Land Rover Owner

‘Classics aren’t what they used to be’ When we were discussing which vehicles to include in the Buy a Classic feature (p42), we decided to think outside the box a little, because while most people wouldn’t argue that Series Land Rovers and Range Rovers are classics, they aren’t the only ones. Vehicles are often considered classics 20 years after they were introduced – so the Series III wasn’t a classic when I bought my first Land Rover and the Discovery hadn’t even been launched, but they are bona-fide classics now. And when you think about it, so are all of the models we have included. Four incarnations of the Discovery have followed the original, there have been three Range Rovers since the P38, including the L460 (p62), and we’re now on the third-generation…

JOHN PEARSON EDITOR-IN-CHIEF • It’s hard to believe that JP has owned his new Defender for almost a year and a half – read about what he has been up to with it in that time (p88). Does he still like it? MARK SAVILLE ASSISTANT EDITOR • Without doubt, the original Discovery is a thing of beauty. And when one is restored to factory-standard condition it certainly turns heads, as Mark finds (p70). THEO FORD-SAGERS NEWS EDITOR • Theo delves into the world of older, but desirable, Land Rovers (p42) to pick the best of the traditional, affordable and future classics you’ll love. MARTIN DOMONEY WORKSHOP EDITOR • We all know that Land Rovers suffer from breakdowns – but what can you do if you’re in the middle of nowhere? Martin can help (p104).…

This incredible Cummins-powered beast, built without compromise, delivers the performance that its bad-boy looks promise. The two massive, five-inch exhaust stacks rearing up behind the cab indicate the rich nature and sheer volume of the bass notes that this 400-series 5.9-litre, 24-valve, six-cylinder Cummins turbodiesel engine, lifted from an 18-tonne truck, can produce – it is every bit as dramatic an engine noise as you can imagine. The man behind this very carefully and skilfully constructed piece of engineering is Leigh Platts, a Land Rover artisan with many years of engineering experience behind him. How this marvellous machine came about is not just a nuts-and-bolts story but also one of long-standing friendship between Leigh and the vehicle’s owner, John Pinder. Leigh has owned various Land Rovers over the past quarter of a…

1st BENEDIKT PURNER Look closely at this breathtaking photograph and you’ll spot Benedikt’s 1999 Td5 Defender 110 perched on the Alta Via del Sale (Upper Salt Road), more than 6000ft up in the Ligurian Alps in Italy. Congratulations, Benedikt – you’re the very worthy winner of this issue’s top prize. 2nd CEM ALTINTAS Great to see an old Defender 110 pick-up still entrusted to do heavy lifting on a daily basis. And judging by the size of that trailer, its life on Cem’s farm at Ayvalik on Turkey’s Aegean coast is not an easy one. Your prize is on its way, Cem. WIN! Great gear every issue of LRO Full Stanley range is at stanley1913.com 1st PRIZE Stanley Perfect-Brew Pour Over £32.99 and the Legendary Camp Mug £29.99 2nd PRIZE Stanley Trigger Action Travel Mug 0.35l £28.99 Send pics to wolr@LRO.com. Include a description of the…

It may have been a subtle nod to the 2004’s Range Stormer concept, but showing the new Range Rover Sport in a gleaming deep red was bound to attract attention. The fact that the finish – a multi-stage paint process – isn’t actually available to buy (yet) doesn’t matter. If customers get to see it, they’ll demand it is offered to them. The Range Rover Sport has done exceptionally well and owners are loyal to the model, replacing it with another when they need a new car – and with the new model, there will be ‘wants’ as well as ‘needs’! Based on the same flexible Modular Longitudinal Architecture (MLA-Flex) platform as the Range Rover L460 (see first drive, p62) the new Sport has gained much of the kit fitted to its…

LRO Show clubs If you’re a member of a Land Rover club and fancy promoting the club at the LRO Show, it’s time to act. The show takes place on 10-11 September at the East of England Showground and applications for stand space are being taken now. See LROShow.com for more info. Grenadier retailers open for business Ineos has opened its order books for the Grenadier. The UK’s 24 retailers begin operating in June, with 10 more retail and service locations to follow. Series production is scheduled to start in July, although we’ve heard speculation that some deliveries may be delayed until September. JLR’s Russian loss Jaguar Land Rover lost £43m from January-March as a result of halting sales to Russia. JLR posted a pre-tax loss of £412m (plus the loss in…