Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2025 i Land Rover Monthly

@LAND_ROVER_MARTIN IF you’ve been enjoying the monthly instalments of my Series III rebuild on the LRM YouTube channel, The LRM Podcast or, of course, right here in Land Rover Monthly magazine, you’ll know that Land Rover Life editor, Neil Watterson, and I have been beavering away getting the Land Rover stripped down and put back together for a great year of adventures. And I’ve been loving every minute of it. Keeping the good ship LRM firing on all cylinders and heading in the right direction is no mean feat, and it’s thanks to the brilliant team of contributors, fantastic sub-editors Louise Woodhams and Brett Fraser and meticulous Art Director, Sam McMurray, that I have time to do such a big project alongside everything else. Please don’t for one minute think…

SATURDAY 11 January saw a Land Rover event of a different kind held at The Smallest Cog, the classic car restoration company owned by former Top Gear and Grand Tour presenter, Richard Hammond. Lifelong Land Rover fan and advocate, Hammond invited 25 Land Rover owners to bring their vehicles along for a drive around the picturesque town of Ross-on-Wye, to the delight of morning shoppers and bystanders, followed by an optional off-road excursion on private land on a nearby farm, then back to his Smallest Cog premises for bacon rolls and hot drinks. The owners of participating vehicles applied for tickets via the Cog’s Instagram page, and the hundreds of hopefuls were then whittled down to just 25 vehicles which represented variety across the Land Rover stable. A limited number…

HAVING stayed in Central London after a Christmas party, I awake to missed calls from my brother. Bleary-eyed, I call him back. “Where are you?” he asks. “There’s another farmers’ protest and tractors with placards are driving past my workplace. I’m gutted I can’t be there but can you go and represent us?” As we remain loyal to our Devonian roots, I sink a quick tea, scrawl a note to my host and head out into the chill morning. Huge, brightly-coloured tractors are trundling towards Whitehall from all directions, blowing air horns. It’s absolutely marvellous. I wave at a few then, seeing one without an occupant in the little jump-seat, gesticulate myself an invite. The young farmer looks a little puzzled but then smiles, shrugs, opens the door and up…

V8-engined Series Land Rovers and I go back a long way. All the way to 1992 when (for reasons too complicated to explain here) I was living in an unheated, semi-derelict house in Lincolnshire and scratching a precarious living from repairing whatever broken bits of machinery people were prepared to let me have a crack at fixing. I often went to farm clearance sales to see whether there was anything I could buy cheaply and move on at a profit, and at one such sale I came across a rather unusual Land Rover, one I had never seen up close before: a 109-inch V8. This model (often referred to as the Stage One, as it was the first stage in a plan to turn around Land Rover’s flagging fortunes in…

“It was no longer a case of just throwing in the engine for a giggle, I was going to build this thing to drift!” Eyes straining to see the muddied edges of the winding country road through the freezing fog that’s condensing on my windscreen, the eerie conditions seem to be the perfect setting for today’s freakshow of a photoshoot… Out in the sticks around south-west Bristol, I’m travelling to meet the guys from Avin The Crack, a group of car-mad friends whose crazy petrol-powered creations have earned them no small amount of notoriety in motoring circles of late. From dedicated Escort mk2 rally cars to a selection of both collectible and corroded classics, as well as wild, engine-swapped road and drift warriors – including a bonkers 4.4-litre V8 Transit…

ONE of the unique aspects of the Land Rover aftermarket is the number of different specialists for specific models, be it Defender, early Series I, military and so on. Each has their own niche and area of specialism. In this month’s article, we look at a classic Range Rover specialist, Twenty-Ten Engineering. IT’S raining heavily and the wipers of my old Ninety struggle to clear the water as I take it steadily down the A435 towards Redditch. I’m thinking back to the days of my apprenticeship at Land Rover, when Phil Holland, the founder of Twenty-Ten Engineering was a fellow apprentice. Although I’ve kept in touch with him through social media, I’ve not seen Phil for the best part of 20 years. As I pull into the yard, the vehicles…

IN ASSOCIATION WITH There’s a wedding in Tenzing Tashi Bhutia’s house. A few men get busy erecting bamboo posts for the tent where the ceremonies will unfold the following day. Two boys tug at a recalcitrant goat that refuses to join the herd inside the pen, perhaps sensing the cook at close quarters. There’s a flurry of activity in Bhutia’s home as the last of the preparations are being attended to. But Bhutia is nowhere to be seen. While ambling along the streets of Manebhanjyang the previous evening, I had bumped into Bhutia while he parked his 1954 Series I. His timeless drive looked striking despite the fading light, as I strolled over for a closer look. We got chatting and, noting my interest, Bhutia asked me to drop by…

