"Serial number 3663069
Ex Belgian army
Collector's French title
To understand the history of the birth and success of the Land Rover, we have to go back a few years, during the Second World War, where a car, on the Allied side, became a symbol of freedom, efficiency and robustness: the Willys Jeep. One of the most famous cars of the second half of the 20th century, it transported important generals as well as anonymous soldiers across ever more rugged terrain, especially in Europe, where every entry into liberated towns and villages was made with a Willys at the head of the procession. Once the war was over, the Jeeps were scattered all over the world and became a source of inspiration; one of these cars ended up in the country house of a certain Maurice Wilks, Rover's chief designer.
In the aftermath of the war, Rover was in trouble and Wilks tried to build a simple and solid 4X4 using available materials in order to keep the factories in England running; the result was presented at the Amsterdam Motor Show in 1948: the Land Rover Series 1 powered, at first, by a 1.6l engine developing 50 horsepower and derived from the Rover P3.
Due to steel shortages, the government forbade Rover to manufacture its Land body on a large scale and the brand therefore turned to aluminum from the aeronautics industry to dress its off-roaders. Although nothing remains of the Jeep, the wheelbase is identical (2m) and the Land Rover's all-wheel drive system works much the same as the American one, while remaining a permanent 4X4, which was very appealing and gave the brand an idea to promote its new car to a wider range of the population.
In the early 1950s, Land Rover distributed Series 1s to students who were going on expeditions, and the expected success was not long in coming; orders poured in from all walks of life: mainly the army, law enforcement agencies, firefighters, ambulance drivers, but also private buyers for their farms, mostly replacing the tractors that were often requisitioned during the war.
Very quickly, the Land Rover became a car at the service of the population, delivering medicines to remote countries, keeping the peace, and making roads where no other car could go. The Land Rover was exported all over the world and a study showed that at the end of the 1950s, the first car seen by a third of the world's population was a Land Rover.
The vehicle presented today is not quite a Land Rover, although it is indeed its twin.
In 1951, the Belgian Ministry of Defense issued a call for tenders for the delivery of a 4X4 with the requirement that it be assembled in Belgium. The Minerva company won the tender, manufacturing under license from Land Rover. Unlike the original Land Rover's aluminum bodies, the Minerva's is made of sheet metal.
The one we offer is in a very nice condition. Brakes, engine and timing have been recently revised. So put on your rangers, and let's go for the adventure."