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THE ORIGINAL and the subject on its of thousandsof suoerlatives legendarystatus.SeriesOnes are greatfun, havea massivefollowing and are rapidlybecomingvaluable classicsin theirown right. The veryf irst 1948 modelsare extremelysoughtafterand fetch relativelyhigh prices;the surviving pre-productionvehiclesrarely makean appearanceon the open market.and can be expectedto be reassuringly expensive. So let'stake a lookat the more commonSeriesOnes out there.The 80" wheelbasemodelswere built from 1948 until1953,withsome fairlysubstantialchangeshappening alongthe way.This was replacedby the 86" for 1954,and a newcomer to the rangein the shapeof the 107" pick-up- the first long-wheelbase Land Rover- and the Meccanoesque StationWagon of 1956.A year later, the introductionof the 2-litrediesel
.1951 SeriesOne 80 1,997ccfourcylinder petrolengine;52bhp; 101|b/ftof torque.
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18 May2011 tAl{D ROVERmon hly
engine(inthe firstproductiondiesel Land Rovers)calledfor an increase in enginebay clearances,and so the front axlewas movedforwardto createthe 88" and 109" models. Althoughthey are all called'Series Ones',the differencesbetween the diminutive80s and the larger, improved86 are quitemarked.Apart from the increasein lengthand load capacity,the 86 and 107 goi a completelydifferentbulkheadand severalchangesto the runninggear. I'veoftenthoughtthey shouldbe calledSerieslAs. In our photoswe havean 80, for the simoleand selfishreasonthat they are my favourite- not just of SeriesOnes, but of all Land Rovers. Theyaren'tperfectand some parts are veryexpensive,but theyare 'the' typicalSeriesOne. This one is also an examoleof a later80. with wider frontspringsand shacklesat the back of them (ratherthan the other
way round,which on early80s led to bump steer),larger7" headlampsand - in this case - the imoroved2-like versionof the originalRoverpetrol engrne. lf you'veneverdrivena Land Rover with one of these enginesyou could, perhaps,be forgivenfor thinkingit After all, would be prettyunexciting. old SeriesOnes onlydo 40mph, don't they? You'dbe wrong.The littleRover engine- sharedwith the car range, from the dayswhen Roverswere what you'dnow calla'premiumbrand'runsextremelysweetlyand is very quiet;youfindyourselfblippingthe throttleto makesure it hasn'tstalled. Thereisn'tmuch in the cab of a One. An 80 is basic in the extreme - creaturecomfortsare limitedto the (rathergood) paddedseats,a grab railon the dash and a (optional) windscreenwiper for the passenger. For many(including me)this is all part
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. Chassislate80/86/88:91,750 (LandRoverSeriesOne Club) . Bulkheads80/86/ AA 107I 109, galvanised : €750 (RadfordBulkheads) . Fullclutchkit:€81.33 (JohnCraddock) . Wiringloomallmodels:€136 (Autosparks) . Rearcrossmember: €150 (Rad{ordBulkheads) . Dumbirons: €50 each{Radford Bulkheads) . Seatbase80:940.40 (ExmoorTrim,viaDefenderTrimLtd) . Exhausl80: S74.28 {JohnCraddock) . BrakemastercYlinder 80: €150 (DunsfoldDLR) . Frontbrakecylinders80, LH/RH:S88/91 15(JohnCraddock) .!*:4
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Driving an80forthefirsttimelsaweirdexperience pokeupthrough thefloor,forstarters thepedals This 8O has of centre-differential. of the charm.Turnthe keyand a bunthe selectabletwo/four-wheel-drive noisechimesup fromjust tick-tick-tick boxwith the famousred and yellow in front of the steeringwheel;the SU knobs,introducedin 1950.There's electricfuel pump doing itsjob. The no blackart to the red and yellows starterbuttonis belowthe maindash paneland witha push,the engine but for the benefitof those unfamiliar with the joys of leafers,here'sthe chugs into life,the ignitionlightdimly run-down- red leverforwards,yellow glowinguntila few revsget the knob up is 2WD, high range;red dynamodoing its business. leverforwardsyellowknob down is Drivingan 80 for the first time WD, high range.Red leverback is The pedals is a weird experience. low range4WD; and to disengage poke up throughthe floor paneland high range4WD, you needto pull if you'vegot big feet, it'llfeel like the red leverall the way back so the you are changinggear and braking yellowknobpops up.Simpleinnit? with yourtoes.LaterOnes havethe Out on the roadthe first impression pedalsemergingfrom the footwells, which is slightlymorewellington-boot is that the 80 is prettychoppy;that suoer-shortwheelbaseand the friendly. leafspringsare the root cause,and The gearboxalso has a lot in althoughthe longer86s and 88s are commonwith contemporaryRover better,it's a characteristicof all shortcar boxes,but with the obvious wheelbaseLand Rovers.Evena 90 additionof the two-soeedtransfer can be prettybouncy. box.Early80s were permanent Yoursecond impressionwill with a lockable four-wheel-drive probablybe the steering.80s and free-wheeldeviceactingas a sort
WHATTOPAY Prolects:€500 92,000 RUNNING COMPLETE, VEHICLES: 80 1949-53: 93,000 - sz0o0 8 6 / 8 8 : 9 3 , 0 0 0€6,000 107i109 pick-up: 93,000 - €6,000 Properlyrestoredand preparedvehicles,early 80s,allStationWagons andveryoriginalvehicles commanda premiumand can onlyreallybe valued individually.
B6s havea worm-and-nuttype steeringbox which,with age, is renownedfor beinga bit vagueand can be heavy.Thiswell-restored exampleis quitelight,helpedby the 6.00x16tyres.The 88 original-size and 109 receiveda much improved recirculatingballtype steeringbox. Then comesthe surorise.The littlepetrolenginepullswell - really well.A verysteephill in the middle of Huddersfieldis desoatchedwith a steadyclimb in third gear and off the traffic lights,it's no effort to keep pace with the urbantraffic. And it feelstiny;at 3.35m long by 1.55mwide,it'ssmallerthana lot 'Golf' sizedhatchbacks. of modern Evenan 86 or 88 doesn'ttake up much space.And it's efficient,too - the inlet-over-exhaust designof the old Roverenginemeansgood ones can easilyclear20*mPg on a run.Not bad for an old oetrolLand Rover.
IAND ROYERmon hly May2011 19