IN ASSOCIATION WITH Forty thousand pounds; give or take a couple of quid. That’s how much I’ve spent on diesel running my 300Tdi Defender 110 since buying it 200,000 miles ago in 2002. Yeah, I know 200,000 miles over 22 years isn’t really that much, but I’ve been fortunate enough to have had other Land Rovers at my disposal and they bore the brunt of the mileage rather than this one. I’d tinkered with the idea of joining the coil-sprung Land Rover club a few years before buying this one, but decided a frugal jelly mould suited my regular driving better than an eight-year old 19J turbo-diesel Ninety. It was only when a house move reduced my annual mileage and allowed me to release some equity in the form of…

I’M a long-time fan of Land Rover Monthly magazine and attended the Malvern Spares Day in October last year, where I was able pick up some parts for my recently purchased Series III 88in. The Series III was a unique find and collection, as I’ve been looking for a Landy to restore for a while, either a Series or Defender, but hadn’t found the right one, or it just hasn’t worked out. A family friend was the one to spot the Series, when on a walk in the local area by the canal and saw it at a house, covered in brambles and greenery. My Dad and I then went for a look down the footpath by the canal and walked past the house and saw the Series III just…

IN the last instalment we dropped the engine and gearbox into the waiting Maer galvanised chassis, having fitted the springs and axles to get it rolling. Things are coming together, and now we turn our attention to fitting the tub in place permanently, and getting the bulkhead repaired and positioned correctly to ensure the doors fit and seal well, and open and close smoothly. Body alignment is one of those time-consuming, trial-and-error tasks when putting a Series or Defender together, but it’s probably the most important part to get right to achieve a good finished result. Rushing the job here can mean a Land Rover that you’re never truly happy with, as the doors will sit off-centre in the apertures and the gaps won’t be even. Extra time spent here…

THERE are many must-have modifications for those who wish to off-road competitively, whether that is straight ahead hardcore off-roading, or off-road racing. One of those modifications is hydraulic bump-stops. In basic terms they are small monotube dampers that act between the chassis and the axles. However, unlike a suspension damper, which is constantly at work as the axle moves throughout its travel, the hydraulic bump-stop comes into play only as the axle nears the limit of full movement. Hydraulic bump-stops replace the hard rubber bump-stops we commonly use on a chassis. With those, under extreme use, as the suspension reaches full compression the axle casing hits the bump-stop with a hard stop. The only flexibility on hitting the bump-stop is in the softness of the rubber itself, as the axle…

ON 13 December 2024, the EU Regulation on General Product Safety 2023/988 (GPSR) came into effect for people in the European Union and Northern Ireland. The new law will affect a lot of British businesses, in particular sole traders and those of a smaller size, requiring that all consumer products (be they new, used, repaired, or reconditioned) are safe and establishes specific obligations for businesses to ensure that safety. According to the European Commission, accidents related to unsafe products cost up to €11.5billion a year. While it means greater consumer protection by improving product recalls, addressing specific safety issues with stronger safety standards, and requiring a ‘responsible person’ as a point of contact, if you’re selling on an online marketplace (such as Amazon, eBay or Etsy) and don’t comply, your…

SECOND ROW STORAGE MOUNT KIT £65.46 Website: exmoortrim.co.uk Classic Defender 110 station wagons are great for their number of seats, but for some the space might be better used for storage. This kit works in conjunction with Exmoor Trim’s Premium Second Row seats allowing you to fit a cubby box (or other storage solution) in place of a seat. Available in left, right or centre seat configurations. SPARE WHEEL STRAP £34.99 Website: flatdoguk.com Spare wheels are surprisingly difficult to secure on a roof rack or other flat surface – you really need a Y-shaped strap, similar to those used on military Series Land Rovers; which is exactly what this is. With hooks at each end of the three durable 1.5-inch polyester webbing straps and a ratchet to tighten it, this…

I’M back in Australia following my three-week break over in the UK. I was last there five years ago so it was interesting to observe what had changed in that time. The state of the roads was a big one for me. Without wanting to bang on about potholes and the like, it certainly felt like the level of upkeep has been cut back in my absence. Perhaps not such of a problem if you drive a Land Rover, but we had an E-Class Mercedes during our stay (trust me, I tried desperately to get a Land Rover) which felt particularly vulnerable given the huge insurance excess I was saddled with. In the lead up to our trip I spent a fair bit of time scouring Facebook Marketplace for potential…

