Land Rover Monthly June 2019

WE’VE SO enjoyed compiling this issue for you. It’s packed with a little something for everyone. I’ve known Land Rover mechanic (and our cover star) Pete Long for years now. He is the kind of guy you can phone at 10.00 pm with a Land Rover problem and 30 minutes later he will rock up at your place with his toolbox to help. Provided he answers the initial call, of course... His 110 is an impressive labour of love that took him a few years to get it exactly the way he wanted it. While the those at Twisted might declare it needs a paint job, bigger engine and some Recaro bucket seats, we absolutely love it. It’s a working man’s truck and Pete has not broken the bank to…

JAGUAR LAND Rover has lost a trademark dispute in a High Court battle with North Yorkshire Defender customisation specialist Twisted Automotive. JLR contested that Twisted was “passing off” itself as being in some way connected with Land Rover, by using the LR Motors name for a business buying, modifying and selling secondhand Defenders. Twisted counter-claimed that it had registered the LR Motors name in 2015 because Jaguar Land Rover had never used ‘LR’ as a trading name or trademark. After throwing out the legal action lodged by the car manufacturer, the judge leading the case, Mrs Justice Rose, said: “I agree with submissions on behalf of Twisted that the underlying assumption on which Jaguar’s challenge rests, namely that everyone realises that the initials ‘LR’ in ‘LR Motors’ refer to Land…

JAGUAR LAND Rover is developing an innovative recycling initiative to transform the vehicles of today into the cars of tomorrow. Called the REALITY Project, the process is currently being tested on early, pre-production Jaguar I-PACE prototypes which have had their batteries safely removed. While the batteries enter into their own second-life process which Jaguar Land Rover is developing, the scrap from the vehicles is sorted into various materials using high-tech sensors by Axion and, once separated, the aluminium scrap is melted and reformed to build next-generation products. The recycled aluminium is currently being put through its paces by Brunel University scientists, who have conducted strength tests and graded its purity to ensure it meets the required mechanical standards to be used in body panels right across the Jaguar and Land…

YES, YOU read that right. Your future Land Rover or Range Rover could help to stop the spread of bacteria and harmful viruses, according to JLR. By integrating ultraviolet light technology (UV-C) borrowed from the medical industry, where it has been used for more than 70 years, JLR believes it could help to stop pathogens from surviving in the cabin. UV-C is currently used for disinfecting water, filtering air and sterilising surfaces by utilising wavelengths of light between 200 - 280 nanometres. Exposing pathogens to UV-C within the air conditioning system breaks down the molecular structure of the DNA, neutralising them. Clean air is then released into the cabin. The technology could even help in the fight against drug-resistant superbugs. The manufacturer is piloting a wide range of driver and…

LAND ROVER has handed over the first of a new fleet of Discovery vehicles to Highways England. Each of the 70 SE 3.0 Sd6 models have been specially modified for the needs of traffic officers, including a roof-mounted light array, programmable rear LED board, iconic Battenburg livery and a cavernous reinforced load area. Traffic officers have to carry over 600 kg of equipment, including lights, traffic cones and safety barriers, and have to tow stranded vehicles, and the Discovery’s 3500 kg maximum towing weight and 516 lb-ft of torque is perfect for the job. The fleet will be in service with Highways England for roughly four years, with each expected to cover around 250,000 miles on England’s motorways and major A-roads. The Highways England Land Rover Discovery partnership was born…

LAND ROVER has been engineering vehicles capable of tackling the toughest terrain around the world for more than 70 years, and now it is working with the Mobile Malaria Project, winners of the 2018 Land Rover Bursary in partnership with the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), as it heads to sub-Saharan Africa to embark on a unique eight-week journey. Made up of three Oxford University researchers, led by Dr George Busby, the Mobile Malaria Project will travel more than 6300 km across Namibia, Zambia, Tanzania and Kenya. Driving a specially-modified Discovery, they will investigate the challenges facing those on the front line of malaria control in Africa – where 90 per cent of the world’s cases occur. Designed and developed by Land Rover Special Vehicle Operations, the Discovery is equipped…