FREE EVERY MONTH FROM YOUR LAND ROVER SPECIALIST ‘one day, everything but watching tv will have been banned’ Ten years on, the story of a gentle green lane trip that would now be a weekend of non-stop criminal activity
LANDY
AUGUST 2014
THE
ISSUE 6
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BIGGEST EVER ISSUE! 33% MORE PAGES THAN EVER BEFORE!
HIGH PRICES FOR LOW MILERS Even the latest Mk1 Rangeys now qualify as classics.
It’s 20 years since they were built, but there are examples out there that have covered very low mileages. If you can find one, don’t expect it to be cheap. A resto job on a true low-miler would likely earn you a tidy sum. But the real gems are those that have never needed to be restored: and we’ve turned one up on less than 10,000 miles.
The Range Rover Sport SVR made its debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. It’s the fastest production vehicle Land Rover has ever built. And it’s the first product of a new Special Operations division whose job is to build the fastest, finest and most unique Landies in the world. Full story: Page 3
Full story: Page 24
Spinney Engineering recently took on this 1965 Series IIA. The company bought the vehicle to break for parts. But as they went through it, they realised there was too much life left in it for that… Full story: Page 22
DEFENDER 2.2 TDCi
We all know used Defender prices are rocketing. So is the current one worth splashing out on?
A group of Brits travelled to Kenya to do battle in the annual Rhino Charge. They helped raise millions for wildlife – but at what cost to their Land Rovers…? Full story: Page 40
To advertise in The Landy, call Ian Argent on 01283 553242 w w w. t h e l a n d y. c o . u k We’re on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thelandyuk
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FASTEST PRODUCTION LAND ROVER ON THE WAY AS SVR PROTOTYPE BREAKS COVER
High-performance Range Rover Sport on sale next year; likely to cost close to £100,000 Mike Trott Land Rover is getting ready to launch its fastest ever production vehicle. An evolved version of the Supercharged 5.0 V8 Range Rover Sport, this made its debut in prototype form at last month’s Goodwood Festival of Speed. The super-fast SUV is the first in a new high-performance model line within the Jaguar Land Rover group. Badged SVR, this will be reserved for only the most focused of the company’s vehicles. The SVR’s familiar V8 roar was heard at Goodwood as the prototype treated spectators to a predictably full-on performance, and has also reverberated around the Nurburgring during testing and evolution. In production form, the SVR is expected to go on sale during 2015; Land Rover quotes a power output of around 543bhp, about 6.5% up on the V8 in the existing Range Rover Sport Autobiography. Teaser videos released by Land Rover show the camouflaged prototype flat-out on the Nordschleife at the Nurburgring, with no apparent body roll to be seen under hard cornering. In addition, the vehicle is seen breaking traction momentarily under power but staying under control thanks to its combination of balanced suspension and advanced electronic control systems. Land Rover says performance data for the SVR will extend the Range Rover Sport’s established capabilities
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as the fastest, most agile and most responsive Land Rover ever built. The company remains tight-lipped about the vehicle’s drivetrain, but enhancements to the eight-speed ZF auto box can be expected to help get the best from the supercharged V8. Ahead of any official figures, a 0-62mph time of around 5.0 seconds can be expected. The SVR model range is among the first products of Jaguar Land Rover’s new Special Operations team. This elite engineering department, headed by former Williams engineer Paul Newsome, was recently also tasked with creating a run of six Jaguar E-Type recreations. It has been created to work on ‘bespoke commissions, heritage products and branded goods’ as well as high-performance derivatives such as the new top-spec Range Rover Sport. As this suggests, the SVR is the work of an initiative within Land Rover whose goal is very much to address the top end of the company’s clientele. It will be some time before Land Rover comments on pricing but, with the 5.0 Autobiography already costing well over £80,000 before you add any options, the extra engineering in the SVR is likely to push this model closer still to the six-figure mark. With more than 500,000 examples of the Sport having now been built since the vehicle’s launch in 2005, and the new second-generation model still in the first flush of youth, Land Rover’s march into the world of on-road performance remains as relentless as ever. The 5.0 V8 Supercharged SVR may only add a small number in terms of overall sales – but as a halo product it will make the vehicle, and Solihull itself, more visible than ever.
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There’s an aggressive new look on the way for everyday Range Rover Sports, too…
Above: Supercharged 5.0 V8 engine will be pushed further to add approximately 6.5% in power Bottom: Public debut gave Goodwood crowd the chance to experience how the SVR will look – and sound Below: 543bhp prototype has been testing extensively at the Nurburgring
‘Stealth’ is the last word you’d use to describe the rumbling SVR edition of the Range Rover Sport. But that’s the name given to the latest accessory pack for the existing HSE Dynamic and Autobiography Dynamic versions of the vehicle. Also debuted at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the pack adds a host of new features including a satin black front grille and grille surround, fog lamp bezels, bonnet and wing vents, upper mirror caps and a tailgate finisher. Being stealthy certainly doesn’t mean hiding your light under a bushel, obviously. A choice of 21” 9-spoke or 22” 5-spoke wheels, in satin black finish with wheel nuts in gloss black, give the Sport some smart looking traction. There’s a Stealth finish on the non-reflective headlamp and tail lamp surfaces, too, adding further to the exclusive visual cues. The pack is available with all three engine options in the standard Sport range – 5.0 V8 Supercharged, 4.4 SDV8 diesel and 3.0 SDV6 diesel. It will retail at £1700 with the 21” wheels, or £2500 with the 22” jobs. The order book opens in July, with first deliveries expected by the end of the year.
To advertise in The Landy, call Ian Argent on 01283 553242 w w w. t h e l a n d y. c o . u k We’re on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thelandyuk
Special Ops: Land Rover’s new team who’ll build absolutely anything… The Range Rover Sport SVR is the first production vehicle in Land Rover’s new SVR model line. Shared with Jaguar, this is a range of high-performance vehicles whose engineering is unique from the rest of the company’s offerings. It’s the work of the new Special Operations division that’s just been set up to work on high-end derivatives, bespoke builds and heritage projects. Based in a new technical centre located in the West Midlands, Special Operations will be behind a series of top-spec models like the SVR, aimed at Land Rover’s more ‘discerning’ (code for ‘rich’) customers. It will also undertake bespoke commissions for even more ‘discerning’ punters who want their vehicles to be true one-offs, focusing on an extended range of trim, colour and accessory options. We asked Land Rover whether this means a customer could get Land Rover to build them a triple-winched Defender with portal axles, threelink suspension and 44” tyres. The answer was less than definite, but the impression we got is that this isn’t the definition of ‘performance’ the company has in mind. Comparisons will inevitably be drawn, however, between this new division and Land Rover Special Vehicles, which among many other things was responsible for the 90SV – the first-ever ‘lifestyle’ Defender. Models like this remain a probability, though if you were to want one specced up like Jim Marsden’s (as featured in last month’s issue), you’d probably be better going to someone like Jim Marsden to build it. Intriguingly, Special Operations will also be responsible for restoring classic vehicles and even recreating heritage models from scratch. If someone stumbles on the holy grail and the original centre-steer prototype crops up, this is the workshop where it’ll be restored: if that never happens and Land Rover decides to build a fresh one instead, this is the workshop where it’ll be created. Special Operations’ day-to-day work, however, will be on vehicles like the SVR which cast a halo above its present and future models. Even as you read this, you can safely bet that the team will be developing a version of the Discovery Sport to give BMW’s M-Power models a bloody nose.
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Disco hits sixty grand as LR goes upmarket again
Entry-level model now £41,595 and range-topper £59,965 as kit list gets bigger than ever
Mike Trott
Land Rover has revised the Discovery line-up for the 2015 model year, with newly named models and enhanced specification levels. Customers will be able to select various features first seen on the XXV Special Edition anniversary model, while new SE and SE Tech variants give you more kit as standard than the models they replace. In addition, the introduction of Land Rover InControl
Apps has raised the vehicle’s technology profile once again. ‘To mark 25 years of Discovery, Land Rover offered more premium luxury in the form of the XXV Special Edition,’ says Land Rover’s Phil Popham. ‘Striking attributes from this anniversary derivative are now being made available across the range for our customers to bring that level of heightened luxury into their Discovery of choice.
‘InControl Apps adds another dimension to the Discovery’s attributes and another meaning to work-life balance by enabling safe and efficient access to essential smartphone content and in-car apps from the vehicle’s touchscreen,’ Popham added. The revised MY15 model range includes a new entry point in the shape of the SE, which will replace the GS and contain more features as
standard. Cruise control, front fog lights, automatic headlamps/wipers and headlamp power wash are all included, as are an auto-dimming rear-view mirror, interior footwell and door puddle lamps. Moving up, SE Tech replaces the XS model, now giving you xenon headlights with an LED signature. The HSE trim is retained but now features 20” alloy wheels as standard, rather than 19s. We mentioned the XXV special edition, and features from this model which now make it on to the standard options list include Grand Black Lacquer wood and leather-wrapped steering wheel for the interior. Three
new colours are available: Aruba, Kaikora Stone and Montalcino Red, replacing Luxor, Ipanema Sand and Nara Bronze. Land Rover InControl Apps bulks up the Discovery’s infotainment system, should you tick the designated box, allowing you to be more connected than ever via your smartphone.
2015 Discovery prices HSE Luxury £59,965 HSE £54,495 SE Tech £47,495 Commercial XS £42,295 SE £41,595
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Issue 6: August 2014
We’re on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thelandyuk Compatible with the latest Apple and Android offerings, the system enables services such as satellite navigation, media streaming, internet radio and location services, all while providing access to the connected smartphone’s contacts, calendar and music library. Compatible apps include Stitcher, Glympse, Sygic, Parkopedia, Hotelseeker, Cityseeker, News on Board and MobileDay, with more expected to join the range soon. No, we’ve not heard of them either, but if someone does an app called GrubOutThatStump or TimingBeltServiceHeartbreak, we’re sure it’ll be compatible too. Once the Land Rover InControl App has been downloaded to the smartphone and connected to the vehicle’s USB port, you tap the InControl Apps icon on the central touchscreen and simply choose whichever vehicle-compatible app you want from the menu. But the best news of all? You can still get a Commercial version of the Discovery. It’s not exactly cheap, though as well as getting a £42,295 price tag it inherits the XS badge from the outgoing passenger model, so that’s going to be one posh van. Either way, the order book is open now, with initial customer deliveries getting underway in September.
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Yet another triumph for Land Rover as Discovery becomes the most successful vehicle ever in the history of the UK’s Towcar Awards
Land Rover has proved its capabilities once again by claiming two accolades at this year’s Tow Car Awards – as well as setting a new all-time standard for the best towing vehicle ever. That distinction goes to the Discovery, which won its class for an unprecedented seventh time in the last eight years. That makes it the most successful car in the history of the awards.
In addition, the introduction of a ‘Money No Object’ award meant Land Rover could take home another honour courtesy of the Range Rover Sport. Award testers used the 3.0 SD XS version of the Disco, which ruled the 1900kg+ category to take what is now the vehicle’s fifth consecutive win. In the process, the 10-year-old vehicle held off the challenge from vehicles launched much more recently.
The judges said: ‘It is going to take a really superb car to beat the Discovery. Power, performance, stability, practicality – it has the lot.’ Under the watchful eye of an experienced panel, the Disco impressed by making towing duties look exceptionally easy, in particular its ‘confident and decisive’ overtaking and ‘smooth, unflustered’ characteristics when losing speed, no matter how much
is trailing behind it. Lane changing, motorway cruising and hill starts were also noted as excelling points. The new Money No Object award fell to the Range Rover Sport 3.0-litre SDV6 Autobiography Dynamic, commended by the judges as a ‘phenomenal tow car’. They concluded: ‘Putting price aside for a moment, you won’t find a more capable heavyweight tow car. Dawdling
traffic won’t be in the way for long, as the sprint from 3060mph takes just 9.6 seconds, even with a big twin-axle caravan in tow.’ The Range Rover Sport’s first-rate stability was an overwhelming feature, as proven in the lane-change test. ‘Towing at 60mph feels like 40mph in the Sport, and the Range Rover seemed impervious to crosswinds, even at speeds that would have your collar felt on a British motorway,’ the judges noted. Jaguar Land Rover’s Jeremy Hicks said: ‘These awards are a great reward for the strength of Land Rover design and engineering. Discovery continues to set the benchmark for its class, in spite of the arrival of newer competitors. With Range Rover Sport we are delighted that independent experts consider it to offer the ultimate combination of prestige, luxury and performance.’
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Jobs boost for Halewood
Discovery Sport brings £45m investment and creates 250 new jobs in resurgent factory
Mike Trott Halewood is to benefit from 250 new jobs as the Merseyside plant prepares for production of the Land Rover Discovery Sport. This is the latest model to be confirmed at Halewood and the increasing workforce is set to reach 4750 – more than treble the number employed there in 2010. Commenting on the announcement, Jaguar Land Rover CEO Dr Ralf Speth,
said: ‘The Land Rover Discovery Sport is the next in a line of exciting new products to come from Jaguar Land Rover. I am delighted that Halewood – and Liverpool – has been selected for this new investment. It is totally deserved, and strengthens the special relationship that bonds Jaguar Land Rover to this great city.’ The Halewood plant has received £200 million in investment to prepare for the introduction of what will be the first model in the new Discovery
family. The plant already produces JLR’s fastest selling model of all time, the Range Rover Evoque, and over the last four years the company’s total investment here has reached nearly £500 million. The new Discovery Sport is due on sale in 2015. It will be the first member of an all-new family of Discovery vehicles, envisioned by the Discovery Vision Concept that was unveiled at the New York International Auto Show earlier this year.