BY the time the Union Flag was raised over Port Stanley on 14 June 1982, signalling the surrender of the Argentine invasion force and the return of the Falkland Islands to British control, members of 3 Commando Brigade had spent a lot of time yomping on foot across the tough Falklands terrain. Major Michael Somerton-Rayner, originally of the Royal Artillery but later an Army Air Corps officer, concluded that the British military needed a lightweight, flexible, all-terrain, high-mobility load carrier. The soldier’s solution was the Esarco 8x8, an innovative and incredibly capable vehicle based on standard Land Rover components that was developed as a private initiative. It seemed to hold great promise. Somerton-Rayner was an interesting character. While serving with 656 Squadron, Army Air Corps, in Malaya, he famously decided…

If recent events around the world have taught us anything, it’s that we should be making memories, rather than buying keepsakes. Yet more communities in the UK have suffered from flooding, trashing their homes and destroying possessions – including vehicles. And then there were the wildfires which devastated areas of Los Angeles. Possessions can be lost and destroyed; memories can’t. Our Land Rovers are the perfect machines to help reawaken past memories, and as Shail Desai finds (p84), they can help keep history alive, reminding people of the pre-electronic age. But it’s even better to make fresh memories, as Anthony Hughes has done (p78). His Land Rover may be 66 years newer than the Series Shail wrote about, but it’s still part of the green oval clan and welcomed as…

Keep on travelling CAMEL TROPHY ADVENTURE BAGS Up to £500 used, eBay.co.uk Tested by: Brett Fraser Owned for: 35 years (ish) These two robust nylon bags – together with a gym bag-style holdall with small removable rucksacks at each end – came into my office for product review in about 1990 and I’ve been using them ever since for travels around the world. Not every piece of branded merchandise lives up to the badge on the front, but the Camel Trophy guys nailed it with the spec of this long-lived luggage. The bigger of the two bags pictured here is my fave and has been roughed around in the boots of countless cars and thrown about by airline baggage handlers on a frequent basis for more than three decades. Sure,…

IF you have ever listened to an episode of The LRM Podcast, then you may have picked up on the weekly jibe from LRM editor, Martin, about my unfinished project. I usually retaliate by mentioning the worsening noises coming from his Freelander 2’s rather worn-out turbocharger – one of these days, it’ll let go – but that’s a story he’ll inevitably be telling you in the future. Back to my issue – cue the excuses. I’ve been busy, I lost interest, I have another Land Rover… Okay, that’s enough. 2025 is upon us, and my New Year’s resolution is this project needs to advance. I owe it to the Land Rover, and myself. The Ninety will be 40-years old this year and it seems only right that it at least…

IN ASSOCIATION WITH Call for a free quote on 01480 484 803 February 2 LRM AUTOJUMBLE Three Counties Showground, Malvern, Worcestershire landrovermonthly.co.uk/information/events February 9 CCV Horsford, Norwich, Norfolk brecklandlrc.com/calendar TEA ON THE TAILGATE facebook.com/groups/ 482812497928711 TEA ON THE TAILGATE Bamburgh Castle, Northumberland facebook.com/groups/ 482812497928711 February 15 TYRO Little Baddow, Chelmsford, Essex elrc.info/events-list/ February 16 PEAK DISTRICT ADVENTURE Peak District, Derbyshire offthebeatentrack4x4.co.uk/event-dates February 22 ALEX BESCOBY – THE LAST OVERLAND: OXFORD’S TRIUMPHANT RETURN The National Motor Museum’s series of Transport Torques, Museum’s Collections Centre, Beaulieu, Hampshire nationalmotormuseum.org.uk/events/transport-torques/ February 22-23 SLROC TRIAL AND CCV TRIAL Location TBC slroc.co.uk/events/ TRACTOR WORLD SHOW Three Counties Showgroud, Malvern, Worcestershire tractorworldshow.co.uk February 23 GREENLANING Laning route TBC elrc.info/events-calendar February 24 WENSLEYDALE TRIALS Route A: Downholme to Hawes uklandroverevents.com/events.htm March 2 LRM AUTOJUMBLE Ripon Racecourse, Ripon, Yorkshire…

