmission as: an assembly of parts including the speed-changing gears and the propeller shaft by which the power is transmitted from an engine to a...
, axle
Axle
An axle is a central shaft for a rotating wheel or gear. On wheeled vehicles, the axle may be fixed to the wheels, rotating with them, or fixed to its surroundings, with the wheels rotating around the axle. In the former case, bearings or bushings are provided at the mounting points where the axle...
s and wheel hubs were re-designed for increased strength. This was the culmination of a series of updates to the transmission that had been made since the 1960s to combat the all-too-common problem of the rear axle half-shafts breaking in heavy usage. This problem was partly due to the design of the shafts themselves. Due to the fully floating design of the rear wheel hubs, the half shafts can be removed very quickly without even having to jack the vehicle off the ground. The tendency for commercial operators to overload their vehicles exacerbated this flaw which blighted the Series Land Rovers in many of their export markets and established a reputation that continues in many markets to the present day. This is despite the 1982 re-design (mainly the changing of the driveshafts from 10 driving-spline
Spline
Spline can refer to:* Spline , a mating feature for rotating elements* Spline , a mathematical function used for interpolation or smoothing* Smoothing spline, a method of smoothing using a spline function...
s to 24 to reduce stress) all but solved the problem.
Also, new trim options were introduced to make the interior more comfortable if the buyer so wished (many farmers and commercial users preferred the original, non-trimmed interior).
These changes culminated in April 1982 with the introduction of the "County" spec Station Wagon Land Rovers, available in both 88 inches (2,235.2 mm) and 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) types. These had all-new cloth seats from the Leyland
Leyland Trucks
Leyland Trucks is the UK's leading medium & heavy duty truck manufacturer and is based in the town of Leyland, Lancashire. It emerged from the bankruptcy of DAF NV as the result of a management buy-out in 1993, and was acquired by PACCAR in 1998, of which it is now a subsidiary...
T-45 Lorry, soundproofing kits, tinted glass and other "soft" options designed to appeal to the leisure owner/user.
Of more interest was the introduction of the High Capacity Pick Up to the 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) chassis. This was a pick-up truck load bay that offered 25% more cubic capacity than the standard pick-up style. The HCPU came with heavy-duty suspension and was popular with public utility companies and building contractors.
Stage One V8
From 1979 until 1985, the Stage 1 was built using some of the same components as the Range Rover and 101 Forward Control, such as the LT95 gearbox and 3.5 litre Rover V8 petrol engine. The engine was detuned to 91 hp from the 135BHP that the Range Rover of the time had. The Stage 1 was available in a 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) and 88 in (2,235 mm) wheelbase'."Stage 1" refers to the first stage of investment by the British Government in the company to improve the Land Rover and Range Rover product offerings, which eventually led to the Land Rover 90 and 110. The use of the Range Rover engine and drive train made it the only Series III vehicle to have permanent four wheel drive.
1 Ton
The 1 Ton 109" - produced from 1968 to approx 1977, covering late IIA and early series III Models. It was basically a Series IIB Forward Control built with a standard 109" body, featuring 2.6 litre petrol engine, lower ratio gearbox, ENV front and rear axles, (Salisbury front and rear on later Series IIIs) though some late IIAs were fitted with ENV axles in front and Salisbury on the rear. The chassis frame was unique to the model and featured drop-shackle suspension similar to the military series Land Rovers. 900x16 tyres were a standard feature and these machines were commonly used by utility companies and breakdown/recovery firms.Only 170 IIa and 275 (approx) Series IIIs (1 Ton) were built for the home market.
Australia
Australia has always been an important export market for Land Rovers of all sorts, but especially the utility models. 80-inch Series I models were sold to the Australian government in the late 1940s for work on civil engineering projects such as dams and road construction, which brought the vehicle to the buying public's attention. Large sales followed and in the 1950s Land Rover established factories in Australia to build CKD kits shipped from the Solihull factory. The Land Rover continued to sell well throughout the 1960s in Series II guise, commanding some 90% of the off-road market, and with practically every farm having at least one Land Rover.The Series III continued this success in the early 1970s, but from the middle of the decade sales declined. A large coal export deal to Japan relied on the subsequent import of Japanese cars and other goods, a combination of this increasing competition and increasingly poor quality of the components being shipped from Britain meant that Land Rover's dominance slipped. A problem specific to Australia was the always-limited supply of new Land Rovers. Leyland's factory never had the capacity to meet possible demand and the need to import almost the entire vehicle in kit form from Britain restricted the supply and manufacturing process further. This led to a long waiting list developing for the Leyland product whilst commercial operators could receive large fleets of Japanese vehicles very quickly. The other problems faced by Land Rover were the same throughout its export markets- compared to the Japanese competition, the Land Rover was underpowered, unreliable and slow with a poor ride quality, despite their superior off-road ability. Poor rust-proofing and low-quality steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
used in comparison to the Japanese vehicles turned the buyers away in large numbers and by 1983, with the introduction of the One Ten, the Toyota Land Cruiser became the best selling 4x4 in Australia.