Richard Else, Jaguar Land Rover Halewood Operations Director, said: ‘I am delighted to be welcoming the new Land Rover Discovery Sport to Halewood. Its arrival has been a further boost to the region and to our committed and loyal workforce, who are all passionate ambassadors for this great company. ‘In many ways, Halewood has embodied the transformation of Jaguar Land Rover. We have seen our workforce treble and production quadruple in just four years. Today we are operating three shifts, 24-hours a day to meet global demand and I am confident that the team will rise to the challenge and deliver a flawless launch of this exciting new model.’ A £45 million state-of-the-art Aida servo press line was installed in March of this year, with JLR installing 260 new automated robots, industryleading laser welding facilities and further state-of-the-art equipment in monitoring and reporting systems to continue to push for the highest levels of quality. Halewood started production of the Range Rover Evoque in 2011 and, two years later, the plant had already produced more than 200,000 vehicles – a record quantity for a single vehicle line at any Jaguar Land Rover facility. Sales in May for the Evoque were up 12% year on year, with more than 80% of production exported to 170 global markets. The Discovery Sport is likely to mimic that pattern as Land Rover continues its history as one of Britain’s great export industry success stories.
Queen’s Award recognises Jaguar Land Rover’s export success
Jaguar Land Rover has received the 2014 Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade. The company was honoured for its ‘outstanding overseas sales growth over the last three years’ – in 2013, some 80% of the 425,006 vehicles it sold went abroad. Chief Exec Dr Ralf Speth was presented with the award from Her Majesty’s LordLieutenant of West Midlands, Paul Chandrasekharan Sabapathy CBE, at a ceremony in JLR’s Coventry HQ. ‘Jaguar Land Rover is delighted and honoured to receive recognition of its contribution to British enterprise,’ he said, ‘and I am privileged to accept this award on behalf of our 30,000 employees. Our success, driven by global exports to over 170 countries, is thanks to our dedicated and passionate employees who create exciting vehicles that are in high demand with customers around the world.’
To advertise in The Landy, call Ian Argent on 01283 553242 w w w. t h e l a n d y. c o . u k We’re on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thelandyuk
Comment
News of a Special Operations engineering department being set up in Land Rover to build high-spec models, bespoke one-offs and heritage recreations is very exciting. Aside from anything else, it shows that the company recognises how special its vehicles, past and present, really are. It is, however, predictable that the first thing to come out of the new workshop, where a team of specialists is headed up by a former Williams engineer, is a super-fast version of the Range Rover Sport. More dynamic, more road-focused and of course more expensive than ever, it’ll find a tiny market of super-rich owners. I’m already wondering what Special Ops will make of the new Defender when it comes out. A range of ‘halo’ models with even greater off-road ability? I’d like to hope so. Bigger suspension, clever traction aids, enhanced power and gearing options, body and chassis protection, that kind of thing. If I’m not wrong, more Land Rover people would get turned on by trucks like that than will ever care about shaving a couple of tenths off an SUV’s 0-62 time. In America, Jeep has a special ops department of its own. Every year, they turn out half a dozen modified examples of the company’s current products, showcasing the latest items available from the aftermarket for turning Wranglers into massively enhanced work trucks and toys. We’re talking trick suspension here, crate engines and even portal axles. I’d love to see Land Rover leading the way by encouraging the aftermarket to develop kit like that which really makes a difference to what a vehicle can do. Not that the aftermarket needs much encouragement. But a whole industry, not to mention hundreds of thousands of enthusiasts, would love the validation it would bring to have their passion for Land Rovers taken seriously by the company. Fine, make money by building SUVs: but Land Rover’s heritage and off-road soul must never be forgotten. Alan Kidd, Editor
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Green laning doesn’t really exist in Scotland – but a 4x4 trekking company with access to 300,000 acres of land aims to open it up in exciting new ways Gemma Pask What happens when two Scottish offroading enthusiasts can’t find anywhere to take their 4x4s? They set up a touring holiday company with access to 300,000 acres of land, that’s what. They don’t do things by halves, the Scots.
After months of planning, Nick and Norman Robertson of 4x4TreksGalloway have secured access to this vast amount of land (about twice the size of Anglesey, since you ask) in order to bring an adventurous form of off-road touring to South-West Scotland. The tours, which will last for up to seven days, offer holidaymakers
the chance to travel across sparsely populated forest, farm and estate areas of Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway in the comfort of their own 4x4. The tours aren’t about hardcore off-roading – the company says they’re suitable for all 4x4s. Instead, it’s all about seeing spectacular sights at a suitably slow pace. Most of the tracks
To advertise in The Landy, call Ian Argent on 01283 553242 w w w. t h e l a n d y. c o . u k We’re on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thelandyuk are only accessible by 4x4, so the experience will be unique to say the least. You’ll spend five days encountering all manner of wildlife, including red deer and Galloway’s famous Belted Cattle. 4x4TreksGalloway says its tours are considerate and non-damaging to the environment, and as well as exploring the countryside aboard your 4x4 the trips also include field sports on a private forestry and sporting estate, as well a visit to a dairy farm where you can experience milking time and taste an array of ice cream and cheese. Two experienced tour guides will be on hand to help you out, so don’t worry if you’re new to this off-roading lark. You’ll also be insured for several hundred miles of off-road driving, meaning you can explore the 193,000 acres of mountainous terrain, rivers and wild moorland that make up Galloway Forest Park to your heart’s content. What’s more, nocturnal drivers will be pleased to learn that this is home to the UK’s first Dark Skies Park, where clear starry skies and night-time critters are inherent. And if this still doesn’t sound like your thermos of tea, there are a number of optional additions and revisions available, such as a night in a swanky hotel (we’re not all mud dwellers, after all). You can even come along if you
don’t have a vehicle, as there are plenty available to rent for the week. You’ll wrap up your journey at the Mull of Galloway lighthouse, the southernmost point in Scotland. The success of the trips is already evident, as one happy holidaymaker says: ‘I’ve been coming to South West Scotland for over 20 years to shoot and have never seen an Osprey in the wild till today. Great trip and I only wish it went on longer.’ And Nick is hoping this will continue. ‘All of us involved in the business wish to bring others to experience our native Scotland; the countryside, the wildlife and the people. This is not just a job for any of us – we seek more, to share our enthusiasm for back-country Scotland and lifelong interest in 4x4 vehicles. Our business plans show that for every £1 we retain, we expect to generate £6 in revenue locally.’ So, when do we leave? There are five tours planned for 2014 so far: two in July, two in August and one in October. Most kick off just across the border from Carlisle, putting them within a three to four hour drive of the bulk of the UK’s population. Prices range from £300 to £450 depending on the number of people per vehicle, and you can find out more by visiting www.4x4treksgalloway.com.
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LR donates Freelander to help conserve tigers Donated Land Rover joins the battle to help protect one of India’s most critically endangered species as conservation workers struggle to reach remote habitats Land Rover has lent a hand to the Born Free Foundation’s work in India by supplying a new Freelander to the Satpuda Foundation. Based in central India, Satpuda is one of Born Free’s partner organisations. Its aim is to preserve tigers in this part of the world, undertaking critical conservation work for a species that’s vulnerable to poaching and habitat destruction – the combination of which has seen its numbers plummet to just 3500 worldwide.
The Indiantiger is now classed as a highly endangered species, and the Satpuda Foundation’s dedicated teams work to secure the animals’ future in what is India’s largest region of tiger habitat. The Freelander is the latest piece in the jigsaw. This particular Freelander features the white paw prints associated with the Born Free Foundation, an organisation which has enjoyed Land Rover’s support as a conservation partner over the course of many
years. It will be a welcome asset in the environment and promises to help complete the conservation work being done in the Satpuda Landscape Tiger Programme area. Mark Cameron, Brand Experience Director at Jaguar Land Rover, said: ‘Land Rover’s on-going partnership with the Born Free Foundation has already helped support some of the Foundation’s most important projects in the UK, Kenya, Ethiopia, South Africa and Sri Lanka. With this addition of the Land Rover Freelander to the Satpuda Landscape Tiger Programme, I believe together we will now make a real contribution to the conservation of the endangered Tiger in India. ‘The Land Rover Freelander’s all-terrain capability will enable conservation workers to reach areas which would otherwise be inaccessible to them and ultimately protect the tigers throughout the Satpuda Landscape.’ Will Travers OBE, President of the Born Free Foundation, added: ‘In one form or another Land Rover has been part of Born Free’s DNA for nearly seven decades, all the way back to the days when George and Joy Adamson used a Land Rover to help return Elsa the lioness to freedom, a story that inspired the Born Free book and film. ‘Today the link is even stronger, with Born Free-branded Land Rovers already deployed in South Africa, Kenya, Sri Lanka and Ethiopia. Now India will benefit from this alliance and I am delighted that a brand new Freelander will be assisting our efforts to protect wild tigers as part of our Satpuda Tiger Landscape Project, as well as helping prevent their continued devastation at the hands of poachers. ‘As ever, tigers and other threatened species can count on Born Free. And we, in turn, can count on Land Rover!’
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NEXT MONTH HAVE HYBRIDS HAD THEIR DAY? Now that old 90s are cheap and the IVA test has messed everything up, can it still make sense to build a Landy of your own? Vogue LSE: Restoring the last of the Mk1 Rangeys The tale of a 110 that’s fitted with an option you don’t see every day – half a tonne of wood-fired pizza oven!
How the other half camp: The inside story of the Sherazee, a bespoke expedition module that’ll turn your Land Rover from a way of life into a home from home…
DON’T FORGET – THE LANDY IS FREE EVERY MONTH! Pick up your copy of our August 2014 issue from 18 July – available from Britpart dealers and free to read online at www.thelandy.co.uk
01283 553243 • enquiries@assignment-media.co.uk • www.thelandy.co.uk • www.facebook.com/thelandyuk Editor Alan Kidd Assistant Editor Mike Trott Admin and Editorial Assistant Gemma Pask Art Editor Samantha D’Souza Contributors Dan Fenn, Robbie Ronson, Olly Sack, Malky Styles, Paul Looe, Vince Pratt Photographers Steve Taylor, Harry Hamm
Advertising Sales Manager Ian Argent Tel: 01283 553242 Advertising Production Tel: 01283 553242 Publisher Sarah Kidd Email: sarah.kidd@ assignment-media.co.uk Every effort is made to ensure that the contents of The Landy are accurate, however Assignment Media Ltd accepts no responsibility for errors or omissions nor
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If you want more flex and a softer ride, you may well be interested in the latest Pro Trac Hi-Flex Polyurethane Kit from MM4x4. This compound of super-soft polyurethane bushes is designed for off-road use and competition events. If used on-road, you will experience a particularly soft ride. However, away from the tarmac the benefits of this kit are that it will give you improved suspension flex and greater axle articulation. The general ride quality should be smoother and the shock absorber receives further mount protection. This latest bush kit is designed with durability in mind. It is petrol, oil and grease resistant and MM4x4 states that it will not perish or crumble. Made in the UK, the Polyurethane Kit is finished in an eye-catching day-glo green. It’s available for the Defender, Discovery 1 and Range Rover Classic, priced at £90 including VAT. www.mm-4x4.com
Lazer Lamps has teamed up with Zunsport, the UK manufacturer of premium quality stainless steel mesh grilles, to reveal its new Integrated Grille Kits. These allow for extra levels of high beam illumination and the seamless mounting of Lazer’s LED lights. Your vehicle comes out looking smarter – and it also gains increased radiator and engine protection. Each custom-made grille kit includes two powerful Lazer ST4 LED driving lamps, pre-mounted into a stainless steel mesh which replaces the vehicle’s original grille. The units are constructed from premium quality 316L stainless steel wire mesh, which can be either electro-polished for a long-lasting bright silver finish or coated in a black polymer, meaning all grilles are chip and corrosion resistant. The result is attractive additional protection to each vehicle’s radiator and engine bay, so loose debris is something you needn’t worry about anymore. Lazer’s grille kits come with a three-year warranty, and matching grille parts are available where the vehicle’s design allows. The kits are easy to install, with the fitment and wiring taking less than 45 minutes to complete, and fitting instructions are supplied to make sure you don’t go wrong. Further models will be added to the line-up in the coming months, and special vehicle kits can be produced upon request. As for prices, the Defender kit you see pictured here would set you back £740 including VAT – reassuringly expensive, to coin a phrase. www.lazerlamps.com If you’re equipping your workshop at present, SIP Industrial Products has got to be worth a look. The Leicestershire company is currently running a promotion on ranges covering welding, metalworking, air compressors and air-tools, generators, pressure washers, automotive and lifting equipment, with eleven different package deals, each including at least one free or heavily discounted item. The promo is called ‘Winning Eleven,’ and yes it was dreamt up to coincide with the World Cup. Unlike the England team, however, the tools and machines it covers are reliable and can be depended on to give you good results. At least when you order them for delivery you know they’ll be home early, though, so resemblances to our boys do exist after all. The promo runs until 31 August and also includes a chance to win a football shirt from any of the nations in the World Cup. Bite marks not included, sorry. www.sip-group.com
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If you’d like to drown out some of your local boy racers, or just fancy a little orchestra with your daily drive, you may want to consider QuickSilver’s new Sport Exhaust System for the Range Rover Evoque. Designed for the Evoque SD4, this lightweight system comes in at just 11kg, saving weight and delivering a more efficient airflow at the same time. Made from T304 stainless steel, the exhaust has a unique QS tip design which should give a nice, neat finish to go with those stimulating burbles. QuickSilver says the system shows a noticeable improvement in throttle response while enhancing the exhaust’s sound, with a deep masculine rumble rising in pitch as the revs climb. The system is designed to work with the engine, so at lower revs the sound remains relatively civilised and at higher revs it provides more presence and volume. Your Evoque can expect improvements in all performance areas as well, with slight increases in power and torque, all of which helps dull the pain of the price tag – which is £696 including VAT. www.quicksilverexhausts.com
Paddock Spares has launched the Factor 55 range of recovery products into the UK. Aimed at the top end of the winching market, these come from the USA and consist mainly of two product ranges, the Prolink and the Flatlink. The Prolink is machined from lightweight billet 6061 aluminium and provides a means of attaching a standard 3/4” screw pin shackle to existing winch cables and rope eyes. The eye is captured into the body of the Prolink by a removable 5/8” double titanium shear pin. The front of the Prolink provides a precision shackle mounting hole and 1.2” thick mounting tab. It’s designed to work with both hawse and roller fairleads, tucking in snugly against either. The Flatlink, a shackle thimble and D-ring, promises to be a safer and stronger replacement for the conventional winch hook. The industry’s first folding shackle mount for recovery winches, it has less than 1.75” of thickness and claims to work with all roller fairlead number plate mounting brackets. Paddock says the big advantage of the Flatlink is that it eliminates the danger which exists with everyday hooks of cutting and fraying your recovery straps. It won’t allow the strap to come free when the tension drops off your winch rope, either, thanks to a secure screw pin attachment. The Flatlink doesn’t require splicing and can be used with steel cables or synthetic ropes of up to 3/8” in diameter. As with the Prolink, the cable eye is retained by a 5/8” diameter grade-5 steel double shear pin and internal snap ring. It is, according to Paddock, installed easily in minutes. ‘We’re delighted to be adding Factor 55 to our existing range of products for the off-road enthusiast,’ says Paddock’s Rob Wright. ‘It’s great to see more products that are obviously designed by the enthusiasts themselves coming to the UK, and realise that quality and innovation from over the Atlantic are key in helping keep the off-road scene alive in Europe.’
