The Land Rover Series I, II, and III are off-road vehicles produced by the British manufacturer Land Rover that were inspired by the U.S. built Willys Jeep of which it also originally shared many parts. Land Rover say that 70% of these vehicles ever made are still in use today.
Series I
Land Rover entered production in 1948 with what was later termed the Series I. This was launched at the Amsterdam Motor Show. It was originally designed for farm and light industrial use, and had a steel box-section chassis, and an aluminum body.
Originally based on the US Army Jeep the Land Rover was a single model offering, which from 1948 until 1951 used an 80 in (2032 mm) wheelbase and a 1.6-litre petrol engine producing around 50 bhp (37 kW/51 PS). The 4-speed gearbox from, the Rover P3 was used, with a new 2-speed transfer box. This incorporated an unusual 4-wheel drive system, with a freewheel unit (as used on several Rover cars of the time). This disengaged the front axle from the transmission on the overrun, allowing a form of permanent 4WD. A ring-pull mechanism in the driver's footwell allowed the freewheel to be locked to provide more traditional 4WD. This was a basic vehicle, tops for the doors and a roof (canvas or metal) were optional extras. In 1950, the lights moved from a position behind the grille to protruding through the grille.
Series II
The successor to the successful Series I was the Series II, which saw a production run from 1958 to 1961. It came in 88 in (2235 mm) and 109 in (2769 mm) wheelbases (normally referred to as the 'SWB' and 'LWB'). This was the first Land Rover to adopt a relatively modern shape, and used the well-known 2.25-litre petrol engine, although early short wheelbase (SWB) models retained the 2.0-litre petrol engine from the Series I for the first 1500 or so vehicles. This larger petrol engine produced 72 hp (54 kW) and was closely related to the 2.0-litre diesel unit still in use. This engine became the standard Land Rover unit until the mid-1980s when diesel engines became more popular.
Series IIA
The SII and the SIIA are very difficult to distinguish. There were some minor cosmetic changes, but the most significant change was under the bonnet in the guise of the new 2.25-litre Diesel engine. Body configurations available from the factory ranged from short wheelbase soft top to the top of the line five-door Station Wagon. Also the 2.6-litre straight six petrol engine was introduced for use in the long wheelbase models in 1967, the larger engine complemented by standard-fit servo-assisted brakes
Series III
The Series III had the same body and engine options as the preceding IIa, including station wagons and 1 Ton versions. Little changed cosmetically from the IIA to the Series III. The Series III is the most common Series vehicle, with 440,000 of the type built from 1971 to 1985.
The Land Rover Defender is a British four wheel drive Off-road utility vehicle. It is the product of continued development of the original utility Land Rover Series I launched in 1948. Using the basic yet robust underpinnings of a ladder frame chassis and aluminium body.
Land Rover Ninety & One Ten
Production of the model now known as the Defender began in 1983 as the Land Rover One Ten, a simple name which reflected the 110 inch (2.794 m) length of the wheelbase. The Land Rover Ninety, with 93 inch (2.362 m) wheelbase, and Land Rover 127, with 127 in (3.226 m) wheelbase, soon followed.
The Defender in the USA
In 1993 Land Rover launched the Defender in the North American (i.e. the United States and Canada) market. Although the Range Rover had been sold there since 1987, this was the first time utility Land Rovers had been sold since 1974. To comply with the strict United States Department of Transportation regulations, ranging from crash safety to lighting, as well as the very different requirements of American buyers, the North American Specification (NAS) Defenders were extensively modified. The initial export batch was 525 Defender 110 County Station Wagons. 500 to the United States and 25 to Canada. They were fitted with the 3.9-litre V8 petrol engine and 5-speed manual transmission. All the vehicles were white,except one, Ralph Lauren had his specially painted black. They sported full external roll-cages and larger side-indicator and tail-lights. All were equipped with the factory-fitted air conditioning system.
|
