Sept 4:The Land Rover project first fully explained to the Rover Car Company Board of Directors. The project was approved for full production (before the prototype was made)
Oct 15: First photos of finished prototype (80")
Oct 16: The name "Land Rover" was approved by Board of Directors
1948
Apr 20: The Times first publicly reports the Land Rover
Apr 30: Land Rover shown to public at Amsterdam Car show. The vehicle is equipped with permanent four-wheel drive, a canvas roof and optional doors. Doors become standard within months.
1949
First Land Rovers sold into USA and Canada (via Roots Motors, Inc.)
1950
A metal hardtop is offered as an alternative to the canvas roof.
Tickford Stationwagon production starts
April. First show of Land Rover in USA at British Automobile and Motorcycle show
1953
Autumn. Wheelbase lengthened from 80" to 86"
1954
The first 107-inch, long-wheelbase model is introduced.
Autumn. 100,000th Land Rover built
1956
Both short- and long-wheelbase Land Rovers gain two inches to become 88-inch and 109-inch models, respectively.
Autumn. 107" introduced to USA
Land Rover reaches agreement with Metalurgica de Santa Ana, S.A. They build Santana Land Rovers, production reaching 18,000 by 1980.
1957
The first diesel-powered Land Rover is produced.
1958
March. Series II introduced
Land Rover ends relationship with Roots Motors, Inc and established a presence in North America as Rover Motor Company of North America, headquartered in Toronto, Canada
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1959
November. 250,000th Land Rover built
1960
US Land Rover HQ moves to New York, NY
1961
September. Series IIA announced
1962
12 Seat 109 announced for home market (to avoid a tax)
September. 109" Forward Control announced.
1966
April. 500,000th Land Rover built
September. NADA (North American Dollar Area) 109" announced. Rover is first non-US manufacturer to introduce emissions controlled vehicles into USA
1967
June/July. Range Rover prototype #1 built
Rover Motor Company merges with Leyland. Leyland becomes dominant
1968
Leyland merges with British Motor Holdings (owned Jaguar and BMC to form British Leyland Motor Corporation
The Series IIA's headlamps are moved from the radiator grille to the front wings to meet the new lighting regulations of several export territories.
1970
June. Range Rover first appears in public (2 door) The vehicle is equipped with permanent four-wheel drive, a V8 engine, solid axles and coil springs.
1971
June. 750,000th Land Rover built
September. SIII announced
October. SIII launched October with a synchromesh gearbox, a new radiator grille and an all-new interior.
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1974
British Leyland abandons North American Market for Land Rover
4th Quarter: British Leyland nationalized
1975
British Leyland Motor Company changes its name to British Leyland, Ltd.
1976
June. 1,000,000th Land Rover produced
1978
Land Rover, Ltd is formed, with plans to double production by the 1980s.
1979
February. Land Rover V8 (stage 1) announced
1980
British Leyland collapses in North America
1981
4 door Range Rover introduced
1982
The Land Rover Series III County station wagon becomes available, featuring a more refined interior.
1983
March: Land Rover 110 Announced at Geneva Motor Show
The Land Rover 110 with a new coil-spring suspension, five-speed gearbox, one-piece windscreen and power steering is launched.
4th quarter: 127" (also called 130) Crew Cab made available
1984
June: Land Rover 90 (92.9") launched
1985
Land Rover vehicles are being sold in 120 countries.
1987
16 March. NAS Range Rover launched in USA
26 October. Official opening of Range Rover of North America HQ in Maryland.
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1988
Land Rover is bestowed with its fourth Royal Warrant by HRH Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, joining warrants from HM Queen Elizabeth II; HM Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother; and HRH Prince Charles, Prince of Wales. Land Rover is the only vehicle manufacturer to possess all four Royal Warrants.
British Areospace buys Rover Group from British Government for £150,000,000.