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Superwinch – all you need!
45 years’ tradition in winch-building excellence Superwinch’s global manufacturing facilities have grown over 45 years in business to design and produce a broad range of winches; from electric 12, 24 and 115-volt planetary gear, right angle gear and worm gear units to hefty hydraulic workhorses. The company’s 1000 to 50,000lb capacity winches can be found in diverse industries and applications around the world. These products share Superwinch’s common traits of first class design, quality, value and solid construction for safe, simple and reliable operation. This is the Superwinch tradition. HUSKY The Superwinch Husky is an off-road champion in its own right, one of the company’s original and most popular winches designed specifically for off-road environments; and still manufactured at its site in Tavistock, Devon. The Superwinch Husky Series is a tough winch, with the rugged worm-gear drive mechanism and 4.2-horsepower Series Wound motor. The steel-centred phosphor bronze worm wheel matched to a case-hardened ground and polished worm shaft make this winch virtually indestructible. When only the best will do, the only choice is a Superwinch Husky. EXXTREME Born off-road, the EXXTREME is engineered for ultrafast recovery in trophy competitions under the most demanding conditions. It uses 2 Talon 6.0hp motors, CNC’d drum supports and a Talon 148:1 gearbox, giving extreme performance. Featuring the phenomenal sealing the Superwinch Talon is known for, the EXXTREME utilises the Talon’s 2-stage planetary/2-stage spur gearbox, external brake (to avoid rope-damaging heat build-up) and a highcapacity fabricated steel drum. The drive shaft is heat treated, tempered and hardened to withstand the high speeds and torque loads Superwinch engineered this winch to handle. Rolling on silky-smooth sealed bearings, this is quite possibly the easiest winch to freespool. ROCK 98 The Superwinch Rock 98 winch is part of the ALL-NEW TALON Performance Series, designed and engineered by Superwinch. This is probably the industry’s best truly sealed vehicle recovery winch assembly. All seals on the entire winch meet the IP67 standard: the solenoid will keep out water, mud, snow and dust and has a patented venting feature that allows the contacts to resist water and release contact-damaging internal condensation. The Rock 98 is the perfect off-road winch, with 4445kg of pulling power on 15.24m of synthetic rope; you’ll be pulling in the “Power Zone” – the first two layers on the drum. All this power in a small, lightweight package! It weighs 12kg less with Dyneema™ synthetic rope, 101.6mm narrower for smaller, modified competition vehicles. To find out more information on the full range of Superwinch products, visit the company’s website for specifications, videos and special offers: www.superwinch.com
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News
Something the Discovery 3, Mk1 Range Rover Sport and Mk3 Range Rover all have in common is air suspension. Which, as we all know, is something extra to go wrong. Something extra and, all too often, expensive. Well, Britpart has now started supplying Hitachi Air Suspension Compressors, which are designed to be a costeffective replacement for the OE units. This might not stop you from needing to replace the factory item, but at least it’ll let you do so without as much pain in the wallet department. An uplifting point to mention is that these compressors use all the original brackets and pipes, so fitting is made easy. The relay must be changed (this is included in the package), but there’s no need to reprogram the vehicle’s ECU after completing the installation. Prices for the compressors vary around the £400-£500 mark from Britpart’s dealers. That’s a big range, so be prepared to shop around. www.britpart.com
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As any overland traveller will tell you, one of the most important keys to a successful life on the road is making the most of every last scrap of storage space. There’s no middle ground: cramped and stressful is to be avoided, while organised and relaxing is a must-have state of affairs. A roof rack is a pretty much essential accessory if you want to achieve that. Ones like these new expedition-style jobs from Britpart, for example. Available for the Defender 90, 110 and 130, these racks are constructed from aluminium and finished in black powder coat for maximum resistance without any needless weight. Easy to install, they’re strong and versatile, with longitudinal floor planks to reduce the effect of wind noise. Accessories can be fitted easily, with the help of nut channels on all the extrusions. Roof rack rails are available to buy separately, too, in case you’d rather keep your wardrobe with you. Prices starts from about £700 including VAT, and climb to £1000 or so, depending on which Defender you’re prepping. www.britpart.com We always talk about protecting your Landy from trees, boulders and so on, but what about those pesky passengers who insist on sitting in it? Worry no more, because Britpart now offers Waterproof Seat Covers for the Disco 1 and Range Rover Classic. Available in black, blue, green, grey and now sand colour, these will stop moisture and other dirt and debris from tarnishing your seats. Made from waterproof woven polyester with a PVC backing, the covers are washable and easy to slip on or off your Land Rover’s seats. They come in separate kits for the front and back seats, and you can expect to pay around £60-£80 inc. VAT. www.britpart.com
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South African company Front Runner is currently making inroads into the UK market, having established a network of dealers and approved fitting centres for its high-end 4x4 accessory range. The company promises to lead the way on Discovery 3 and 4 accessories, including roof rack systems through to storage, load carrying, camping and cooking equipment. It also offers a spare wheel carrier, to get the vehicle’s spare away from its original location and up out of harm’s way behind the back door. The carrier fits on to the vehicle’s chassis through the rear bumper, and swings away for easy access when the in-built locking mechanism is unlatched. It’s made of mild steel and is black powder-coated to protect it against the elements – simple and effective, like all the best ideas. www.frontrunneroutfitters.eu
Further news from Front Runner is that it has teamed up with LandieBox, which is offering a combo deal on its tents and Front Runner’s roof racks. LandieBox, which makes specialist overland accessories, recently became a distributor for Front Runner products. ‘I wanted to set up a relationship with Front Runner because their products are high-end and fit so well with our bespoke LandieBox outdoor and camping products,’ explains MD Steve Guy. ‘Front Runner product engineers have practical, hands-on experience and having used some of their extensive range myself, I know that they use quality materials, which are ideal for even the most extreme conditions.’ The LandieTent is quick to erect, with no poles to potentially break when miles from anywhere, and its doubleskinned design with a mesh inner means you should sleep easily whatever critters might try to join you. Front Runner has an entire range of products available in the UK. And remember, if you want a rack to go with your LandieTent you’ll get the two at a keen price by talking to Steve. www.landiebox.co.uk
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BUSMAN’S
‘it was just what i was looking for – a blank canvas’
HOLIDAY When you spend your working days maintaining a fleet of 14 Land Rovers for an agricultural estate, it might reasonably be assumed that you won’t want to spend your leisure time working on Land Rovers. But Nick Mills is so into it, he didn’t just build himself one. He built a whole series of the things, culimating in a hefty 110 so his kids and dog could come along for the ride too Words Gary Noskill Pictures Steve Taylor
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ick Mills works on Land Rovers every day. He’s an agricultural engineer on a farming estate, looking after all his employer’s engineering and fabrication needs as well as spannering on a fleet of 14 Landies. ‘I’m an all-round chap, I am,’ he says, and that’s a good thing to be when you work on Landies. Which he doesn’t just do with his job, either. ‘When a project is finished I start to get itchy feet and need to fuel my addiction for the build buzz,’ he admits. And that explains the catchily coloured 110 on his drive. This replaced a Discovery, and even when we spoke to Nick there was
another 110 waiting in the wings to be built. He obviously doesn’t get enough spanner time during working hours. Seriously, though, you’d think a man who maintains 14 of the things would have a hobby like woodturning or model railways. But not Nick. ‘I love Land Rovers and always have,’ is his straightforward explanation. ‘I wanted to buy a Defender 110 as I’d never owned one. I’ve had a 90 before but didn’t like the lack of space in it really, what with having two children and a dog to fit in.’ Buying a 110 isn’t a difficult thing to do – many 110 owners have done it – but as always, the trick is to buy
The 200Tdi engine beneath the bonnet is nicely installed, for which the 110’s previous owner is awarded precisely no thanks as when Nick bought the truck, it was held down mainly by gravity. He hasn’t replaced the engine, but it needed a thorough going over and many parts needed replacing. It now features a large-core radiator, heavy-duty clutch, Td5 heater and Fiat Ducato fan. It’s bolted to an LT77 gearbox and LT230 transfer case, just as Solihull intended
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Above/below: The interior is kitted out to reflect work as well as play. The spare wheel holder is a one-off job, as is the chequer-plate rear door cover. Inside, there’s a custom cage and storage area for Nick’s tools; beyond it, you can just make out the half-leather Rover MG ZT front seats which make things pretty luxurious. An extremely nice touch is the hinged dog guard, which allows Nick to access his gear (and dog, and therefore presumably versa) but can be secured in place to prevent that same gear (and, hopefully, dog) from biting him on the back of the head should something unpalatably bumpy happen off-road the right one. Which in Nick’s case meant buying one most people would consider fairly wrong. ‘The chassis was rotten and the bodywork was really rough and neglected,’ he says. ‘The interior was also really tatty and a 200Tdi had been fitted very roughly indeed.’ Nice. But as far as he was concerned, it was perfect. ‘It was exactly the type of Land Rover I was looking for – a blank canvas for me to build on, to whatever spec I wanted.’ Continued overleaf
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Right: Nick made the seven-degree heavy-duty cranked radius arms on the rear, which allow the axle to drop out further on articulation and, just as importantly, do it without turning themselves into spaghetti first time it happens when you’ve got your foot on the gas. The spring and shock lurking behind the wheel at the extreme right of the picture are part of a Britpart kit that lifts the vehicle by 2” over standard, and at the other end the same company’s steering damper is partnered up with a drag link and track rod that won’t bend for anything Far right: Yet more desirable gear from Britpart, whose catalogue Nick turned to repeatedly while speccing up the 110. Here, a set of 33x12.50R15 BFGoodrich KM2s is tucked away comfily beneath a set of 4” extended wheelarches, behind which the bodywork has been trimmed back to help the suspension articulate without caning the big, wide tyres into it. With so much offset on the wheels, even on such wide tyres it’s possible to get a level of steering lock that drivers of factory-standard 110s would envy Nick ran the truck for a few weeks, which is how long it took for its MOT to expire. At that point in time, rather than trying to get a new ticket, he put it on SORN and got down to work. He started by stripping it down and selling the bits he didn’t need, to fund the bits he did. Good plan. Then he had the chassis shot-blasted, which is also a good plan, and lots of welding followed; the main rails needed plenty of patching, and a whole new quarter-chassis went on the back. The body panels were able to go again, though there was plenty of beating required to knock out all the dents. But the reward for all his hard work was that he was able to break out the
spray gun and finish them in the very fetching Ransomes Orwell Blue you see here. Its manufacturer, Spaldings, lists it as a ‘hard implement enamel,’ and that’s very appropriate because this 110 is a very hard implement indeed. Something else the body wanted for was a cage in the rear, which Nick bent
£2000
Typical price for a G-reg 110 in the condition Nick’s was when he got it
up himself. It shares the cabin with a melting pot of bits from all sorts of sources – the front seats are from an MG ZT, the rear heater a Ford Transit and the rear bench seats were bought from Britpart. Nick made his own centre console, complete with cubby box, cup holders and CD player housing. Another goody from Britpart was a set of 4” extra-wide wheelarches, which went on after he’d trimmed out the front wings. He wanted to leave plenty of space for a set of 33x12.50R15 BFGoodrich KM2s to do their thing without fouling, see, and as we all know virtual lifts are all the rage among truck-modders at the moment. Not that he didn’t enhance the suspension as well, by going back to Britpart for a set of +2” springs and shocks. More space around the big BFGs, and more flex to keep them pressed to the ground – not a radical set-up, but one that works for him and unless you want to go extremely extreme, it’ll work for you too. Those tyres, by the way, have their fans but, unlike the original BFG MudTerrain, you’ll find people who don’t rate them as much. Nick is firmly among
those in favour, saying they give him plenty of stability when he’s out and about on the estate at work and playdays at the weekend. Also on the suspension front, he made his own cranked rear trailing arms, which is a pretty grown-up thing to do. More droop and more strength, too: both fine things. Also strong as an ox are the heavy-duty drag link and track bar that turn the front wheels, and the Britpart heavy-duty steering damper that helps convince them only to do so when asked. Turning the wheels in the other sense of the word is the same 200Tdi whose installation Nick didn’t like the look of in the first place. It’s a diamond
with an LT77 gearbox and LT230 transfer case bolted on the back of her. Which brings us back to the MOT test, and after all that work the 110 arrived home with a new ticket to justify all Nick’s efforts. So now he was able to get out there, start playing, use it in his job… or go back into the workshop and build something else. As he’s already explained, the moment he downs tools on one project he wants to get stuck into the next. ‘I’ve got big plans for the next one…’ To most of us, ‘big plans’ would be what lead us to a Defender much like
‘When a project is finished, I start to get itchy feet and need to fuel my addiction for the build buzz’ of an engine in the right hands, which obviously is where it was now, and you won’t be surprised to learn that he craned it out and did the job properly. This meant replacing or repairing the starter motor, head gasket, alternator and water pump before doing anything else. Might as well get the engine right while it’s hanging from a chain. Next up were a large-core radiator, heavy-duty clutch, TD5 heater and the electric fan off a Fiat Ducato van, then in she went
this one. No harm in being ambitious, though. It definitely helps when you’ve got a pro workshop and the skills to use it right, but it’s the plans themselves that’ll put you on the right lines. Nick’s 110 is spot-on because as well as being very able off-road, it hasn’t had the usability compromised out of it. He was after a Landy to suit life with two kids, a dog and an out-and-about job, and that’s just what this is. Top tool, top toy. What more could you ask?
