The oldest Land Rover in New Zealand and only the 20th produced by the factory, a 1948 Series One (or simply "Land Rover" as it was called at the time), is about to embark on an 1800km journey from Dunedin to Auckland to raise funds for Manaaki Manawa – The Centre for Heart Research.
It's a worthy way for new owner Julian Paton to get his vehicle home; he's a research scientist at the University of Auckland, the director of Manaaki Manawa and clearly a Land Rover fanatic/glutton for punishment.
Paton has been working on Series One Land Rovers since he was 12 years old. He has restored seven, with five from the first year of Land Rover production in 1948.
This vehicle, chassis number R860020, has been confirmed as only the 20th Series One produced by the factory and the very first to be imported into NZ. It's one of the most original examples in the world.
The vehicle was shipped from the Land Rover factory in Solihull, Birmingham on 16 September 1948 to Wellington Motors. It was registered in NZ on 28 October 1948.
It came to New Zealand alone, as a demonstrator vehicle. It was driven up the steps of parliament to demonstrate its unique 4WD capabilities and subsequently taken on a tour of NZ. On 30 November 1948, the Otago Daily Times published a feature on the vehicle: “British Version of a Jeep”.
It spent its working life in Taihape and in 1984 was acquired by Taihape Automotive Specialists... where it remained for 30 years, until bought partially dismantled in 2014 by previous owner, Peter Marr. He took it to Dunedin for restoration.
Paton purchased the Land Rover from Marr and will start driving it home on January 31.
“I was utterly astonished at Peter’s renovation of this vehicle. He has done a magnificent job repairing the car yet maintaining her originality, including original chassis, parts and paint,” says Paton.
“The vehicle sailed through compliance in November of last year, so I’ve decided to demonstrate the reliability and enduring quality of the original Land Rovers. There was really only one way to get her to my home in Auckland, so we’re going to drive her and brave the 1800km from Dunedin."
The journey has been dubbed Drive 4 Hearts and will be tracked on the fundraising page here.
Paton has spent the past 15 years developing a natural pacemaker for heart failure, and is hoping to raise $300,000 to support the development of a new heart valve for children with rheumatic heart disease (RHD).
“Heart disease is NZ’s biggest killer,” says Paton. “Most of us know of someone suffering from cardiovascular disease such as a heart attack. NZ also has one of the worst incidences of RHD in developed countries globally – its’s a national embarrassment.
“1400 children develop RHD in NZ each year, and each are faced with multiple risky and painful operations throughout their lives. The issue they face is that the artificial valves do not grow as the heart develops causing them to leak.
Drive 4 Hearts will travel through key locations across both the South and North Islands. At each stop, Land Rover clubs, JLR retailers and members of the public can see the vehicle.
The drive is being supported by a new Defender 110 vehicle, supplied by Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) NZ.
“Julian’s Land Rover is a very special vehicle indeed," says JLR NZ CEO Steve Kenchington. "We are more than happy to support him and his important cause by providing a Defender 110 that will accompany the drive."
