Land Rover Monthly March 2017

“Mike managed the Defender Challenge team with aplomb” When my Dad was 18 he was involved in a serious motor vehicle accident which left him a quadriplegic. In the mornings before school we would help Dad get dressed and off he would go to work in his specially-adapted car. Not once did he complain about his disability. In fact he worked right up until his death at the age of 60. One of my most prized possessions is an old black-and-white photo of Dad and Prince Charles taken at the opening ceremony of the Stoke Mandeville Games, the forerunner to the Paralympic Games. Dad won a medal at those pioneering games in 1982. As I type this, I’m on a train home after attending the Royal Foundation’s first-ever Endeavour Fund…

Rebel Replicas is appealing for help after eight of its unique, hand-built working children’s Land Rovers were stolen in an audacious raid in Malvern. Owner of Rebel Replicas Steve Gardner is heartbroken that his life’s work has disappeared and he has appealed for their return. The vehicles are mini versions of Jeeps and Land Rovers made for children up to the age of 12. They have been a familiar feature of Land Rover shows for more than 20 years, often driven around mini off-road courses to demonstrate their ability. Each is designed and crafted by the hands of Mr Gardner in his workshop. He began making them for his children as a hobby and set up Rebel Replicas 27 years ago: “This is devastating,” he said. “It’s my life’s work…

NEW JLR PLANT APPROVED JAGUAR LAND Rover’s plans for a £500 million drivetrain development plant in Coventry have been given the thumbs-up by planning authorities. JLR estimates it will create 2000 jobs at the new plant, to be developed on a 60 acre site south of Whitley. The plant still faces objections from the Campaign to Protect Rural England, which has concerns about the use of green belt land. The new plant, which will replace an existing facility, will include design, engineering and vehicle testing space with vehicle test areas, vehicle preparation spaces and support functions together with associated offices. A new two-storey 17,000 sq ft visitors centre will also be built, along with a 16,000 sq ft fuel farm building and a 13,000 sq ft electricity substation. Among projects…

JLR’s graphics experts have produced a two-minute animated history of the Range Rover, with images of the iconic 4x4 morphing through its 48 years of evolution. When it was launched in 1970, Range Rover was one of the first vehicles to deliver permanent all-wheel drive while many others were still selectable. A year later, the original model was cited as ‘an exemplary work of industrial design’ when it became the first vehicle to be displayed at the world famous Louvre museum in Paris and it has been at the forefront of design and engineering innovation ever since. The four-door variant was introduced in 1981, quickly followed by the first application of an automatic transmission in 1982. In 1989 the luxury SUV was the first 4x4 to be fitted with anti-lock…

Want a bit more from your new Range Rover? Aspire Design has released a styling and performance kit which will completely transform it. Aesthetic offerings include extensive, remodelled carbon panels inside and out, with a new bumper which features LED daylight running lights. The carbon bonnet vents have been extended to follow the flow of the bonnet while lower door mouldings give the vehicle a wider, more aggressive appearance. Aspire can add custom-forged 24-inch wheels to the package. Performance upgrades include a QuickSilver exhaust system which aids gas flow, says Aspire, but chiefly gives the new Range Rover the sound of a performance car as the engine hits peak revs. If it’s additional power you’re after, Aspire has partnered with ECU remapping experts RaceChips to offer customers a performance tuning…

Les Ratcliffe, Jaguar Land Rover’s Head of Community Relations, was appointed MBE for outstanding service to the community in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List. Les became Head of Community Relations in 1998 and has made a significant, positive impact across JLR operations in the UK, as well as helping shape the company’s corporate social responsibility agenda globally. Working closely across the West Midlands, Coventry, Warwickshire and the North West with organisations such as Business in the Community (BITC), strategic partnerships and the general public, Les has developed a wide-reaching community relations programme which includes business relationships, education, employee volunteering and charitable support. Les also established JLR’s award-winning Inspiring Tomorrow’s Engineers School STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) programme, which more than 2.9 million children have participated in since 1999…