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IIa Bought for parts – but now coming back to life reassembly process, fitting mud flaps, seats and all those other little things, such as the lights, that make a functioning vehicle what it is. ‘We normally do restoring and repair work and we only really bought the IIA as we needed a bulkhead for another project! We do our own power steering conversion for the Series I, II and III, and disc brake conversions too – anything to do with Land Rovers really.’ This relic may turn out to be quite the sassy lady once finished, then, so will Andrew keep her for himself? ‘The plan is to sell it on and let someone else give her the love and attention she needs. I’ve had lots of Land Rovers in my time. We’re a strange breed, us Land Rover lovers, but this lady will be moving on.’ Before Andrew says goodbye though, we’ll be following the progress of the restoration over the coming weeks and seeing the transformation as it goes. It’s safe to say we all want to see the final product: it’s always a pleasure to see another Land Rover back out on the road… factory-fresh, even after almost half a century!
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lder vehicles are for restoring. Simple as. You wouldn’t restore a brand new Defender would you? That would be like trying to repair an iPhone 5S fresh out of the box… It’s not really do-able. If your iPhone looks like it’s been steamrollered by a fist, then a little TLC could be in order. Some items, though, are beyond repair and are broken down for parts. That’s what Andrew Poulson of Spinney Engineering thought he’d be doing with this Series IIA before he took a closer look.
‘I bought this for breaking down into parts originally,’ recalls Andrew. ‘And when I first saw the Land Rover, I was thinking “what have I just bought?”’ As with many things, though, taking a closer look reveals more of the story. ‘The vehicle was quite nice, actually, once I’d had a proper look round. It had got new springs, new tyres and a new bulkhead. I couldn’t break it for parts – it was too good! ‘We bought it at the end of March. We’d nearly bought it 18 months ago, but the seller changed his mind.
‘We originally saw the vehicle three years ago when I was at an off-road driving centre with my wife. It was owned by a gentleman who was thinking of selling or restoring it at the time. So we said if you ever want to sell, then give us a call.’ Eventually, Andrew got the IIA back to his workshop and was able to discover its hidden assets. It may have been in a better condition than originally thought, but then again, it’s not what you call a well-travelled vehicle. ‘It’s only had two owners from new, and it lived in the same street for 49 years! The first owner had it 44 years and then it moved three doors down to its new owner!’ The old girl was built on 22 April 1965, but will soon roll back the years once Andrew finishes the restoration work. So far, many different paint colours have been stripped off ready for a total respray, which will see her once again resplendent in the classic deep bronze green. ‘Everything is original and we’ll try and keep it as bog standard as possible. All the brakes need doing, the master cylinder and shoes. There is just a little welding to be done and then we can set about the respray.’ After the vehicle has had its glossy new coat applied, Andrew will start the
Andrew originally bought the Series IIA as he needed a bulkhead for another project. When he saw how good this one was, however, he decided that the vehicle was too good to scrap and set about bringing it back to its former glories
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Mk1s
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without the miles
Interest in straight Range Rover Mk1s is building all the time. Even a late Classic can now be valuable – and if its clock is showing super-low miles, it’s even better
Words Mike Trott Pictures Steve Taylor
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ow many times have you come across a Mk1 Range Rover that looks particularly worn down by life and riddled with rust underneath? The kind which, when you
squint from a distance, merely resembles a big sack with a pound sign on the side, just waiting to be filled. Yes, that may have been a longer way of saying it will devour your money than necessary. But devour your money, it surely will, much as a crocodile would devour your right arm given half a chance.
If you feel like losing an arm or a leg, of course, you don’t necessarily have to seek out your nearest reptile house. In fact, you don’t need to lose any limbs at all. Sometimes, it’s about timing. You may wait a long time for your dream machine. But when it turns up, you will know about it. And even better is when you come across your ideal dazzling vehicle and all it costs is the price of a new small hatchback. The photos displayed next to this waffling text show one of the very last Classics, and therefore one of the last of a fine breed. This particular example was on sale a couple of months ago and we were able to get a look round it before it went to its new home. You may have read in the last couple of issues about the Series IIB 110” Forward Control and then the Series I 107” Station Wagon which have been receiving TLC from the Walker brothers at Alex Engineering down in Tring. This mint Classic has also received the same attention; not quite
as much, admittedly, but that’s just because it didn’t need it. It’s a very clean example and that’s predominantly down to there being just 63,000 miles on its clock. There aren’t many like this left, at least in such good nick. It has the usual 3.9-litre V8 of its day, but on top of this it boasts an LPG conversion with a single-point injection – so, it’s safe to say it’s saving those pounds already. ‘These Classics can really be money pits, but luckily this one hasn’t rusted
£36.5k Price when new of a top-spec Range Rover Classic 3.9 SE
because of the small amount of miles,’ said Andy Walker. ‘We’ve done little bits of welding and spent a bit of time on the paintwork to polish it up. ‘It’s only had general servicing and maintenance though as a whole. New tyres with Goodyear Wrangler ATs as well.’ How often are you able to say that about a Range Rover that’s coming up to its 20th birthday? Or indeed any car, regardless of the miles. This old Classic has worn it well. It has been given some extra lights at the front, which can split opinion. In this case, keeping it simple and as close
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as possible to original would surely be the aim of the game, but with so many Rangeys having been fitted with auxiliary spotlights, they don’t look at all out of place.
Alex Engineering ended up selling this fine ‘money pit’ for a tidy £12,000. A tidy sum for a 20-year-old vehicle, but not a lot for a genuine classic car that you can use without compromise
Aside from the obvious chassis, floor and underbody rust, the tailgate is one of the most trouble-prone areas of any Mk1. Even on a low-miler, they can be rotted out or non-fitting. Good news then that this one’s so straight
as an everyday drive – and so long as he looks after it, the Rangey’s new owner is unlikely ever to lose much on his investment. He could, for example, have spent the money on a brand-new Dacia Duster. And how much of it do you think he would get back in five years’ time? A no-brainer if ever there was one, we reckon. And that’s before you even turn the key and a Rover V8 throbs into life to remind you that you’re driving a true classic from the Rangey timeline. Beautiful… and worth every penny.
The 3.9 V8 is a lovely version of the old Buick engine, and in the Range Rover it found a perfect home. This one’s had an LPG conversion, so perfection doesn’t come with a side order of poverty
Issue 6: August 2014
If the Classic from Alex Engineering was a good ‘un, shortly after being captivated by it we stumbled upon another that’s simply in a whole new league of its own. We talk about timing, and the need to wait for your dream vehicle. Well, the owner of this Range Rover was actually viewing another car altogether when he bought it. Ian Wright, proprietor of The Wright Event off-road training centre, had gone to look at an E-Type Jaguar he’d been offered for sale, when he realised the shape lurking under some old dust sheets just a few metres away was that of a Mk1 Rangey. ‘I’d walked straight past the Range Rover,’ he admits, ‘and barely gave it a glance with it being covered up.’ Inside the long, dark garage, the Classic had been sat since 2007. Off came the covers to reveal a superb example of a 1991 Rangey, with – get this – just 8000 miles on the clock! ‘The covers came off and I thought “blimey!” I had just done the deal for the E-Type, and then the guy turned to me and said “Do you want the Range Rover as well?” After Ian had managed to pick his jaw up off the floor, they fired up the very unmolested Classic and showed it
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some sunlight for the first time in seven years. ‘It started up straight away. The belt squeals like a pig and the brakes are a little spongy, but everything works and it sailed through its MOT. It’s running much better now.’ Unlike the lads at Alex Engineering, Ian’s not looking to sell his Classic on. You can’t imagine there being any shortage of interest if he did, even if his only word on the subject is that he’d only let it go if someone offered him ‘an obscene amount of money.’ We don’t think he means fifty quid by this, sorry.
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‘I instantly regretted not having a series i disco’ Buying an old barn in Devon meant Neil Witt had a lot of rubble to shift. Buying a ‘rusty, knackered’ Series IIA was a bit of a novel answer, but as well as helping him build his house the old truck converted him to the Land Rover way. So much so that he now owns not one but three Discoverys – including a 300Tdi Commercial that’s a perfect example of how to plan a project sensibly
ANOTHER KIND OF
BARN CONVERSION M any’s the story of a Land Rover fan’s devotion that ends up in rubble. If not actual rubble (though that’s not unheard of), then certainly the 4x4 equivalent. Neil Witt’s story starts with rubble. Not the metaphorical kind, the final acceptance that your project is never going to turn a wheel. Actual rubble. The kind you put in a wheelbarrow. A dozen years ago, Neil bought a new home in Devon. ‘Not a barn conversion,’ he says. ‘A converted barn. There’s a difference.’ The difference was that when you move into a barn conversion, your
Words Robbie Ronson Pictures Vic Peel
main concern is wherther to serve Krug or Moet at your house warming. When you buy a converted barn, you need to shift ton after ton of building material inwards, and a similar amount of broken concrete in the opposite direction. If Neil’s life had gone a very slightly different way, he would have become the owner of a Japanese pick-up truck. And now, with the building work well in the past, he might be doing his daily commute in a Mondeo. But no. A friend was into Land Rovers. And rather than getting an identikit pick-up, he convinced Neil to plump for what he describes now as ‘a rusty, knackered Series IIA.’
