1949 Land Rover Series I

• Dispatched on the 09/11/1949 to the supplying dealer North Road Garages Ltd., Grantham
• Remarkably the car has only two registered keepers and was restored for our vendor by Wandsworth
• Classically finished in Bronze Green to an exacting standard with new canvas tilt and seating
• Reconditioned gearbox, axles and transmission with new brakes, wiring loom and carburettor
• The side-valve engine has been re-bored to 2-litres. Presented to auction with its Heritage Certificate
• This early 'lights behind the grille' example is the collectors choice and few have been this well restored

In 1947, whilst holidaying at his North Wales farm, Rover's chief designer Maurice Wilks came up with a plan to produce a light agricultural utility vehicle in the style of the Willys Jeep. He would have no idea that his design would become an icon and launch a whole new industry sector. The original Land Rover was presented in Sage Green with a canvas roof and revolutionised rural transport. As an engineering marvel it can still outstrip its modern counterparts, and the Series I rightly belongs in the Motoring Hall of Fame. Hugely successful globally, dozens of improvements were made throughout the long production run. The holy grail for any Land Rover enthusiast is an early Series I, and there are a number of visual clues for an early car the most obvious of which are the lights behind the grille, no exterior door handles and a side plate engine.

Despatched on the 09/11/1949 to the supplying dealer North Road Garages in Grantham this Series 1 was sold to the first of just two owners. It has been extensively restored to a very high standard from a bare original chassis, re-built with sheradised (dry galvanised) nuts and bolts. The Wandsworth supplied body was bare metal re-sprayed in the original Deep Bronze Green with matching interior, new canvas hood and seats, reconditioned gearbox, axles and transmission, the list is exhaustive. The side valve petrol engine has been re-bored to 2-litres for more power and the car is presented to auction in very good order.