Description
Purchased from Crook Brothers in Preston in 1994 just after the 101 had been demobbed from the Army. The 448th RHD 12v 101 made, she started life as a canvas tilted gun tractor, and saw service with the 51st Highland Regiment between 1976 and 1993. For the last 30 years the vehicle has remained in the same private ownership and has been used to provide safety cover at motorsport events. Initially remaining as a soft-top it was fitted with the Nokken timber winch (an original option on the vehicle) and an Overdrive. The Nokken winch is a powerful PTO driven winch using the rare bottom PTO on the transfer gearbox. It is an enclosed capstan style winch with integral cable drum, compete with over 180' of cable). Originally able to be routed to both front and rear of the vehicle, in its current configuration it is solely routed through the front fairlead. Subsequently the canvas tilt was replaced by a custom built hard top, based on four 109 roofs with a rear side door (from an airportable "Lightweight" landrover. The engine was upgraded to a 3. 9L V8, with thermostatic electric fans and an uprated alternator. This was subsequently converted to run dual fuel on both Petrol and LPG, with twin 90L gas tanks mounted in the rear At the time the vehicle was being used for vehicle recovery and a hydraulic spectacle lift (with removable spectacles) was added, running off an electro-hydraulic pump, and helper coils springs above the standard heavy duty leaf springs. The vehicle was then converted into a fire tender for use at motorsport events, with two 90L compressed air driven foam/ water tanks in the rear for hose delivery. The majority of the work has been carefully carried out in house, including fitting the custom built hard top in the late 1990s, and then the addition of the vehicle recovery lift and its subsequent conversion to a fire tender in 2001. She was in regular use providing safety cover in motorsport until 2009 when use dropped off, she was garaged for a few years, before more recently living outside.
The vehicle's electrical system has been upgraded with a split charge system, secondary battery and a wide range of additional circuits including scene lighting and warning lights. The blue lights will be removed (or replaced with amber domes) unless purchased by an authorised user service. There are also a range of radio antennas and power points set up to cover CB, a range of Amateur radio frequencies and motorsport safety frequencies. The radios have been removed. The pneumatic mast at the rear will be removed but is available by negotiation. There is a scene lamp (originally from a 6 wheel Range Rover TACR fire tender) fitted at the rear. Internally there is a range of storage lockers and uprated seating (from a Ford Galaxy).
This vehicle is currently registered as a fire tender, and as such has been exempt from MOT. She has been on a SORN since coming off the road. The chassis is sound, although the few steel panels on the body are showing some corrosion, particularly evident on the doors. The majority of the body is aluminium, and when the hard top was constructed the panels were insulated from the frame with neoprene tape to minimise bimetallic corrosion. The rubber fuel fuel lines have perished but when new temporary lines are applied the engine starts and runs.
There are a range of spares including two spare 6-stud wheel rims, a spare 101 gearbox (needs reconditioning, but has the integral, unique 101 bell housing), internal military storage crates, rifle clips, rear bumperettes (including winch bumperette), engine cover heater ducts, spare engine oil cooler (requires reconditioning), cracked o/ s exhaust manifold, viscous fan, new & unused pressure/ fuel/ temp gauge with capillary senders, some winch spares, extinguisher, original rear seat frame, genuine 101 spade & pickaxe
Also included are the handbooks and manuals - including the User Handbook, Parts Manual and Workshop Manual. Additionally there is a military parts manual including Nato stock codes. Also the manual for the LPG system and technical drawings for the Nokken Winch.
This vehicle is sold as off the road and in need of restoration. This is an iconic vehicle which has been modified and is genuinely unique. With loads of extras and care lavished on her over the years she has seen lots of use. Probably the most fun vehicle I have ever owned she is a real "drivers" vehicle. In this vehicle you will turn heads and have immense fun. Despite all the additions, off road performance remains, and these vehicles always performed better off road with some weight in the back which the conversion provides. Plenty of scope to convert on into a motor home. This is a reluctant sale, and her restoration is just one project too many, so it is time after 30 years for her to move on to her second civilian owner to give her a new lease of life. Over the years she has been all over the UK from the south coast of England to the north of Scotland, and out into the Hebrides. The 3. 9 V8 gives plenty of power, and the commanding steering position makes it really fun to drive (although without power steering you will know it when manoeuvring at slow speed! Over the years together we have provided recovery, medical and fire cover at hill rallies, competitive safaris, and stage rallies all over the UK, including at least one race meeting at Cadwell Park, the Southern Hill Rally in Sussex, and again on Salisbury Plain, and rallies across the north of England and Scotland. Even featured on TV on one occasion attending a vehicle and forest brush fire on the Granite City Rally. For any landrover enthusiast the 101 has a special place in history, and purchasing this vehicle was a long held dream at the time, has afforded many happy memories and I have no doubt will do the same for the next owner - as well as being a veritable talking point for many years to come!
