Disclosure: This site may receive compensation when you click on some links and make purchases.

Daily Driven: 1956 Land Rover Series 1

The seller doesn’t know much about the history of this 1956 Land Rover, but has confirmed it was at one point sold to a junkyard before emerging with a new owner in Nevada. That’s a story that warms my heart, as my 190E 2.3-16 Cosworth resurrection has the same backstory and will hopefully be as cheerful as this rig enjoying a second chance at life. Find it here on eBay with bidding over $10K and no reserve. 

I know we hate the word patina around here, but the weathered exterior finish is hard to beat. The seller makes a valid point that on old Rovers, it’s hard to find one stateside in this kind of authentic condition. Many of them have been over-restored, and hopefully, this one never will be. The seller notes he uses it as a daily driver, which is impressive by itself, not to mention performing the maintenance to make it reliable enough to use in that fashion.

The interior features some darn comfy-looking leather seats (and a pillow) and full-weather gear is included to keep it all dry when the storms come. Four-wheel-drive still engages, and the seller notes that the truck features the “…correct carb and ignition, air intake, fuel delivery systems, all exactly how it should be.” My favorite feature of the interior is the folding windscreen, which is a must-have for a vintage 4×4 like this.

The seller notes the motor has been gone through recently, but doesn’t detail what that included. There’s no rot of any kind and the frame is solid. Some work still needs to be done, including “…replacing the speedo cable, repair to fuel level gauge, and it could use a front spring.” Minor quibbles on a rig this cool, especially one without a reserve in sight.

Comments

  1. Avatar 86 Vette Convertible

    Now that’s got character. Hope it stays basically as it is.

    Like 5
  2. Avatar Kenneth Carney

    Used to see these every Sunday evening
    on Wild Kingdom! Oh Marlin, your ride
    is waiting! All kinds of cool, I like it a lot!

    Like 4
    • Avatar Francisco

      Marlin laid back in the Rover while Jim fought the anaconda.

      Like 9
  3. Avatar wuzjeepnowsaab

    Daily driven…to fight sand worms.

    That Rover looks like it could tell some stories

    Like 3
  4. Avatar leiniedude Member

    Well with the Hollyweed location, maybe some Yuppie actor will buy it for this kind of coin. Cool rig for sure. I agree with wuzjeepnowsaab on the sand worms.

    Like 1
  5. Avatar GearHead Engineer

    I still want one of these. I could see myself rolling around in this one. But not as a daily driver. If I lived close enough to work, school, etc to drive this daily I would just ride my bicycle. These things aren’t exactly comfortable or fast but fun for short distances.

    – John

    Like 1
  6. Avatar waynard

    How much fun is this: matching throw pillows, a fold down windshield / table perfect for a picnic-ing on Rodeo Drive and enuff chains to make a serious bondage movie! WANT!

    Like 0
  7. Avatar Lawrence

    That’s the same one from The Gods must be crazy

    Like 0
  8. Avatar Mark S.

    The body is nice and straight. I think it would look cooler with a couple dents from an angry rhinoceros in it. Maybe painted in zebra stripes.

    Like 0
  9. Avatar Craig Walker

    If you painted zebra stripes on a rhino you Def get some dents

    Like 2
  10. Avatar TBAU Member

    We had a “ pick up” version of this as our family car when I was a kid and my two older brothers rode in the back ( in all Australian weather ). I remember the dash layout and coloured gear levers so well probably because I was too small to see out of the windshield.

    Like 2
  11. Avatar Doug Brown

    Sold?

    Like 0
  12. Avatar David Brower

    I’m happy to report that she has found a new home…. Finished out the last bit of upgrades to include springs, shocks, muffler, fuel gauge etc. we pulled out of No Hollywood on a recent Thursday evening, across Tecate border Friday am and just beyond Todos Santos BCS Saturday evening at sunset, she ran beautifully! Baja is her new home…. Couldn’t be more excited

    Like 2

Leave a Reply to Doug Brown Cancel reply

RULES: No profanity, politics, or personal attacks.

Become a member to add images to your comments.

*

Get new comment updates via email. Or subscribe without commenting.