FROM 2007 until the end of production in 2016, the Defender was fitted with the Ford-derived Puma TDCi engine, initially in 2.4-litre form, later 2.2-litre. Also used in the Ford Transit van, the engine is generally reliable and economical, with tales of high-mileage TDCi Defenders and Transits still going strong. There are also examples of premature failures. Let’s face it, we always hear the bad stories, and all engines have their issues. Poor servicing and delayed oil changes are the main reasons for premature failure, and head gasket failure and lack of oil pressure can lead to a replacement engine being needed: expensive and depressing. I bought this 52,000-mile 2010 Defender 90 2.4 TDCi with no documentation but a good verbal service history and an assurance that it was serviced…

IT’s certainly been an interesting couple of months for JLR, and if the objective was simply to get the world talking about the company and its all-electric plans for Jaguar, you could call it a success. And if you are a believer in the old saying that ‘all publicity is good publicity’, then you could call it a spectacular success. But here in the real world there actually is such a thing as bad publicity, and JLR has been on the receiving end of a lot of it lately, and some of it has been pretty unpleasant. I’ll say nothing about the reaction to the colourful ‘Tellytubbies’ video that preceded the launch of the Jaguar Type 00 concept car at Miami Art Week. The vehicle was billed as ‘a copy…

THERE are certain vehicles that transcend their utility and become icons. The original Range Rover is one such vehicle, and this US-spec 1995 County Long Wheelbase, owned and modified by Land Rover Las Vegas, is a shining example of why. Known as ‘Camel Joe,’ it represents everything enthusiasts love about Land Rovers: colossal off-road capability, rich and romantic heritage, and a get-out-and-do-it spirit of adventure. Camel Joe began life as a 1995 County LWB model (known as the LSE in the UK and some other markets) and in 1998 was acquired by Land Rover Las Vegas. Rick Nelson, who had joined the brand nearly a decade earlier selling Land Rovers in Newport Beach, California, saw an opportunity to breathe new life into this already legendary vehicle. Alongside Ray Dinardi, the…

IN June 2013, British Airways took delivery of a small batch of Defenders to augment its existing fleet. Only one, the 90 you see here, entered service at London’s Gatwick Airport, and it would become the last British Airways Defender to serve there, finally being retired in 2024. Paul New has worked at Gatwick for 30 years, joining British Airways in November 1995 as a baggage handler, although he really wanted to work in the Aircraft Handling Unit. This required an HGV2 licence and with that under his belt, in 1997 he started as an aircraft towing and pushback tug operator. Paul is a huge Land Rover enthusiast and a keen amateur photographer, things he has in common with his late father, Michael, who worked in sales at Land Rover…

IN ASSOCIATION WITH As Purdey is destined for a classic rally, we’re very keen to preserve originality and use as many genuine secondhand parts in her build as possible, whether they come from the 110 we bought in Wales, or are sourced from other Land Rovers that are being broken. This has resulted in a diverse selection of parts that we have to bring together to make one complete, fully-functioning 110. In that respect, seeing all our parts laid out in our French workshop at the beginning of October had a distinct air of having bought several flat-pack kits from that well-known Swedish furniture brand, mixed them up, and lost all the instructions! The bulkhead and rear tub were sourced from various online selling platforms, as were the wiring looms.…

I’VE said it before, one big plus of owning a Discovery 4, apart from the enjoyment of just driving it, is that it’s a superb all-round vehicle and easily adapts to the role of the day. Late summer/early autumn is a busy time for various events that I’m involved with and the Discovery certainly comes into its own at this time of the year. But last year was also the first time the Discovery has let me down, albeit only briefly. Late August is traditionally when I book in the D4’s annual service at Maddison 4x4. As always nothing major to report on the full vehicle inspection. There was a little wear developing in a rear arm bush and maybe on one of the front arms as well. Both will…

BODY alignment, and especially realignment when rebuilding onto a new chassis, is a precision job that takes a lot of patience and perseverance to get right. It’s the sort of job we do to a vehicle once only and, if there’s the slightest error in the alignment of doors, bulkhead and body tub, we’ll always remember the bit that wasn’t quite right, and we’ll always notice it even if other people don’t. We’re talking utility trucks here, of course – classic Defenders and Series models – though accurate alignment is also important when fitting just a door or other body panel to any chassied or monocoque Land Rover or Range Rover. Even slight misalignment will leave a door that doesn’t quite latch or release as it should, and the effect…