Without a doubt, the Land Rover Defender is one of the most iconic British cars. Initially named ‘Land Rover Series One’, the car was first produced by the Rover Company in 1948 as a light utility vehicle that could be used by farmers. It was only intended as a stopgap so that Rover could build their profits and return to producing luxury cars, but the Land Rover sold so well that production at the Solihull factory has remained uninterrupted for 67 years – the longest that any vehicle has been continuously produced in the world. Their success has even led to the company being given a royal warrant, and several members of the royal family have been known to drive them.
The Land Rover gained the Defender title in 1990, when the company introduced a new model and needed to give the existing car a name to distinguish between the two. Defender seemed a fitting title, given the car’s extensive use in the military and emergency services throughout the years. Sadly, due to stricter rules on emissions within the EU, the current Land Rover Defender can no longer meet the legal requirements that will take effect in 2020, and production of the iconic vehicles has ceased this week.
To mark the occasion, Jaguar Land Rover produced three limited edition models – the Autobiography, the Heritage and the Adventure. All models sold out within days of launch, and the Droitwich arm of Listers was fortunate enough to sell several examples of each model.
Much like the Land Rover Defender, Chateau Impney has a rich motoring history, so Listers brought all three models to the Chateau in recent weeks for a commemorative photo shoot ahead of their sale. It was great to provide an iconic Midlands backdrop to a fitting farewell for these iconic Midlands cars.
Find out more about the Land Rover Defender on the Listers website.