The 300Tdi was Neil’s third Discovery, and he’s bought another two since. One of them’s the original prototype LWB, no less, which he took on as a project; the other’s this Disco 3, which didn’t cost much to buy but sure costs a lot to run
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Above: When you get a part from eBay, it might be a branded product or it might have been lashed up in the seller’s garage. This winch bumper looks like the former – lash-up merchants tend not to have their own powder-coating facilities… With Wizardbilt’s steering guard and a diff protector behind it, there’s not a lot that Neil needs to fear driving into. It’s had a few bashes, so it’s already paid for itself in saved drag links The phrase ‘with friends like these, who needs enemies’ comes to mind. Yet it was the beginning of a love affair with Solihull that saw Neil become the owner of three Discoverys – including the prototype long-wheelbase 200Tdi, of all things, as well as a D3 workhorse and the off-road machine you see here. The Series IIA clearly wasn’t all that rusty or knackered as it sailed through its MOT after he’d had it for three years. ‘I took that as an omen that I should sell it,’ he says, which sounds a bit harsh but with an hour’s commute every day, you can see why he replaced it with a 200 Tdi Discovery instead. He ran this for four years, but it didn’t repeat the IIA’s trick of sailing through its MOT. Instead, it fell to bits. So he sold the engine and bought a 3.9 V8 ES on gas. This was his first auto, ‘and what a revelation.’ Three more years passed, then with a bit of spare cash about his person Neil was able to trade up to the Disco 3 he still owns today. Since then, he says he’s learned that just because they’re cheap to buy these days doesn’t mean they’re cheap to own. Maybe because the Disco 3 is more sanitised than older Landies, Neil started having withdrawal symptoms. He found himself with ‘rose tinted specs’ about Series IIA ownership,
and having sold the V8 he ‘instantly regretted not having a Series I Disco.’ You know where this is going. First, he bought another IIA and rebuilt it. Then a Disco Mk1 Commercial came up for sale nearby, which was perfect as he’d always wanted a van and was on the lookout for something practical. This one seemed to tick a lot of boxes. Its chassis was solid, it had just had a new gearbox and its 300 Tdi engine had the right history: ‘so long as it’s been looked after,’ says Neil, ‘with regular oil changes at the right time, it’ll go on forever.’ Better still, though it had the later engine this one was old enough to be from the days before electronic management, meaning he could look after it himself. And best of all, he managed to pick it up for £1200. Actually, there’s something better still: he reckons all the mods he’s done have only cost him the same again. He built the project on an ‘as and when’ basis, buying cheap bits when they came up rather than paying strong money to get everything straightaway. That was in the main, at least. One thing he did have to buy off the shelf was an Allisport intercooler. ‘I found out very quickly, on the drive home, that it was very underpowered. Special Vehicles had built it with air-con, but I quickly learned not to use it! I
Neil made this storage unit from some scrap softwood and ply. Its size and shape were dictated by the smoke-damaged storage boxes he picked up for a song
overhauled the engine and went to Allisport for the intercooler – the aircon meant I needed a specific fit rather than their standard one. But it makes a huge difference – I’d say it adds half as much power again.’ Of course, doing it bit by bit is easier when you’re only doing a tickle-up of a project rather than setting out to build something epic. And Neil’s intention was never to create a colossus of a Disco, just a good, practical everyday truck he could have some fun in too. A good example was his first event in it. No, not a novice winch challenge, but the Mac 4x4. He entered it for the first time in 2012, finishing a very decent 17th out of 63 under the moniker of Team Toad. ‘My last Series IIA was pretty well known as Ratty in the Series II Club,’ he explains. ‘So the Discovery got called Mr Toad, since it’s green. And when I bought the LWB Discovery Ambulance last year, we stuck with the Wind in the Willows theme and called it Badger.’ And why not? The Ambulance was bought to be restored and gently modified into a truck Neil can use for camping and as a surfing support vehicle, though without doing anything that would ruin the character of what is, after all, a piece of Land Rover history. Will Mr Badger usurp Mr Toad on Neil’s drive? Not likely. Now that the Disco has come together, he’s going to use it. He’s even left the suspension at its standard height – because when you’re out on the sunken lanes of Devon, headroom is often your biggest concern. There’s a very bent roofrack and some wrecked guttering in a skip somewhere that says amen to that. Many of us set out to build projects that are going to take the world by storm. And lots of us end up wishing we’d set our sights a bit lower. Neil’s Disco is a perfect example of doing it right. And that’s why he’s got a tidy truck that’s 100% sorted and set to last him as long as he wants it to. His love of Land Rovers may have started in a sea of rubble – but it’s not going back there any time soon.
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THE AGONY OF
CHOICE
Buying a Defender is still as good an idea as ever. Only problem is, which kind do you go for? Factory fresh or expertly refurbished: each has a good many points in its favour…
E
ver since Land Rover announced that the Defender will cease production at the end of next year, values for used models have been getting stronger. A thriving market has grown up for
refurbishing early 90s and 110s, using early engines to create ‘new’ Defenders from the days of DIY servicing. If you want to put a new 90 on your drive, an alternative to the showroom is to have one built using galvanised
The 2.2 TDCi engine is very well suited to the Defender. Its stats say it should be identical to the older 2.4 to drive, but we find it much nicer. If you want to do your own maintenance, however, either will be a huge stumbling block
underpinnings and cherry-picked components. You’ll save big money, and get something that’ll last longer than a standard new one. At the same time, those new ones have been getting better and better over time. Since the days of the Tdi, the Defender has developed through several phases to the current model, the 2.2 TDCi, which will be the last before the factory goes quiet in 2015. Many people who like the idea of rebuilding an old Defender to betterthan-new standard also like the idea of doing it themselves. Get it done professionally, however, and if you want a truck built to the very highest spec you could expect it to cost you something upstairs of £20,000. That’s the alternative option. The conventional one is to go to a dealer and see what you can get for that same money: if you shop around, haggle hard and accept that you might need to settle for one that’s high on miles or has been
used off-road, that sort of sum might just about net you the truck here, a 90 XS from early in the 2012 model year, just after the 2.2-litre engine came in. The XS is at the top of the Defender range, which means you get stuff like alloys, air-con, electric windows and traction control. Around the £20k mark, the 2.2s you’ll see are more likely to be lower spec models, while if you spot an XS it’ll probably have the older 2.4 TDCi unit. That’s relevant because, in our view, the 2.2 is nicer to drive. On paper, everything about the two engines should be identical, but we found it more responsive through the gears than the 2.4s we’ve driven. You won’t be disappointed by its pace or pulling power, anyway, and if you do a lot of motorway work the good news is that the dreadful speed limiter that blighted the 2.4 is gone on the 2.2. Talking of gears, the six-speed box on this model is excellent and changes
very smoothly. The transfer case on our tester was slick, too: gone are the days, it seems, when shifting between low and high in a newish Defender was an exercise in hope. Of course, low box is where any Defender is in its element, and whether you’re using it to shunt trailers around or conquer almost any terrain you care to try, the 90 is as masterful in 2.2 TDCi form as ever. With the six-speed box, in fact, it’ll ease over major obstacles at tickover in low second and tackle descents that hang you against your seatbelt with absolute confidence. Leave it in low first and, with the combination of torque and anti-stall, were enough traction to be available it would claw its way up the side of a building. As we mentioned, traction control is standard on the XS, and it’ll cut in to try and keep you moving once the limits of either the tyres’ grip or the suspension’s travel have been reached.
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Many of us still struggle with the notion of a Defender that has an actual dashboard. Proper heating is definitely welcome (as is the air-conditioning that’s included on this XS-spec model), but the huge void in front of the passenger is actually less usable than it looks like it ought to be. The old model’s full-width tray was underrated… Almost every Defender gets a set of mud tyres on it in the end, and most will also be fitted with longer-travel springs and shocks at some point in their lives, but even in factory form the 90 will keep going long after most modern 4x4s have bellied out or left their own traction control confounded. Not that we like the 90’s traction control very much. The idea is to bury the throttle as your wheels start to spin, so that the system starts hammering away with the brakes until eventually, enough torque is shifted to the wheels with grip. It sounds brutal, for the vehicle’s brakes and potentially for the ground beneath it, and we’d far sooner see some sort of locking rear diff on the options list. A much more elegant solution, and far cheaper via the aftermarket than the cost of specifying Land Rover’s system. In terms of living with it, a Defender is very much a Defender. The more modern version is friendlier in some ways (especially in luxurious XS form), but whether the addition of a dashboard in lieu of, er, none was quite the revolution it felt like at the time is open to question. Being able to work the heater controls and get actual heating is a novelty if you’re used to old ones, but the amount of storage space has actually got worse now there’s no longer a catch-all tray to shove everything into the way Defender drivers have long been used to. Buying our test vehicle now would mean picking it up with a few months left on the original three-year warranty. Many cars lose half their value by their third birthday, but it says a lot that anyone wanting to own this one now would need to stump up around 75% of the £29,500 it cost new. That’s a huge point in favour of buying as new as you can, because even an expertly refurbished old Land Rover is still just an
old Land Rover in the eyes of the guy buying it off you, so however good it is you needn’t expect a better-than-new Tdi to hold its money the way a late 2.2 TDCi will. On the other hand, it’s often said that depreciation is meaningless if you never sell the car. And Defenders, more than anything else, are the kind of vehicles people hold on to forever. Which might tilt the balance back towards refurbishing an old one,
because you’ll certainly get more for your money – and by speccing everything galvanised and stainless, you’ll have a Landy that’s still hanging together once even the last ones from the end of next year are rusting out. No small matter if what you really want is a Landy for life. Is there a conclusion to all this? Yes, actually. It’s that we think the 2.2 TDCi is the best Defender to drive since the 300 Tdi. And since the choice we’re
describing is between a refurbished Tdi and a nearly-new 2.2, that’s good news. What choice would we take? It really does depend on whether you’re honestly committed to keeping your Land Rover in the long term. Anything under about a decade (still pretty young for a Defender), and the strength with which they resist depreciation will point you towards a newer one. But the pleasure of creating your own vehicle, and seeing a project take shape, can’t
be underestimated. Nor can the huge satisfaction that comes from doing your own maintenance, which is highly unlikely to happen on the much more complex TDCi. Ultimately, for what the 90 in these pictures is worth even now, you could have a truly sensational refurb project done just the way you want it. It won’t hold its value the same, but it’ll last far better – and if you look after it, it’ll be a friend for life.
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LANDIES OUT THERE EXPLORING THE WELS
ONE LAST TIME Words Hamish Gilhooly Pictures Steve Taylor
ON A CLASSIC TRAIL
Wales is still a great place to explore in your 4x4, with a wide range of beautiful green lanes in the mountains and valleys. Ten years ago, however, it was better yet – back then, before the crass NERC Act became law, a mass of superb rights of way were still open. Among them was the daddy of them all, a glorious Roman Road in the Brecon Beacons by the name of Sarn Helen… It’s ten years since we took the laning trip in this story. Ten years in which a lot has changed – I’m not sure exactly how much, but the stuff you’re going to read about here is now pretty much wall-to-wall illegal. We were green laning in Wales, see. On Sarn Helen, principally, and the many trails near it which at the time were still classed as RUPPs. Some 18 months later, they were all to be closed when Tony Blair’s government passed the hated NERC Act. At the time, with NERC still to come, we naively thought these lanes would be safe from its pernicious aims.
