∙2 owners over the last 24 years
∙12-Seater
∙Long Wheelbase
∙Covered just 278 miles since 2016

**Please note: Whilst the indicated mileage on this vehicle is as shown on the odometer, the vendor advises that they are unable to confirm that is is correct, and makes no assurances of it being so. There is no proof of this mileage being correct and the actual true mileage may be significantly higher**

Land Rover began production in 1948 and is the second oldest four wheel drive vehicle in automotive history after Jeeps. Originally made by Rover it wasn't until 1978 that the company Land Rover was formed. The Land Rover was designed with farm and light industrial use in mind and was constructed with a steel box-section chassis with an aluminum body.  From 1948 to 1951 the Land Rover, which is now known as the Series I, was supplied with a 1.6 litre petrol engine, producing 50 bhp. 1952 saw the engine capacity increase to a more powerful 2.0 litre unit. The successful Series I production ended in 1958 where it made way for the 

Series II. 

This was the first Land rover to be given a makeover by chief of Rover’s styling department  David Bache. They produced the familiar barrel side waistline, with 5 inch greater width to cover the series II’s wider tracks. The series II was also the first vehicle to use the well known 2.25 litre petrol engine which produced 72 Bhp. 

Although quite similar looking to the Series II, in 1961 the Series IIA was introduced, with some minor cosmetic changes and the addition of a 2.25 Litre diesel engine was added to the option list. After a hugely successful 10 year run the production for the Series IIA came to an end in 1971. The Series IIA is considered by many to be the most hardy series model constructed. It is also the classic type of Land Rover people love and recognise.

The Series III had the same body and engine options as its predecessor and is the most common Series Land Rover produced, with over 440,000 units manufactured from 1971 to 1985. In 1980 the 2.25 litre petrol and diesel engines received new main bearings to increase rigidity and the transmission and axles also were strengthened. This was the first major update to the transmission since 1960 to combat the common problem of the half shafts breaking during heavy usage.

This particular Land Rover Safari LWB was registered on 1st March 1980. Throughout its life it has seen a number of keepers who have never really kept the Land Rover for any great time until the prior owner to the seller who owned the Safari for 19 years. Over the 19 year ownership the then owner decided to carry out some restoration on the vehicle. This was started but unfortunately never finished as he was taken ill and never managed to complete his goal of restoring the Safari. 

One of the things that the previous keeper was in the middle of was the fitment of a reconditioned engine. This and a few other jobs never got completed and this is how the Safari sat for 15 years. The owner did have the intention of finishing it off once he got better, but it became a reality that wouldn't happen and so he decided to sell the Safari on to someone who would finish it.

This is when the current seller found it for sale 5 years ago. He purchased the Land Rover and started where the other owner left off. The Safari was given a coat of fresh paint inside and out,  the remainder of the jobs were finished off, it was given a fresh MOT and it was ready. 

   

Since the Land Rover had the MOT in 2016, it has covered just 278 miles. This has prompted the quite reluctant sale to fund the purchase of a new car that will be used more. 

The V5 is present and shows the Safari has had 10 keepers and the owner prior to the current seller as already mentioned for 19 years. The MOT on the Land Rover expired on 14th February 2020. It is now 40 years old so may be eligible to be MOT exempt, but this would need to be checked. 

In terms of paperwork the seller has just a few invoices that mainly show the reconditioning parts for the replacement engine.

Designed to carry an impressive 12 people, the inside of the Safari is clean and tidy. You can tell just how little use the vehicle has had by the still fresh looking paint on the floor throughout the vehicle, which is really 5 years old. 

From the driver's seat everything on the dashboard is all original. The seller reports that all the switches and gauges are working correctly with the odometer showing just 8,853. There is a piece missing from the instrument binnacle to the left hand side. As noted above, the vendor reports that he has no proof of the actual genuine mileage.

The front seats are all in good condition, it does look like the driver's base has been replaced at some point as the seat is a smooth finish with no stitching. There is a 3 inch tear to the base of the backrest on the edge which would be quite an easy repair for a trimmer. The seats to the middle of the Land Rover are all matching and again these are in good condition with no tears to them. The additional rear bench seats run parallel with the vehicle and don't look like they've seen much use over the years. 

The head lining is all in place and shows no signs of sagging, the roof vents are all in place. Just due to the age and colour of the head lining it may need a bit of a clean to bring it up. The door cards are in acceptable condition for the age. There are a few sagging parts where the vinyl has stretched or slightly come away on the edges, the driver’s lower door card is missing. That said Land Rover parts are readily available and so should not take much to sort out. 

Finished in Land Rover Limestone LRC007 this Safari as already mentioned received a respray 5 years ago to finish off the restoration. The engine bay does still retain the original same colour paint. 

To the front of the Series III is the classic Land Rover front end with the more modern headlights mounted in the wings. The lights are all chip free. On the additional spotlights, the offside one does have some corrosion to the inside of the reflector. The indicators and side lights do have some overspray on the rubber gasket. The bonnet shuts and aligns well and there are no obvious dinks or dents. The Safari roof is in good order.  The top side window rubbers are starting to split from age. 

Around to the sides and again the door gaps align as well as you would expect for a 1980 Land Rover, but the doors do require a firm hand when closing them. Helping to get inside are the drop down side steps and these all drop down and stay up when lifted. The rubber has started to perish  with age but they are still functional. The side windows slide and do have some age related scratches often found with sliding windows. The window seals have started to rust a little on the front doors, again an easy fix really. 

The rear of the Safari holds the spare wheel complete with cover to the back door which opens and closes as it should. The chassis has been painted black and fitted with a tow bar and the electrics are believed to be working. The lights are free from cracks and like the front, there is some paint on the gaskets. Still in place are the original Land rover mud flaps. The wheels have been treated to the same paint as the bodywork and have been fitted with new 4x4 road going tyres for a quieter ride. 

The Land Rover Safari is fitted with the popular 2.25 litre Diesel engine which as already mentioned is a reconditioned unit. As you know with diesels, they can just happily chug away but this one is different, you can’t really tell it's a diesel. When it’s ticking over it is so smooth you would think its a petrol engine, and even when driven, it was nice and smooth with no smoke. The seller did say although the engine has been in for 15 years it was never really run after the reconditioning, so really it's still being run in. 

Mated to a four-speed gearbox the owner comments that the Land Rover pulls through the gears just like it should. There are no untoward noises coming from the gearbox or the rest of the running gear, or suspension. Driving the Safari is like you would expect with any 1980 Land Rover, it steers and stops just as it should. 

There's always a lot of love to be had for a Land Rover and this one has a nice appeal to it being a long wheel base and also a Safari with low mileage. 

This LWB Safari would be ideal for a new owner, who likes to tinker and play with something mechanical. There are some parts that need attention like the window seals and door cards, maybe even just removing some lights to get a touch of overspray off. Mechanically it is pretty well sorted and that would just leave some snagging jobs to tackle, which to the DIY'er would be quite easy and have a big visual impact.