In the early 1980s, Land Rover Australia had made some changes to the vehicle to try to combat this sales decline. As well as the fitting of the V8 petrol engine in the 1979 "Stage One", as in the rest of the world, Australia also received the same vehicle with the option of a 3.9 litre 89 hp 4 cylinder Isuzu
Isuzu
, is a Japanese car, commercial vehicle and heavy truck manufacturing company, headquartered in Tokyo. In 2005, Isuzu became the world's largest manufacturer of medium to heavy duty trucks. It has assembly and manufacturing plants in the Japanese city of Fujisawa, as well as in the prefectures...
diesel engine. This helped slow the sales decline, but the rest of the vehicle's shortcomings let it down. The One Ten was also available with this engine, and a turbocharged version producing in excess of 100 hp powered the military 6x6.
Military
The British ArmyBritish Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
used Series Land Rovers in large numbers (and continues to use the modern Defender versions). The British Army tested the 80 inches (2,032 mm) Series I Land Rover almost as soon as it was launched in 1948. At that time, the Army was more interested in developing a specially designed military utility 4x4 (the Austin Champ
Austin Champ
The Austin Champ was the civilian version of a British Army vehicle made by the Austin Motor Company. The army version was officially known as "Truck, 1/4 ton, CT, 4x4, cargo & FFW, Austin Mk.1" however the civilian name "Champ" was universally, if unofficially, applied to it.- History :A British...
). However, the Champ proved too complex, heavy and unreliable in battlefield conditions so the Army looked to the Land Rover. In the late 1940s the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
was keen on the standardisation of its vehicles and equipment. Part of this plan was to fit Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce Limited
Rolls-Royce Limited was a renowned British car and, from 1914 on, aero-engine manufacturing company founded by Charles Stewart Rolls and Henry Royce on 15 March 1906 as the result of a partnership formed in 1904....
petrol engines to all its vehicles (even though most were not actually built by R-R). A batch of Series I Land Rovers were fitted with Rolls-Royce B40 4-cylinder engine, which required modification to an 81 inches (2,057.4 mm) wheelbase). However, the engine was too heavy and slow-revving, which stunted performance, and produced torque that the Rover gearbox could only just cope with. Rover convinced the MOD that, considering the quantities of Land Rovers they were considering ordering, that the standard 1.6 litre engine would suffice. The MOD started ordering Land Rovers in batches from late 1949. The initial batches were for 50 vehicles, but by the mid 1950s the Army was buying Land Rovers 200 vehicles at a time.
Land Rovers were deployed to the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
and the Suez Crisis
Suez Crisis
The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, Suez War was an offensive war fought by France, the United Kingdom, and Israel against Egypt beginning on 29 October 1956. Less than a day after Israel invaded Egypt, Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to Egypt and Israel,...
, and became standard light military vehicles throughout the Commonwealth.
However, as the 1960s progressed, more and more specialised versions were developed. As well as the standard 'GS' (General Service) vehicles, a common variant was the 'FFR' (Fitted For Radio', which had 24-volt
Volt
The volt is the SI derived unit for electric potential, electric potential difference, and electromotive force. The volt is named in honor of the Italian physicist Alessandro Volta , who invented the voltaic pile, possibly the first chemical battery.- Definition :A single volt is defined as the...
electrics and a large engine-powered generator to power on-board radios. There were also Ambulances on the 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) Series II chassis. A well-known version was the LRDPV (Long-Range Desert Patrol Vehicle), commonly called the 'Pink Panther', on account of their distinctive light pink sand camouflage. These 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) Series IIs were stripped of doors and windscreens and fitted with grenade
Grenade
A grenade is a small explosive device that is projected a safe distance away by its user. Soldiers called grenadiers specialize in the use of grenades. The term hand grenade refers any grenade designed to be hand thrown. Grenade Launchers are firearms designed to fire explosive projectile grenades...
launchers, a machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
mounting ring and long-range fuel tanks and water tanks. They were used by the SAS
Special Air Service
Special Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
for desert patrol and special operations.