Almost all of them are also recorded as minor public highways (UCRs or ORPAs, as you might know them),
1623 Years from the Romans leaving Wales to Blair closing their roads
so they’d still be roads even when their RUPP status was taken away. As history now shows, however, in a shocking piece of late manoeuvring the government allowed the ‘lower’ status of Restricted Byway, which all RUPPs became, to overrule any highway rights. Incompetent, or dishonest? You can choose, but if it’s not one it’s the other. So anyway, if you’re aged under about 25 you’re reading about a trip on a set of lanes you’ve never been allowed to drive. Which is a proper shame, as they’re beautiful. It came as a bit of a kick in the teeth for the local economy, too. Because
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SH LANES
A beautiful old moss-covered sign for Sarn Helen, with storm clouds gathering in the background. Doesn’t really get any more appropriate than that, does it? with five trucks’ worth of us all heading to Wales for the weekend, there’s at least a couple of grand in it. We rented a holiday cottage at Cwmcamlais, Powys with room enough for ten, which didn’t come cheap even in the depths of the winter off-season, and bought all our provisions locally. Multiply that by the number of laners like us who’ve not taken their Land Rovers back there since Blair closed so many of the best trails, and that’s a lot of money stripped away from ordinary Welsh people and spent on Xbox games and pile ointment instead. Nice one, Tone. So anyway, our trip. Five trucks, ten blokes, one weekend. By the time of the actual weekend, it was down to three trucks and six blokes, so we were going to be rattling around a bit in that big old cottage of ours, but never mind. Dave’s Range Rover was the first to withdraw, then with just a few days to go Matt’s 109 wouldn’t play ball. That left Steve and Bob in a V8 hybrid and Joe and Kit in a TD5 Discovery. Plus me and Tim, and I’m not even saying what we were driving but the others were very sporting and helped us through the gnarly bits using waffle boards, rock infill and, at one point, a chainsaw. That there was the work of Kit at his best. Something else that happened ten years ago was that people on laning trips still navigated using maps (yes, made of paper and everything), which is what Tim was doing first time we got lost. And second, and third, actually, but anyway, there we were going down a lane which, too late, I realised was one I had marked down Continued overleaf
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as ‘too scratchy’ when I’d done a recce on the route a few weeks previously. For ‘too scratchy,’ read ‘there’s half a tree in the way.’ In a flash, Tim had his Swiss Army Knife on the case, prompting Steve to roll his eyes and reach for his bow saw. That was the point when an orange vision appeared from behind Kit’s Discovery, clad from head to toe in protective gear and heading for the offending tree, chainsaw in hand, with a steely glint in his eye. He was even wearing his face mask Eminem-style for maximum impact. There you are, an Eminem reference. Told you it was ten years ago. The magnificence of this spectacle was only partially undermined by the fact that
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the landowners and even the police are quite happy to let this happen (the real coppers who work for their living, at least), but as far as the Westminster’s concerned the next few paragraphs describe us doing something that’s now right up there with burglary and arson. And fox hunting. People were out doing that, too, as we bumbled our way on to the firm trackway north of Glyn Neath and headed up towards the Brecon Beacons. One day, everything apart from watching television will have been banned. And the people who these new laws are meant to protect from us horrible nasty troublemakers in our big scary 4x4s? Today, they were 100% happy to share the countryside with us. Moun-
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a 4x4. One of the other vehicles we spotted was a 90 bringing a group of special needs kids into the mountains for a picnic. They’d be breaking the law now, too. We followed Sarn Helen for as long as we could, which was eight or nine miles of stony, well maintained trackway across mountains and through valleys. The going was rarely technical, though the rock steps on the west flank of the Nedd Fechan were enough to need waffles in a truck with poor clearance or a big rear overhang (a good spotter doesn’t go amiss either, and since Bob has done that job on the Malaysian Rainforest Challenge we were in safe hands). Mainly, though, this glorious lane was about the views – wild, expansive vistas over austere highlands marked by a mixture of forestry and hill farming. It was the same on the many RUPPs clustered around the northern end of the trail, too. Mynydd Illtyd is criss-crossed by several old roads on which a shallow layer of peaty soil sits on top of solid bedrock, meaning we were driving in what at first looked like deep ruts but turned out simply to be tramlines on a firm, traction-heavy surface. Open hillsides west of here are similarly austere but vehicle-friendly; here, one of the unsurfaced highways is still open to vehicles, courtesy of never having been classified as a RUPP. The less of a road something is, the more chance you’ve got of still being able to drive on it. Incompetent or dishonest,
‘We spotted a 90 bringing a group of special needs kids into the mountains for a picnic. They’d be breaking the law now, too’ his chainsaw wouldn’t start… until Joe stepped in to knock off the safety catch. After that, the tree didn’t stand a chance. Nor did Tim, obviously. Swiss Army Knife, indeed. If you ever want to invade Switzerland, just take a chainsaw. And Joe. After that, we got ourselves back on the right route. Which meant we were heading for Sarn Helen. It’s hard to explain just how special this ancient Roman Road was in the days before Blair came along to wreck it. People do still drive it today, and local chat says
tain bikers, horse riders, ramblers: we chatted and laughed with them all. Several trail riders, too, and even another chap in a 4x4 (a brand new Nissan pick-up at that). Oh, and the ramblers? Some of them even had bobble hats on. We don’t want to be judged on appearances, so don’t let’s do it ourselves. Talking of ramblers, one of the only other 4x4s we passed on the lanes that weekend was a Mountain Rescue 110 on patrol. If you’re up there on two feet (or wheels) and do yourself a mischief, you’ll be coming back down aboard
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To advertise in The Landy, call Ian Argent on 01283 553242 w w w. t h e l a n d y. c o . u k We’re on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thelandyuk Left (opposite page): On Mynydd Illtyd, a thin layer of soil covers the bedrock, so the ruts go straight down to firm ground Right: Two of the tricky bits. On top, Bob eases Steve’s hybrid down the washed out bank into the Nant Bran. Below, the steps on Sarn Helen were best driven using waffles if you had a full bodied vehicle and wanted to keep it that way Bottom: Everybody we saw, human or otherwise, was happy to share the lanes with us. Still, now they don’t have to take your choice: if the government of the day wasn’t one, it was the other. Our weekend’s laning got tougher after this, in terms of both the driving and the navigation. In fact, the combination of wet grass and steep gradients had us turning back on the lane over Coed-y-Rhiw-las: we reckoned we could have made it, but at the cost of chewing up the surface, and that’s not what any responsible laner is about. We’re not about straying off the track, either, though this turned out to be unbelievably awkward to avoid on the RUPP running south-west into Llanfihangel Nant Bran. This is a bit odd in that halfway along its length, it kinks off to the right (as we drove it) in the shape of a triangle. Problem is that the apex of the triangle, at the time at least, was as good as impossible to spot. Were we using sat-nav? Oh no, not us. Guesswork got us through, but not without a lot of trudging around on foot to try and work out where on earth we were. That led us to our last lane of the weekend, which dropped off from the road out of Llanfihangel and straight into the river Nant Bran. Yet another that’s become a ‘restricted byway’ thanks to the foulness of NERC and those behind it, this was a real test of driver and vehicle alike: the bank as we dropped into the river was heavily dug
out on one side, throwing each of us in turn into an axle twister just as we were committed to entering the water. The Disco eased through, the hybrid walked it and us, we slithered our way down on a hastily positioned waffle. Oh dear… A weekend lane trip is long enough for most people but, if you really want to explore Wales, a full week wouldn’t be excessive. Even today, when almost all the lanes we drove have been closed to 4x4s, it’s still a great place to take your Land Rover. As for us, we set off for home feeling lucky that it was Dave and Matt, not us,
who’d had to pull out at the last minute. We were blissfully unaware, too, that when NERC arrived it would come with the late double-cross that would close all these beautiful, sustainable and eminently precious public roads for good. Most green laners will tell you that it’s not like the old days anymore. And they’re right – with so many classic lanes gone, it’s not. It’s still a wonderful way to spend a weekend, though – but we’re just glad we’ve been owning Landies long enough to have enjoyed it back then too.
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HIGH TIMES
IN SEARCH OF ADVENTURE? TAKE YOUR L
ON TOP OF THE WORLD
Black Zero @ flickr.com, CC-BY-SA
Land Rovers and exotic mountain ranges go together hand in hand. There’s nothing more evocative than the sight of towering peaks on the horizon – especially when you’re viewing them from aboard the truck in which you’re going to conquer them. From all around the world, here’s 10 of the best for mountaineering adventures aboard your Landy abra del acay
Abra del Acay is a mountain pass on Ruta 40, in Northern Argentina. It’s been called the highest main road in the world – though its stone and gravel
surface means it’s 4x4-only for most of the year. RN40 may be its official name, but when it starts climbing the route becomes known as the Road to the
Clouds. At its summit, the track reaches an altitude of three miles, so oxygen starvation is a real concern, and the relentless gradient means your Land Rover will need to be pretty fit to get there too.
atlas mountains
Abra del Acay: ‘the highest main road in the world’ Daniel Peppes Gauer @ flickr.com, CC-BY-SA
It’s only a short hop on the ferry from southern Spain, but from the moment you set foot in Morocco it looks and feels like another world. The Sahara is within striking distance, but the real adventure comes when you head into the towering peaks of the High Atlas. Up here, the only traffic you’ll see on the stony mountain trails which pick their way from village to village are local farmers. It’s a popular destination
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LANDY UP IN THE WORLD
Easily accessible from Europe, the Atlas Mountains are a maze of dusty tracks you can drive in every kind of Land Rover Land Rover MENA @ flickr.com, CC-BY-SA
with European overlanders, though, so you’ll meet others along the way. Holidaymakers can pay top dollar for third-rate 4x4 trips into the foothills. But shipping your own Land Rover to Morocco is absolutely the way to do it.
FLINDERS RANGES
The Flinders is the largest mountain range in South Australia. It’s also one of the oldest in the world, with tortuously eroded sandstone escarpments that make for no end of visual drama. And the off-roading ain’t bad, either. On this score, the Flinders is home to a wonder of the human world. Yes, human. Farmers here have created trails across their land, and 4x4 drivers
In the Flinders Ranges, farmers have created trails for 4x4 drivers to enjoy. Yes, you read that right…
Above: Haydyn Bromley @ flickr.com, CC-BY-SA
Right: Lawrence Murray @ flickr.com, CC-BY-SA
can visit to explore – just book in and pick up a key from the local hotel or visitor centre, and away you go. That’s basically unbelievable if you’re used to Britain, but Oz is a place where they don’t mind sharing the land. All the more commendable, when the land is this special.
KARAKORUM
The Karakorum Highway is adventure enough in itself. It might have tarmac on it, but with heavy snow, monsoon rains and landslides all waiting to disrupt matters, the world’s highest paved national road is no place for the faint of heart. As paved road go, anyway, the Karakorum is under constant attack from the elements, with a pot-holed surface that means a Landy with tough suspension is the way to travel. And as soon as you turn off on any kind of side road, you’re on to gravel at best
– or mud, ruts and fast-moving fords. It’s one of the most evocative places a vehicle will ever take you.
HIMALAYAS
The roof of the world stretches over a huge area and crosses many borders. The Himalayas is largely blighted by travel restrictions (in Tibet, you need to follow a pre-approved route and timetable, and even then have to have a government ‘guide’ in your car at all times), but the uncluttered life of its people contrasts with the dark presence of its politicians and mountains alike. West of Tibet is Ladakh, part of Jammu and Kashmir, which is ideal for 4x4s. Here, Khardung La is often spoken of as the world’s highest drivable road – and once the snow starts falling, the highest parts of Ladakh are definitely Land Rover territory. Continued overleaf
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Above: Even by Icelandic standards, the extraordinary multi-coloured mountains of Landmannalaugar are a remarkable landscape Aurelian Coillet @ flickr.com, CC-BY-SA
Right: The Sani Pass climbs from South Africa to the mountain kingdom of Lesotho. With a border crossing at each end, in theory it’s in neither country, so while you’re driving it you don’t exist… fiverlocker @ flickr.com, CC-BY-SA
LANDMANNALAUGAR
A mountain range in the south of the Icelandic highlands, Landmannalaugar is a wonder of the natural world. It’s famous for the multi-coloured rocks that make up its jagged mountains, contrasting with the dark greys of the surrounding lava fields. And just getting there means following a track that’s recommended for 4x4s only. That doesn’t mean it’s deserted – in fact, it’s a popular tourist haunt. But not many will go on to follow the route west via Sprengisandsleid, the longest of Iceland’s highland roads. A 120-mile ribbon of loose stores that winds its way across a barren black landscape,
this provides fantastic views – or, if it’s windy, blind driving in the flying dust.
PYRENEES
If you drive a Land Rover as your everyday vehicle and want to take it on a big adventure without committing yourself to too much time away, the Pyrenees are made for you. Running almost the whole length of the border between France and Spain, they’re lush, dramatic and unspoilt – and girdled with scenic, stony trails that just beg to be explored. The mountains’ proximity to the UK makes them a better bet than ever, as do the organised tours offered by
companies whose convoy expeditions combine a scouted route with the benefits of having a ‘fixer’ in your group. Many Brits just go for it on their own, though – and with so many fantastic trails, there’s no better way to bond with your Landy.
ROCKieS
A mountain range stretching 3000 miles from Canada to Mexico is unmissable in more ways than one. Much of the area covered by the Rockies is now public park and forest land – though this being America, that doesn’t mean 4x4 drivers are automatically shot on sight.
Above: The town of Moab, in eastern Utah, actively welcomes off-roaders to visit and enjoy the slickrock trails of the southern Rockies. Among Land Rover clubs from around America, it’s a prime destination for off-road adventures Nick Taylor @ flickr.com, CC-BY-SA
Right, top: Mighty peaks, a beautiful climate and loads of dramatic stony trails you can drive all day long make the Pyrenees a top destination for British adventurers. You can set off in the morning and be there by nightfall, too Gregory Thonon @ flickr.com, CC-BY-SA
Right: These boulders next to the Rubicon Trail in the Sierra Nevada aren’t actually on the route itself. But don’t be fooled – they’re not much bigger than the ones you’ll find yourself driving over
In fact, parts of the Rockies actively welcome off-roaders. The most famous of these is the town of Moab, Utah, which is a mecca for rock-crawlers from across America. The local tourist authority even provides maps and guides to the trails, and you can hire a prepped 4x4 to explore them in. It won’t be a Land Rover, though – but a few Brits have been known to ship their own vehicles out there in the past.
SANI PASS
When you’re driving the six miles of stone and rock, tortured hairpins and sheer drop-offs that make up the Sani Pass, you don’t exist. That’s because the South African frontier is at the bottom of the pass – and it’s not until you reach the top that you enter Lesotho. Here, winter is likely to greet you with knee-deep snow. And on the pass
itself, alarming gradients mean you need to be in low first whether going up or down. It’s a sensational drive in every way.
SIERRA NEVADA
The Sierra isn’t big like the Rockies, but it’s the highest range in mainland USA. Stretching across Nevada and California, it’s home to a number of old mining trails and coach roads. Some of these are smooth, while others will tax even a heavily modified Land Rover with big suspension, lockers and body protection. Wheeler Ridge and Glacier View provide almost non-stop technical driving, but the Rubicon Trail is the undisputed guv’nor. A non-stop 12-mile rock-crawl it takes two days to cover, this is probably the most famous off-road trail in the world. For scenery alone, it’s certainly one of the best.
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Issue 6: August 2014
STOCKIST DIRECTORY
South-East England
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143-145 Main Road, Sidcup, Kent, DA14 6PB
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Unit 14, Dunton Close, West Meadows, Derby, DE21 6XB
The Old Bakery, Rear of Vale Terrace, Tredegar, Gwent, NP22 4HT
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Gumtree 4x4 “Independent Specialists in Land Rover, Range Rover, Discovery and Freelander.” Unit C17, Ditchling Common, West Sussex, BN6 8SG
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SERIES I
Land Rover Series I (1951). 2.0 engine. 38,000 miles. Solid green. A very nice, useable, fast-appreciating classic Land Rover. Front capstan winch and canvas tilt. 4-speed manual. Historic tax and MOT. Good bodywork, black vinyl interior. Very good condition but do remember it’s 55 years old! £9995, 07747 111116
North-East Scotland Caldwell and Dempster
www.dls-uk.co.uk sales@dls-uk.co.uk • 01629 822185
Liveridge British 4x4 Ltd
“An Independent Family Run Vehicle Service, Repair and MOT Garage.”
