1949 Land Rover Series 1 80-inch

The vendor is a 40+ year veteran of the Ministry of Defence Fire Service who has been posted all over the world. Sometimes to places you’d perhaps rather not be, like Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan and sometimes to places you’d be very happy to spend more time.

One of his more attractive postings was Cyprus, but with the job being quite stressful he needed an outlet. After a failed attempt to secure a VW Camper to restore, a friend discovered several boxes of parts from a scrapyard he could buy for €4,000 and was told that it would make an early Land Rover if he put them all together. So from 2015 onwards, he did exactly that, using local specialists to help with and oversee what he was doing. He tried to keep the vehicle as original as possible, albeit with new fittings where needed.

As someone whose daily driver is a 100% original 1950s MGA, and likes to do his own spannering, he’s clearly not without mechanical ability and he did a fair bit of the rebuild work himself, but it hasn’t come for free. He’s spent around £20k, and at times it was almost as stressful as the day job, but he has emerged from the project with a completed and beautifully restored 80-inch Land Rover.

Recorded as built in April 1949, and therefore of the original 1948 model year with the 1.6-litre engine and ring-pull gearbox (more of which later), this basic Land Rover in right-hand-drive specification for export, was despatched the following month to Lyons Motors Limited of Singapore. This was the typical route for the British Army to get vehicles supplied to the Malay Regiment - which was in the midst of countering a Communist insurgency at the time.

In 1959, once finished in the Far East, the Land Rover was on its way back to the UK for disposal when the ship stopped off in Cyprus. Having just fought its own insurrection and in need of more vehicles on the island, the army offloaded the Land Rover and it continued in service.

How, why or when the Land Rover came to be in a handful of crates isn’t known, but it had sat in those boxes in a yard for around 15 years, having been bought as part of a bulk load of scrap metal. What we can be thankful for though, is that the kit of parts ended up in the hands of someone who knew what they were and what to do with them, rather than being recycled.

The completed Land Rover was shipped back to the UK in 2017 and went into storage pending the owner settling into a new home. It needed a fair bit of attention to tighten all the bolts and address the issues from the shaking it received on board the ship from Cyprus.

Surprisingly the vendor isn’t actually a Land Rover enthusiast and, since completion, he’s only driven the Land Rover 30 miles. The world needs people who sometimes enjoy a project vehicle more than owning and driving it. It gives those of us less blessed with mechanical know-how or patience the opportunity to benefit from more beautifully restored classics on our roads.

The exterior of the Land Rover is finished in Light Green (also known as Avro) and is near flawless in its execution, beautifully complemented by the galvanized exterior bracketry and fittings.

As you would expect on a 1948 model year Land Rover, the headlights are behind the grille rather than peeping through circular holes or having an inverted-T shaped grille.

The lower doors are fitted to the vehicle but the upper door sections have been left off. After commissioning them to be hand-made at considerable cost, the owner discovered that they were actually an optional extra on these vehicles and in warmer climates probably weren’t specified. However, they are there if the new owner wants to put them on and are in a literally unused condition, still bubble wrapped.

Other items not originally specified so not fitted include indicator lamps. We suppose that there was little requirement to show which direction you might be turning in the Malayan jungle. However, during the restoration the vehicle was wired up (by a former Olympus Airlines technician turned automotive sparkie) to include cabling for them.

Covering the whole cabin, front and rear, is a brand new canvas tilt, manufactured and supplied by Exmoor Trim who are a well known source of good quality original-pattern Series Land Rover parts and accessories.

The Land Rover sits on its original wheels, also painted in Light Green, which are in good order and fitted with Flamingo 750-16 tyres dating from 2009 but largely unused.

As befits a basic utility vehicle such as the first Land Rover, the interior is painted in the same Light Green paint as the outside. In fact if it’s made of aluminium, it is likely painted green too.

Like the exterior, the inside has been restored to be as original as possible, although there is an extra switch or two on the steering column mount should a new owner wish to fit indicators.

This Land Rover has an early example of the four-wheel-drive transmission, referred to as a “ring pull gearbox”. As well as the normal gearstick and high/low ratio selector stick, the early vehicles had a split ring attached to a rod that poked up out of the floor under the driver’s left foot. Pulling this allowed the freewheel system on the front axle to be locked.

The three so-called “spade back” front seats are a new addition, again supplied by Exmoor Trim, with a faithful recreation of the original vinyl coverings.

The engine bay is as fabulous looking as the exterior, maybe more so as you can feast your eyes on the beautifully rebuilt and fettled engine. The motor was overhauled by a veteran engineer in Cyprus, who was “as old as Methuselah” and remembered working on such engines when they were new. He’s done a good job, the engine runs extremely well.

One advantage of off road vehicles is the ability to get underneath to take photos and our snapper has ably captured the immaculate undersides of this Land Rover. Everything looks recently painted, held together with shiny new bolts and in pretty much pristine condition with no sign of any rust and barely any dirt. A brass Vehicle Repair Data Plate attached to the chassis shows one “BASE” repair in 1956 at workshop 3. Someone, somewhere will know exactly what this means but we understand that the vehicle did suffer a minor accident although there was no chassis or bulkhead damage.

The rear seats/loadspace of the Land Rover is, unsurprisingly, still in a great condition from the restoration, with the seat cushions still in their plastic wrappers as sent from Exmoor Trim. There is no spare wheel, but the retaining rod to hold it against the seat bulkhead is present if the new owner wants to add one. It is wrapped up to stop it banging about on the painted floor.

Having returned from Cyprus and being brought out of storage, the Land Rover was registered with the DVLA in November last year.

The car comes with a couple of fistfuls of invoices for parts and work done during the restoration as well as handwritten notes from the project and some photos on a USB stick.

Also there is a photocopy of a military vehicle log showing registration 42-ZC-48’s allocation to Malaya and subsequent transfer to Cyprus.

A certificate from the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust confirms the build details of the vehicle.

Land Rovers have never really gone out of fashion, their classless practicality and no nonsense engineering have a wide appeal. As a collectable classic vehicle though, these early Series Land Rovers have seen something of a renaissance in recent years.

Unlike the later Defender models, which fetch bigger bucks once they’ve been given an updated urban warrior makeover, the Series vehicles demand a more sympathetic treatment and a return to originality (or close to it) for optimum value.

We estimate that this 1949 model year, “lights behind the grille”, “ring pull gearbox” Land Rover will sell for between £26,000 and £36,000, but we wouldn’t be at all surprised if it went even higher - such is the love for these old workhorses and the quality of this restoration.

This is a perfect example of what to do if someone ever offers you a handful of crates for €4,000. It is rebuilt and restored to absolute perfection, and what an intriguing history.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.