LAND ROVER IN THE MILITARY

Over its history, Land Rover has been used by the military many times and still is used to this day.

The British Army used Series Land Rovers in large numbers. They still use the Defender versions at the moment. The British Army tested the 80 inch series I Land Rover almost instantly, when it was launched in 1948.

At that time, the military was more interested in developing a 4×4 solely for the use by them (the Austin Champ).

The Champ though, proved far too complex. It was unreliable and heavy in practical applications. So the army began to look at the Land Rover more closely.

In the late 40s, the Ministry of Defence was keen to standardise their vehicles. This meant that Land Rover were on their radar.

However, part of this plan was to fit Rolls Royce engines to all of its vehicles. This was tried in the Land Rover but the engine weighed the car down and produced far too much torque.

Land Rover convinced the MOD that their 1.6 litre engine would be perfectly capable for their needs and production began. The MOD started placing orders for Land Rovers in batches from late 1949.

The initial batches were for 50 vehicles but by the mid-50s, the Army was buying Land Rovers 200 vehicles at a time.

Land Rovers were deployed to the Korean War and the Suez Crisis and worked perfectly. They became the standard light military vehicle throughout the Commonwealth. And once again, Land Rover cemented their name into the history books.

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