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To advertise Land Rovers for sale, call Gemma Pask on 01283 553242
LAND ROVERS FOR SALE engine. Estimated to have cost £20,000 to build. Very fast, noisy, road-legal. Tax and MOT exempt. Leighton Buzzard area. £7750 (firm), 01296 668339
Series I (1956). Petrol engine. Restored approximately six years ago, fantastic condition, any viewing welcome. £10,000, 07973 131603
Series I (1955). Completely rebuilt with a Buick 3.5 V8
10 months’ MOT. No need for road tax! £4295 ono. 07966 242402, eccure@gmail.com
SERIES II
Land Rover Series IIA (1969). 2.25 petrol. 48,389 miles. This is a beautiful marine blue Series IIA 88” soft-top. In excellent condition, fully serviced recently, newly repaired starter motor and
roll bar in the front. Recent hood, rock slider sills, toolbox trays, electric cut-out switch and DAB radio CD player. Superb condition. Tax Exempt, MOT 08/14. £6200, chris@solidairmedia.co.uk
SERIES III Series II 88” soft-top. Galv chassis. Solid and reliable after a 2009/10 rebuild. Improvements include enhanced electronic ignition, Weber carb and servo brakes. Petrol engine (no leaks). New battery, 70A alternator, Clayton heater, stainless exhaust. Seven seater with new seats and belts in the back plus a seatbelt
Series III Lightweight, 1981, RHD. 31,625 on odometer. 2.25 petrol/LPG on galvanised chassis, in MOD green and black. Ex air
support signals regiment, was FFR but converted to 12-volt by a previous owner. Five new wheels and tyres (originals also come with the vehicle). Reconditioned gearbox with complete new clutch. Two new petrol tanks. Newly Polybushed. New rear halfshafts and drive members, rear shocks, brakes all round (with new front drums) and exhaust. Canvas in good condition. All receipts for above are with the vehicle. MOT May 15, on SORN. £5000 ono. jufion@ btinternet.com
90 Defender 90 TD5 pick-up. 139,100 miles. 12,000lb winch
(cost £500, new 2 months ago from Gigglepin), Devon 4x4 winch bumper (£800), rock sliders, snorkel and diff breathers, diff guards, front and rear sump guards, bucket seats, light guards all round, dislocation cones, fully Polybushed. Cubby box, full chequer plate, rear bump guards, CD stereo with Alpine head unit and aux lead. Great truck with strong TD5 and solid chassis. Last serviced in January, MOT 04/15, tax 03/15. £6750. andydownes13@hotmail.co.uk
Defender 90 TD5, 2002. Drives exceptionally well with lots of power, great gearchange and transfer lever action. 2” Britpart Super Gaz lift kit fitted. Boost Alloys (including spare) with Hankook Dynapro MT tyres which haven’t seen much use. 30mm wheel spacers. Electric windows, remote central locking, heated seats, heated front and rear windscreen. Winch bumper with Warn winch, Kenwood CD
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Issue 6: August 2014
We’re on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thelandyuk stereo with aux input. Seats in good condition. NAS lights fitted all round. MOT 07/14 (I’ll put 12 months on if you want), tax 08/14. Great Land Rover, must be seen! £8295. joshbaker_uk@ yahoo.com
Defender 90 LXV 65th Anniversary Edition. Sept 13, 5500 miles. One of only 65 made! Black with Grey roof, special black leather bucket seats and trim with orange stitching. LXV carpet overmats and decals to side and rear. Factory side steps. Special ‘sawtooth’ wheels with off-road tyres (as standard), air-con, heated seats, heated screen, Alpine stereo with USB and Bluetooth. NAS rear step and Twisted front grille (original supplied with vehicle). NB 20% VAT has been paid on this vehicle so is included in stated price. UK supplied, so balance of warranty etc. As new. £28,500. Tel 07802 179517, dgmaclean@gmail.com
Land Rover 90 Tdi ‘Tomb Raider’. 5-spd box, PAS. An amazing Defender that would suit an enthusiast (like Lara Croft) to go seriously off-road – competition, green laning or a shooter. Fully kitted out with lift, body protection, off-road underbody protection, rock sliders, bash plates, front and rear spots. New modern Landy seats (unmarked and very comfortable). Great dashboard in super condition, CB radio, Pioneer stereo. Two seats in the rear with belts. Secure lockable gun/tool box. Alpine windows, sunroof. Proper Landy mats front and rear in excellent condition. Tow-bar and electrics; BFGoodrich Trac tyres (spare not used yet). Photos on request. All in all a fantastic, straight, honest landy, ready to go ‘anywhere’. May deliver to France, Germany, Belgium, Spain for the cost only. £6995, 01823 490 320, rogerpaul@live.co.uk
Limited edition MAN MADE Defender 90. Upgraded by The Man for Landrovers and TMD East Sussex, with over 40k worth of receipts for work carried out and professional modifications. Bespoke tuning, K&N air filter, Allisport intercooler, Hayward and Scott stainless straight-through exhaust, hybrid turbo. Recaro race seats (heated), heated door mirrors, uprated roll bars and lowered suspension. Boss wheels,
LED lights, Alpine sound system, Bluetooth, sat nav, uprated cubby box. Brand new 13,000lb winch and front bumper. Momo steering wheel, upgraded brakes. This is a stunning example and must be seen, viewing recommended as the photos don’t do it justice., It has been 100% reliable and never let me down in the snow or floods. Regrettable sale. Full service history. £20,950 tonyackerman2000@yahoo.co.uk
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Recently built 300Tdi trayback. Very high spec. Only done one event since build. Custom interior, GP winches, Mach 5s, Ashcroft shafts/CVs. Please get in touch for full specification and work done. Hundreds of pics available. Offers around £13,000. 07841 193027
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110 2.5 petrol/LPG, C-reg. 121,000 miles, currently on SORN. Solid chassis, spot lights, chequer plate, rear worklight, tubular side steps, roof rack, front fog lights. New alternator fitted Feb 2013. Engine rebuild Feb 2011 including new valves, bearings and piston rings. MOT May 2014. Please remember, this Landy is 27 years old and does have a few marks. Price reduced to £2600. cotton13@hotmail.co.uk
Utility Defender. 4 Owners, part service history. Heavy-duty winch and tipping alloy back. Rugged, reliable workhorse. Suit tree surgeon, forester or estate/ shooting requirements. Uprated throughout. Waxoyled and new bed in tipper. Secure locker box. New driver’s seat. MOT 03/15, tax 07/14. £4500. rupertcorner@ hotmail.com
Defender 110 300 Tdi twin-cab pick-up (1996). Front winch, Four new tyres, new brake pads all round. Very well maintained. Excellent runner. Five alloy
wheels. Cam belt changed at 165,000 miles. I am happy to answer any questions so please feel free to ring me. MOT 05/15, tax 09/14. £5950. digroot@ btinternet.com
Defender 110 XS Utility. Warn winch, full roof rack, steering guard, full set of Land Rover seat covers and mats, seats like new under covers. New tyres. Leather seats, heated front seats, air-conditioning, electric windows, CD stereo, traction control. MOT and tax November 2014. £15,500+VAT cwdm@ hotmail.co.uk
Discovery
tax end April 14. New heavy-duty bumpers, new Superwinch. Excellent condition. £4995 ono, call Adele on 01772 682137.
Specials Land Rover Discovery 200Tdi Auto. 174,000 miles. MOT and tax to September. New tyres, 7-seats. Number plate A12 HJP. 300-series front and headlights. In very good order. Bargain at £1475. Tel 01920 464540 or 07828 735145, john.c.pavey@ hotmail.co.uk Discovery 2.5 Td5 ES 7 seat 5dr. Great example. Top-spec, with 6-CD changer, 12-speaker sound system, twin sunroofs, front and independent rear air-conditioning, cruise control, leather
seats in excellent condition, heated front seats, 18” alloys with General Grabber AT tyres (low wear), Warn winch bumper, air suspension overhauled Sept 2013, recent services at BLRC. Spacious multi-purpose family car. MOT and tax 08/14. £4650. jennycbelfast@gmail.com
Discovery TD5. 1999. 2” lift, new Maxxis mud tyres. MOT Nov 14,
Land Rover 109” Dormobile. Genuine 1970 Factory Conversion. 200 Tdi. Series IIA gearbox with overdrive, 3.54 diffs. 6-pot engine and gearbox available by separate negotiation if needed for export. Body-off rebuild completed 2010, including repaired chassis and bulkhead, new brakes, Autosparks wiring loom, 5 new
doors, front door mirrors, all new window runners and side frames. Sympathetic paint job. Swingaway spare wheel carrier, side sun shade, repro wardrobe, kitchen. New roof window seals, all seats re-upholstered, oil pressure gauge fitted and wheelarch altered under the wardrobe for Porta-Potti storage. ‘Canvas’ is original and has a few pinholes at the top at each end, but does not let in any water. The roof vent has been replaced. Engine received new pistons rings and bearings prior to installation; returns 30-34 mpg and is happy cruising at 65 mph, though being 44 years old the vehicle is a bit noisy at speed. The vehicle is missing its table and there are signs of wear and tear inside and out; what you are buying is a rare Land Rover that has been recently rebuilt and sympathetically upgraded
to make it a comfortable home for 2 whose reliability has been proven over the last few years. No road tax, £100 per year insurance. Offers in the region of £7500. Holmfirth, West Yorkshire. 01484 682496, 07799278578, alexanderbywaters@gmail.com
Wanted Series I or II for restoration. Anything considered – rotten chassis, no engine, panels missing etc. Preferably pre-1960. I am a private buyer, not trade. Cash waiting. Steve, 07970 102651, stephen.kuzio@live.co.uk M146 HPL Defender 90 Tdi. Does anyone know if my old 90 is still alive? It was a red hard-top originally, and started out as a project vehicle in Land Rover World magazine. 07968 960619
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Issue 6: August 2014
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Records topple as Rhino Charge raises $1m-plus
Land Rovers to the fore as Kenyan off-road event raises big money for wildlife conservation Words Gemma Pask Pictures Joost Hoedjes Of the very many events around the world in which Land Rover drivers rally round to raise money for charity, surely none can have been as successful as the Rhino Charge. This annual event combines extreme off-roading with fundraising so diligent that during its 25 years, the Rhino Ark charitable trust which runs it has raised more than ten million US dollars. No, you didn’t misread that. There really is a way to take your Land Rover off-roading while simultaneously doing some real good for the planet. The Rhino Ark is dedicated to wildlife conservation – something more and more Kenyans see as being pivotal to the future of their country. Every year since 1989, somewhere in Kenya, this off-roading event like no other has been held. The rules are simple: a few days before the event, the location is announced; competitors turn up, receive a map, a compass and a GPS system, and their aim is to reach 13 different control points. The only problem is that these control points are littered sporadically across 100 square kilometres of rocky, Kenyan terrain. At their first, competitors are given the co-ordinates
To advertise in The Landy, call Ian Argent on 01283 553242 w w w. t h e l a n d y. c o . u k We’re on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thelandyuk of the other 12 and must plot a route which visits the others while covering the shortest possible distance. Oh, and they’ve only got ten hours in which to complete it. Thus the shortest distance between two control points might only be a hundred yards. But those hundred yards might be up a cliff, through a lake or over a boulder field. A team here truly is a team, because the driver is backed up by a crew of runners whose job is to find the best balance between time and distance. First, though, they have to qualify, as a maximum of 60 vehicles are allowed to take part. Qualification is based simply on the amount of sponsorship each team raises. Sponsorship for what? Founded 26 years ago by the late Ken Kuhle, Rhino Ark started out as a charity dedicated to protecting the endangered Black Rhinos in Kenya’s Aberdare National Park. Over the years, the trust has developed a commitment to all aspects of environmental conservation, driven by the motto ‘Humans in harmony with habitat and wildlife.’ The thinking behind Rhino Charge began in 1988 when Ken recruited motorsport and eco-enthusiast Rob Coombes to come up with an idea. Instead of aiming for the shortest time, he suggested, competitors could strive for the shortest distance covered, meaning planning, initiative and skill would be paramount. John Bowden, a UK trustee for Rhino Ark and founder of Gumtree 4x4, is one of a group of Brits who have become regular competitors in Kenya. Driving a V8 90 hybrid, John and his team run in the unmodified class. Gone are the days when the Chargers were all in one group, where a bobtail
Range Rovers could go up against a Ford Model A (not a joke: step forward Phil Tilley). Today, pitted against what John describes as ‘monstrous specials with portal axles’, it’s no surprise his team felt like the underdogs from the get-go. Even the section between their first two control points proved challenging, as John’s vehicle was the first to tackle it. ‘Some of this involved driving blind on a bearing as the thorns screamed and tore at the bodywork,’ says John. ‘But the runners dodging ahead felt we could go pretty well straight over a pair of hills with a minimum of winching.’ Indeed the 90, having recently been fitted with a new Red Winches Hornet XL, was winched across the last 25 metres with such ease that John’s nerves were gone in seconds. A distance of 1.995km settled them in 9th place for this section, the ideal straight line distance being 1.387km. However, disaster ensued when the following section turned out to involve a hillside laden with boulders and ditches. ‘Those ahead of us were on portal axles,’ John explains. ‘This was depressingly reinforced when we caught up with Tony Hughes and team with a broken drop box drive unit. They told us that a Spidertrax 110 had gone down before them, so this did not bode well.’ Unfortunately their worries were realised when the 90 ended up on its side. John himself ended up snagged against a boulder and the whole lot ended up being rescued by Torben Rune in his V8 110. The competition, for their part, was over. But John’s no sore loser: ‘We will be back for more next year as this is such a superb and unique event for a genuinely good cause.’