1989
Land Rover Canada established
Honda buys 20% stake in Rover
1st half. Production of Discoveries (3 door) starts
September. Discovery introduced at Frankfurt Auto Show, the first all-new Land Rover in 19 years 2.5L 200 TDi (diesel) introduced, exclusively on Discovery
1990
Land Rover model name changed to Defender 200 TDi fitted to Defenders
June. Land Rover sells its 23% share of Land Rover Santana
Autumn. 5 Door Discovery announced.
1991
5 Door Discovery introduced to Europe
1992
1st August. Range Rover of North America changes its name to Land Rover of North America
500 limited-production run of Defender 110's to the USA, 25 to Canada, fitted with a 3.9 litre V8 engine goes on sale.
High Capacity Pick-up announced
Autumn. 108" Range Rover introduced
1993
200 TDi fitted to Range Rovers
Range Rover County LWB (long wheelbase) with its revolutionary Electronic Air Suspension (EAS) system, is introduced.
4th Quarter: Defender 90s first sold in US ('94 models)
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1994
11 January. Last 2 door Range Rover built
31 January. Announcement of BMW buying the Rover Group ( which includes Land Rover) from British Areospace for £800,000,000
Discovery launched in Canada
March.
Launch of Discovery (5 door) in USA
200 TDi production ceases.
An all-new Range Rover is introduced at the Paris Motor Show. It is the first clean-sheet redesign of the legendary Range Rover in the vehicle's 25-year history. Range Rover County Classic is introduced to continue the original vehicle's time-honoured design.
1995
2.5L 300 TDi introduced
February. Last Range Rover Classic built.
March Range Rover 4.0 SE is introduced in U.S.
September Range Rover 4.6 HSE is introduced in the U.S.
The 4.0 litre Discovery and the two-door hardtop Defender 90 join the U.S. line-up.
December. Defender imports cease in the United States.
Land Rover's annual production tops 100,000 units for the first time.
1996
The first-ever automatic-transmission Defender 90 becomes available.
The Freelander, aka CB40, a new Land Rover model is revealed.
1997
One final year of Defender imports to the United States starts.
Land Rover launches Freelander, an all-new four-wheel-drive range, at the Frankfurt Motor Show. It is available in the U.K. late in the year in two- and four-door models. Freelander is the first production vehicle ever to offer Hill Descent Control (HDC), a system that helps to maintain optimum vehicle speed and driver control while the vehicle is descending steep, slippery slopes.
1998
In a feat billed as the "The World's Longest Test," two new Land Rover Discovery Series IIs set off from the Land Rover assembly site in Solihull, England, en route to the Paris for the 1998 Paris Motor Show. They take the long way: a trip around the world. Having completed a nearly 18,000-mile shakedown, Discovery Series II is launched with much fanfare on September 29 at the Paris Motor Show. The first complete re-engineering of Discovery, the all-new Discovery Series II features Land Rover's exclusive Hill Descent Control (HDC) and Active Cornering Enhancement (ACE), a first for volume-production sport-utility vehicles. ACE measures and actively minimizes the vehicle's body lean during cornering.
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1999
January Discovery Series II introduced to USA
Land Rover North America sets an all-time sales record, reaching 29,380 vehicles, a 37 percent increase over calendar year 1998.
2000
May. At a gathering on the grounds of the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust, Land Rover executives and more than a thousand faithful enthusiasts meet to celebrate Range Rover's 30th anniversary. Range Rover was launched at the Earl's Court Motor Show on June 17, 1970 and has been a critically acclaimed success ever since. As of June 2000, thirty years since the introduction, more than 425,000 Range Rovers have been produced. Land Rover produces 400, special-edition 30th Anniversary Range Rovers to mark the occasion.
June The Ford Motor Company purchases Land Rover Group Limited, a newly created company separate from Rover Group, from BMW AG for $2.7 billion (3 billion Euros.) The transaction is completed on June 30, 2000. Robert A. Dover is named Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Land Rover Group, Ltd.