Land Rover history

It has long been said that the best inventions come from necessity, because when there is a need for something big, man’s imagination, does not know for the  border. Another confirmation of this dictum is the story of a Land Rover, the famous British factory off-road vehicles … No matter how you’ve grown to love today’s SUV models, Land Rover name has special meaning and weight in the world of vehicles with four wheels. Long tradition exactly 60 years ago, the company has taken a specific segment of the SUV market, setting its products as the ultimate choice in class. Simply, if you need a real SUV, you will buy Land Rover, and if you need a real luxurious SUV, they will buy again the Land Rover ..

Often been compared to his contemporaries and role model Willys Jeep, Land Rover is still a different philosophy of off-road vehicle. Jeep Willys has emerged as a weapon for the upcoming World War II, while the Land Rover came in the post-war conditions as the car for all conditions and help people. Jeep is his fame storming the beaches of Normandy, while Land Rover built its reputation not only saving people in the wilderness of Africa and Asia, but also snow-covered, Austria. Unfortunately, the Land Rover was not spared from participating in armed conflict, a challenge which is successfully answered, primarily due to the exceptional quality and superior abilities.

Because of this, Land Rover and now have the same role as saviors of the indispensable accompaniment of all field offices, while most of the Willys Jeep in military museums, and their roles are taken over the mighty Hummer … However, the start was not easy but the power of the vision of people from Rover still won. Although it emerged from the war victorious, Great Britain was very impoverished.

Years of warfare have nearly exhausted all reserves and deblocking of the colony is particularly hard hit economy. However, the government had high hopes for industry and exports, however, little has been able to export because all automotive plants were transferred to the production of military equipment and automobiles that were produced by then they were outdated models.

The company Rover shared the fate of all other British manufacturers and frantically trying to find a way out of the crisis. For the story of a Land Rover, are very important two leading men Rover at the time, brothers Maurice and Spencer Wilks. Spencer has already had an idea about the new model, which would use proven technology and was cheap to produce but other than imaginary conceptions, his thinking has not worked.

But the real beginning of the story, he is responsible, Maurice Wilks. In fact, Maurice Wilks owned a large farm on the island of Anglesey, off the coast of North Wales. By spending much time there, he needed a vehicle that would serve for towing and work on the farm and road transport, while still being reliable and capable of many other uses.

At one point, was purchased used and the war, Willys Jeep, but when he is tired of military vehicles began to deteriorate, in conversation with his brother, he realized that the market there is nothing that could satisfy his needs. The brothers are just so came the idea to create a universal car, capable of everything. Work on the prototype began in 1947, and by Wilks brothers, a team of engineers involved and Charles Spencer King, in charge of the chassis and Olaf Poppea, in charge of the motor.

Board Rover was interested in this idea and gave the designers the freedom of all. However, despite the freedom of the company, the team met with great difficulties in construction. The post-war Britain, steel was expensive and it was less than gold, and the only metal to which designers are able to come, is aluminum, which is used in making parts for airplanes.

Therefore, the prototype had aluminum bodywork (and much later copies), four-cylinder 1.6 liter engine with 50 hp. Although it is low power, thanks to changes in load and piston diameter, the torque was high. Also, it belonged Rover gearbox, while an interesting system was integrated facility was brand new. Namely, unlike the Jeep that had a direct transfer to either axle, Land Rover had a clutch system that allowed each axle to rotate at different speeds, which is far more useful in rough terrain. During 1948, 25 first-run vehicle is on the final test, and a copy is sent to Amsterdam Saloon cars (30 April 1948).

The crowd was very surprised by this vehicle as well as specialized printing. Thanks to great support, Land Rover was quickly put into production that would have met strong demand and big business in post-war Britain and the world. The initial popularity was such that the Land Rover in the first year of its production, exceeded twice the number produced by Rover (passenger cars), and this trend continued until the 60's! The rest, it is fair to say, the history of a successful brand and an iconic model that defined the vision and its off-road vehicle use and car racing has changed for ever.

Immediately after the first sale, Land Rover has won a glorious reputation that endures to this day. Quality and field capacity of this car have become legendary, a high level of build quality means that approximately 70% of all Land Rover and made ??up the road, the best result in the auto industry. Knowing how important this car, specialists have immediate access the development version and other engines, all of which led to today’s supply Land Rover, which consists of four cars (and still in the announcement), while the famous Defender, can be considered typical of Land Rover , both in design and in quality, usability and charm.

One of the biggest customers of Land Rover, have always been the world’s armies, and for these tasks, the factory has produced many special versions for different needs. An important moment in the history of the house came in 1970 when it introduced the first Range Rover or luxury SUV, civilized comfort, appearance and usability but undiminished, which defined the class, became enormously popular, and even stayed for over 20 years in production.

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