This year the team raised £15,800 for Rhino Ark, making a long-term total of about £120,000. That, in itself, counts as a victory. The overall amount of funds raised for Rhino Ark surpassed the one million KES (Kenyan Shillings) mark for the first time ever this year. The grand total was KES 102,919,334, equivalent to around £691,059. The Rhino Charge is certainly one of a kind, but if you’re looking for something a little less extreme, and in a location which doesn’t take three aeroplanes, a ferry and a canoe to reach, then look no further than the UK’s own version. Organised by none other than John Bowden, the UK Rhino
Issue 6: August 2014
Charge has been running since 1997 and is popular in its own right. It’s a gentler ride around the course, with less emphasis on extreme terrain. But the benefit to the charity remains – all funds raised still go to Rhino Ark and the ecosystem projects it supports. This year, the UK Rhino Charge will take place on 21 September at Slindon,
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near Arundel in West Sussex. It’s open to all manner of vehicles, big or small, and teams of between two and six people. If you’re interested in getting involved (or, indeed, in taking part in the big one in Kenya), pay a visit to www.rhinocharge.co.ke. Whatever the outcome, this is an off-road challenge that will really be worth taking.
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Issue 6: August 2014
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Great racing – in a family weekend to remember!
2014 Interclub Championship kicks off at Staffs and Shrops LRC’s May Day gathering
Words Steve Blakeman Pictures Tom Cash and Ian Horsman The Staffordshire and Shropshire Land Rover Club’s May Day gathering is the main event of the year for the club. Not only does it put on Tyro, RTV and CCV trials, and even a children’s bike trial, it also hosts the first round of the Interclub Championship – a comp safari series also featuring various events run by North Wales LRC, Midland Off Road Club and the All Wheel Drive Club. The championship is open to members of all MSA affiliated clubs, and runs as an annual league of six open events. It makes for a great showpiece to top off the May Day meet,
guaranteeing a weekend to remember for the whole family. Despite there having been a whole seven months between the last event of 2013 and the first of the 2014 Championship, however, many drivers were struggling to get their cars ready. I was definitely one of them. Knowing I was going to be struggling for time (and more importantly ability), I enlisted the help of none other than Kevin Stubbs (2013 Borders Hillrally winner and defending Interclub champ) to help prep my car. A couple of weeks in his workshop and the car was ready, meaning the only thing I still needed to do was pack the very scientific motorsport professional’s diet – pork pies and cake for racing hours, and beer for the evenings. With the comp being on the Monday, I had plenty of time to walk the course and attempt to look like I knew what I was doing. With this done, I was fairly confident we were good to go, and along with my navigator we finalised our ‘to me’, ‘to you’ pace notes. The course totalled around 3.5 miles and incorporated gravel tracks, woodland, fields and tarmac straights – an excellent piece of work by Clerk of Course Darryl Key which dished up something for everyone. Race day was perfect, with beautiful sunny weather. In Staffs and Shrops LRC, we race the first lap in class order to try and avoid hold ups, so the specials with independent suspension went off before the live-axled motors, bigger engines before smaller and coils before leaves. You get the idea. After the first run, Ian Roberts was leading the field in his Class 1 buggy, closely followed by Kevin Stubbs and Charlie Evans. Pete Roberts (twin to Ian) was the only other car on lap one to do a sub-nine minutes, slotting him into fourth place. Last year’s ALRC National comp winner Jeff Bazeley was leading the way in Class 2 (4000cc and over), followed by myself in second place. See, those ‘to me’, ‘to you’ pace notes really work. Neil Medlicott had a rather hot first lap, but not in terms of lap time as his motor ended up in plumes of smoke.
To advertise in The Landy, call Ian Argent on 01283 553242 w w w. t h e l a n d y. c o . u k We’re on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thelandyuk (diesels) went to Colin Davies. Last but not least, Class 6 (production vehicles) saw Neil Rogers getting his part-time 110 library around in one piece to take his class win. Unfortunately, retirements meant there were no finishers in Class 5 (leafers), and nobody entered in Class 7 (2wd).
2014 marks the second year of the Comp Safari Interclub Championship. Comprising six rounds hosted by four different clubs, it is open to competitors from any MSA-affiliated club. The Championship is headed up by Staffs and Shrops Land Rover Club, with other events by North Wales Land Rover Club, Midland Off-Road Club and the All Wheel Drive Club. There are 49 registered drivers already this year and, with five of six rounds counting towards the title, it’s not too late to enter the championship running. Registration is open right up to the next event, which is on Sunday 20 July at Little Hereford near Ludlow. In Class 3 (under 4000cc), Daniel Key was leading the way, closely followed by Steve Strutt and Graham Ponton. There were six runs to complete throughout the day, with all to count, and Kevin Stubbs and Ian Roberts were particularly on the pace. After sacrificing a six second lead on the first run, Kevin went seven seconds quicker than Ian on the second, improving on his own time by 45 seconds. Kevin then stretched his lead by a further five seconds as he continued to push the limits of the car. Over these two laps, Ian and Kevin really stretched their advantage over Charlie and Pete – already, it had become a two-car race for the overall positions. An issue for Ian on lap four saw Kevin pull out a 40-second lead. With just the two runs left, time to back off and conserve his advantage? Not likely – in true ‘Just Drive’ spirit, he stayed on it and, on his final run of the day, set a blistering 7 minute 22 second lap time – the fastest lap of the weekend, which was a fine way to clinch Round 1. Ian Roberts finished second, with Charlie Evans staying in front of Pete Roberts for third overall.
Issue 6: August 2014 As this illustrates, even with so many registered drivers there’s still plenty of room for more in the Interclub series. All events are open to non-registered drivers, too – like Dannii Cooper, to whom a special mention is due for putting in some very respectable lap times and manoeuvring a big 90
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seamlessly through the woods to take third in Class 4 on her first ever comp. On behalf of all the entrants, I would like to say a big thank you to all the organisers, timing ladies and marshals. Another triumph for Staffs and Shrops LRC – and a great start to the 2014 Interclub Championship!
Above: Steve Strutt was poised to take the win in Class 3, but Daniel Key snatched it on the last run by posting the fastest time of the event Jeff Bazeley stayed in control of Class 2, taking victory from Ian Chiles and Gary Bull in third. As for me, I ended up retiring with gearbox cooler issues. The silver lining was that this gave me the chance to watch as the day’s events unfolded – the highlight being Steve Strutt knocking down two trees in one go! Very impressive. Daniel Key took Class 3 from Steve Strutt and Blair Perman, while Class 4
Class 3, for beam-axled vehicles under 4000cc, is the big one in the Interclub series. On the opposite page, Doug Laird (main pic) and Dave Hooper were both in the mix here. Jon Aston (above) was placed below both in his sort-of P38A lookalike – but he’d have been knocking on the door of the top five had his time not been sabotaged by one bad run
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Issue 6: August 2014
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Standard Class kicks off at last as LRS cranks up
Full-bodied Discovery is first entry-level winner in new class at LRS Challenge
Words Pip Evans Pictures Pawel Frackowiak Round 3 of the LRS Challenge series returned to the Kettering area once again, this time taking to Weekley Woods. The site is just a stone’s throw from Deep Scar, venue for Round 2, so the competitors knew where to come. Instead of utilising the whole wood, organisers decided to use only the most difficult terrain the site has to offer, all of which is within quarter of a mile of the entrance. This meant that all 50 punches were concentrated in a relatively small area, enhancing the experience for spectators and meaning any breakdowns would be only a short distance from the base. The organisers, Viking 4x4 Club, have been holding a separate entrylevel championship within the LRS series in the hope of encouraging newbies to take part. With an entry fee of just £35 per event, this is individually sponsored by Damar Webbing Solutions. Sadly, up until this event, no-one came forward to give it
a go, so it was great to finally welcome the first team to come along. They were welcomed by a hearty round of applause at the drivers’ briefing. The usual initial mad scramble to the punches was slowed when competitors found a copious amount of ubiquitous red and white cordon tape, meaning acquiring the punches required much thought and technical rigging. Occasionally, there were also more easily attainable punches for the entry-level guys. There were, however, a couple of mistakes on the part of the organisers (who willingly held their hands up), with a couple of the more difficult punches not being cordoned off at all. Oh well, it’s the same for everyone… It doesn’t usually take long before the first of the day’s breakdowns manifest themselves, but Alex Wilson and winch man Allen Sharp actually managed to have a tow truck breakdown on the way to the event. Luckily, they weren’t too far from home and made it just in time to start – with a little help from Alex’s mum! Alas, they were then to suffer
from a broken diff and fuelling issues later in the day. Paul Dallyn also had early problems as his truck had to be winched off the trailer and bump started before they could get going. His first breakdown of the day, he reported, involved a mishap which blew up a winch motor. The tough winch pulls caused several problems and a number of crews were seen in the pits with their winch motors in bits, desperately trying to get them fixed. John Sales reported having a good laugh, especially when his winchman managed to get his head stuck. The mind boggles… Having run out of electricity on one of the early punches, John resorted to a jump start and subsequently had to change an alternator. His unhurried, almost leisurely approach belied the speed and efficiency of his progress. His driving abilities and the capabilities of his truck made it look easy. Richard Peter and Cameron Droney had a steady day with no breakdowns but a few cosmetic modifications to
their fairly standard Disco, and won the Damar Webbing Solutions entry-level class. More applause. There were only two competitors in Class 1. Paul Dallyn and Jack MacDonald came second, while Andrew Guest and Ian Scott took the honours with 2805 points. Andy Dunnicliffe and Craig Howard came fourth in Class 2 by just two points, beaten by third placed Matt Dilley and Ben Robinson on 4330. Tom Marrion and Craig Davis amassed 5090, but Dan Hickling and Adam Burman did even better on 5434, the highest score of the day by far. Class 3 had the most competitors and was hotly contested. Ultimately,
third place went to Duncan Smith and Mark Brock, while Alex Wilson and Allen Sharp took second. The honours, however, went to John Sales and Dan Thomas, who were surprised to find themselves in top spot after having what by their standards was such a leisurely day. Round 4 is just a few weeks away and will be held near Matlock. If you fancy giving it a go, there are spaces available – and at just £50 per event, it’s fantastic value for money. As always, many thanks to the marshals and to Derrick Johnson, proprietor of LRS Off-Road, for his continued support. For further information, visit the Viking 4x4 Club at www.viking4x4club.com.
To advertise in The Landy, call Ian Argent on 01283 553242 w w w. t h e l a n d y. c o . u k We’re on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thelandyuk
Pay-and-play combines with LANTRA pro training at new off-road centre
Founded in 2013 by Kevin Jones and Thomas Greene, Millbrook is Ireland’s latest pay and play site. Situated in Kilkea, Castledermot, County Kildare (an hour south-west of Dublin, basically), it’s open every Sunday and offers LANTRA-accredited training courses throughout the rest of the week. Founders Kevin Jones and Thomas Greene say the site was ‘born of a need to provide a unique 4x4 pay & play site for this area of Ireland.’ The terrain on offer caters for all levels of driving ability, from basic green lanes to extreme red routes. A day’s play is priced at €40.00 for a vehicle, driver and one passenger, and an intriguing extra attraction is that they’ve got a selection of off-roaders available to hire from just €10.00. Sounds like a keen bargain that. As well as pro-level tuition, Millbrook also offers activities for stag/hen and other parties, product launches, corporate days and team building. A welcome addition to the off-road options available in Ireland, especially being so close to the capital. You can find out more and get in touch with them on Facebook, at www.facebook.com/ millbrookoffroadcentre.
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To advertise in The Landy, call Ian Argent on 01283 553242 w w w. t h e l a n d y. c o . u k We’re on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thelandyuk
Cobley wins at Dukeries Rally
Seven-strong line-up in Round 3 of Defender Challenge
Round 3 of the Defender Challenge by Bowler got underway at the beginning of June with Edd Cobley and co-driver Allan Jackson taking victory in the Nottinghamshire event. In what was the 55th Dukeries Rally, the Sherwood Forest backdrop provided a great show for spectators on 7th June, as teams lined up in their Bowler-prepared Defender 90s. Starting from Southwell Racecourse, drivers and co-drivers faced 44 miles of special stages across a route through forest areas such as Watchwood, Sherwood Pines and Blidworth Woods. Morning downpours led to very slippery conditions, with all competitors acknowledging the added difficulty this posed. The weather contributed to the overall rally having a 30% DNF rate – yet all seven Defenders completed the course. Behind Cobley, the Race2Recovery team followed up their victory in the previous round with another podium finish, Quin Evans and co-driver Stephanie Boddez taking 2nd in Class. Speaking at the finish line, Edd Cobley said: ‘I had a fantastic day and, despite the conditions, felt really comfortable in the car. The surfaces were a real challenge, varying from loose tarmac to gravel to pine leaves
which feel just like ice. Allan has been brilliant and we have overtaken quite a few of the rally cars out on stage. ‘To take a second win after three stages is absolutely brilliant and above all the atmosphere and camaraderie between all the competitors is fantastic – it’s been a really enjoyable event.’ Reflecting on a strong day of racing, Quin Evans said: ‘Another great day and another great result. Stephanie has been learning to read the pace notes and we have performed really well. There really is no better way to pick up the skills and build confidence.’
Speaking at the finish line, Bowler Brand Director Jon Chester said: ‘The weather made conditions remarkably challenging today and everyone experienced the fine balance between pace and finishing. The Defenders performed exceptionally well with all seven vehicles making it to the finish line in a race where there was a very high level of attrition. ‘We look forward to the next round in July, which will be the Challenge’s first hillrally and will further test the driving and navigation skills of all the competitors.’
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