Land Rover 1/2 ton Lightweight
The Lightweight 1/2 ton was a British military vehicle supplied by Land Rover.-History:In the early 1960s both the Royal Marines, then largely based on commando carriers, and the British Army required a vehicle that could be carried by air...
version. The Lightweight was in service by many armies all over the world. In Europe even the Dutch Landmacht and the Danish Army used the Land-Rover Lightweight. Instead of the petrol engine the Dutch and Danish Lightweights had diesel engines. Instead of the canvas top the Dutch ones had PVC tops like the modern Landrover Wolf.
In addition, there were also 101 inches (2,565.4 mm) Forward Control
Land Rover 101 Forward Control
thumb|right|300px|Side View.The 101 Forward Control was a vehicle produced by Land Rover for the British Army.-History:The vehicle was primarily produced to meet the Army's requirement for a gun tractor, and was designed to tow a field gun with a ton of ammunition and other equipment in the rear...
models, 109 inches (2,768.6 mm) FV18067 ambulance
Ambulance
An ambulance is a vehicle for transportation of sick or injured people to, from or between places of treatment for an illness or injury, and in some instances will also provide out of hospital medical care to the patient...
s built by Marshall Aerospace
Marshall Aerospace
The Marshall companies have been internationally associated with aerospace engineering for nearly a century. The company employs over 1,800 people and is based on an site with of covered hangar space...
of Cambridge.
The Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
and Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
also acquired and maintained smaller Land Rover fleets during the 1960s and 1970s. The RAF used 88 inches (2,235.2 mm) models for communications, liaison, personnel transport and airfield tractor duties. The Royal Navy's fleet was, understandably, small and consisted mainly of GS-spec and Station Wagon versions for personnel and cargo transport.
In the Falklands War
Falklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
of 1982 the British Army deployed several hundred Land Rovers to the South Atlantic. These never reached the Falklands as they were transported on the requisitioned merchant ship Atlantic Conveyor which was sunk in an airstrike. The loss of their light 4x4s caused numerous logistical problems for the British forces. After the conflict to replace the lost vehicles the Army ordered 200 Series III Land Rovers in 'Commercial Utility' specification (i.e. the most basic). These lacked the upgraded chassis and suspension that military-spec Land Rovers had and also had features such as the standard civilian front bumper, civilian headlights with trim surrounds and interiors that lacked the extra switch panel that was installed for military customers. These civilian-spec vehicles served alongside the dedicated military specification fleet for over 10 years and proved to be just as robust. The Army's experience with these standard Land Rovers played a part in determining the specification for the Army's Ninety/One Ten fleet of later years, which were much closer to standard specification.
All British military Land Rovers used the 2.25 litre 4-cylinder
Straight-4
The inline-four engine or straight-four engine is an internal combustion engine with all four cylinders mounted in a straight line, or plane along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a common crankshaft....
petrol engine. However, some overseas customers (such as The Netherlands) specified the 2.25 litre diesel unit instead.
The Land Rover is also the basis for the Shorland Internal Security Patrol Vehicle developed by Short Brothers
Short Brothers
Short Brothers plc is a British aerospace company, usually referred to simply as Shorts, that is now based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Founded in 1908, Shorts was the first company in the world to make production aircraft and was a manufacturer of flying boats during the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s...
.
Minerva
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
produced a vehicle called a Standard Vanguard
Standard Vanguard
The car used a conventional chassis on which was mounted the American inspired semi-streamlined four-door body, which resembles a Plymouth. Suspension was independent at the front with coil springs and a live axle and leaf springs at the rear. Front and rear anti-roll bars were fitted. The brakes...
, which was produced in Belgium, under licence of the Standard Motor Company
Standard Motor Company
The Standard Motor Company was founded in Coventry, England in 1903 by Reginald Walter Maudslay . The Standard name was last used in Britain in 1963, and in India in 1987.-1903–1914:...
.
When Belgium's army needed a lightweight 4x4 vehicle, the head of Minerva, Monsieur van Roggen approached the Rover company in the spring of 1951. On 21 June, Rover discovered that they were competing against Willys Jeep for the contract. In October 1951, the deal was agreed and in 1952, the Minerva-Land Rover was produced.
The Rover company supplied technical support for Minerva and allowed Minerva to produce Land Rovers under licence to Rover. Arthur Goddard
Arthur Goddard Engineer
Arthur Goddard was born on 31 January 1921 the second son of John Newman Goddard. Arthur went to, the Little Sutton C of E School in Bromborough. After schooling he completed a Mechanical Engineering Certificate at a college in Liverpool.-Rover:...
, Rover Assistant Chief Engineer and head of Land Rover development was in charge of approving the changes Minerva wanted to make to the Land Rover as well as setting the factory up to assemble the vehicles.