Words From The Wild

Welcome to the Family

The best things come to those who wait, or so they say. It’s taken some time to find the right vehicle, and even then I had to fend off a room full of other bidders, but I got there in the end. Today I would like to introduce you to 'Archie', the 101 Forward Control One Tonne Ambulance. I also want to give you a heads up that this won’t be the only new addition to the family!

But first, I must ask for forgiveness. The evening I planned to take it out for some external shots, I pulled the choke out…and snapped the cable! So you’ll have to wait until the next issue for the 'in its natural habitat' pics.

A (very brief) history of the 101

Being a history nerd, it has been very difficult to keep this brief, so I’ve included some references at the end for anyone who would like further information. Should you wish to chat at length about military Land Rovers, feel free to join me around a campfire sometime. Bring a good Scotch!

Archie was first registered as a civilian vehicle in 1998, and is recorded as being produced in 1982, the year of the first operational deployment of the 101 as part of the Falklands Task Force, but the 101 production run was only operational between 1972 and 1978.

Unsurprisingly, it was intended only for military use, and was not originally available for the civilian market. The 101 was developed to fulfil the British Army’s requirement for a light utility vehicle that could tow a 4000lb artillery weapon over rough terrain at speed, something the 109 GS, which had towed the soon to be decommissioned 105mm Pack Howitzer field guns, was not up to. The 105mm Light Guns were 340kg heavier, and so a new vehicle was required.

Only 2660 101s were ever made, most became gun tractors, and towed 105mm Light Guns and later, in Saudi Arabia, the Rapier Missile as British Troops prepared to support the recapture of Kuwait in Operation GRANBY in 1991.

Some served with NATO forces in West Germany until 1990, with the Royal Marines in Northern Iraq tasked with protecting

the Kurds, with UN Peacekeeping Forces in Cyprus, UN Protection forces in Yugoslavia, and in Croatia and Bosnia in the early to mid-1990s.

It is believed that 450 became ambulances with bodywork built by Marshalls of Cambridge. The original plan was to convert 519. Of the 69 others, some became signals vehicles (often referred to as Radio Bodies), Challengers - sporting an hydraulic crane with a one-tonne capacity, some were used as recovery vehicles, repair workshops, and carrier vehicles for everything from field artillery survey equipment to live ammunition and troops. One was even armoured, but was returned to standard and no further examples followed. By the late 1990s, the MOD decommissioned the fleet, and most of the remaining vehicles that had survived their service, eventually ended up in civilian hands. This makes the 101 ambulance a very rare vehicle indeed.

Even at the beginning of their lives, they quickly became notable for their abilities in demanding terrain. In 1975 the 101 made history when four vehicles and eight men successfully completed the first lateral crossing of the Sahara from the Atlantic to the Red Sea through the Mauritania-Mali “Empty Quarter.” The epic Joint Services East Sahara Expedition of 7,494 miles took place between 25th January and 3rd May 1975 and has been well documented by Tom Shepard in The Geographical Journal, part 2, volume 142, July 1976, should anyone wish to read the full details. I highly recommend that you do.

Further information on all things 101 can be found in James Taylor’s book, Land Rover Military One-Tonne, Crowood Press, 2015.

The Technical Stuff

Are they as big as most people think? Well yes, but also no. The wheelbase of 101in is similar to a Discovery 2 (100in), closer to a Freelander 1 actually (100.79in). It’s shorter than my Range Rover L322 by over half a meter, and the General Service model weighs half a ton less, but the ambulance just out-weighs the L322 at 2.8 tonnes. It may be shorter, but at 2.5m tall, and 2.35m wide, it dwarfs Ralph when sat next to it on the drive.

While it is “compact” considering its capabilities, its size carefully planned to fit inside the belly of a cargo plane, interior space is maximised and overhangs are minimised by the severe brick-like shape and over cab design. Even in the ambulance version, there is nothing extraneous, bare essentials are all you’re going to get, and don’t expect much space in the driver’s seat, even at 5’10” it’s a squeeze!

Boasting the 3.5l Rover V8 which returns 128bhp and 185 lb ft of torque, and the LT95 4-speed gearbox with synchromesh on all forward and reverse gears, it sounds fantastic, but isn’t going to win any awards for speed or economy. What it will do is what it is designed to do, which is to get you and your gear pretty much anywhere you want to go.

While the 101 was being developed, the ex-Buick 3.5 V8 had recently entered production for the Land Rover 100-inch Station Wagon, which later became the Range Rover, and this application called for the development of a new gearbox and transfer box.

In 1968 the developed setup was used in 101 prototypes without success. Steep prop shaft angles caused failures, and even with corrections to this day cause them to eat UJs, but with some fettling which included shortening the bellhousing and first motion shaft, the new powertrain was eventually designed and a small production run began in 1972; the majority were built between 1975 and 1977. All models were permanent four wheel drive, with a two speed transfer box, and locking centre diff.

The name One Tonne was coined due to its original load capacity. Originally designed to carry one tonne loads. Towing capacity is two tonnes.

My plans

Archie is a completely unmolested and very well looked after example of a 101. Being a huge fan of classic and ex-military vehicles, I am somewhat loathed to change this! But, if it wasn’t for vehicles being given an afterlife through practical modern day conversions, many would have inevitably fallen into disrepair through lack of use. Sometimes we have to compromise to keep history alive.

The body has fantastic camper potential. The walls are 3in thick and fully insulated, it already has an Eberspacher heater installed, there are various internal lights, and even a dimmer switch! The windows in the body are double glazed, heavily tinted, and all fitted with sliding covers, including those between the body and the cab, and there’s a roof hatch which is great for looking at the stars on a warm dry night, it is crying out for a roof window.

While access to the back is through the considerable rear doors, which give a fantastic view from the inside, and up two very sturdy (and heavy!) fold down steps, neither are the most practical solution when it comes to camping. This is something I will need to address. Outwardly, I’d like to change as little as possible, but practicalities are just as important to a camper as they were when the vehicle was first designed for a very different purpose.

Other external changes planned include a solar panel on the roof and a custom pop top roof. Internally, there will be considerable change, but any original features will be removed with care and stored just in case anyone is overly concerned!

One major change will be an LPG conversion, both for fuel and to run an internal and external cooker. MPG is appalling as you would expect, and I could do what many have done and swap the original V8 for a Tdi, but I really don’t want to do that.

The very first thing I’m going to do is throw a temporary bed setup and some camping gear in the back and head for Scotland. During my trip of unknown length, I will think more about the design ideas I have concocted in my head. This is something I suggest anyone thinking about any sort of camper conversion does before they install anything permanent. You will inevitably need less than you imagine, and also often require several things you hadn’t thought about. I may have converted several Land Rovers over the years and lived in them comfortably for considerable periods of time, but this is rather different to the internal space of a typical Landy. In fact, there is very little that is typical about it. The last thing I want to do is something that I wish I’d done differently!

My general idea is a sympathetic conversion, something in keeping with its age and military ambulance heritage, but with all the mods cons hidden away discreetly.

When you step inside, I want it to look respectful of its time and original function rather than like someone has spewed Ikea into the back of a classic vehicle with an important heritage.

I feel very privileged to own this vehicle, not many survive, and therefore I want to do it justice.

Of course it needs to be practical and functional too, and this will require some custom fabrication, upcycling of period finds, and a considerable amount of thought, but that is all part of the fun! Just don’t expect a quick build, but I can promise you that the end result will be unique.

That’s all from me this month folks! Join me next time when I will have more news, and hope to have bought Archie a little green friend. Drive safe. Lauren, Celyn, and Archie x