Posted on 03/26/2008 7:45:32 PM PDT by PotatoHeadMick
It's odd as it's been owned by the Americans (Ford) for the past eight years and his comment at the end "And few of them, in the event of a prang, will be able to reach into the toolbox, draw out a spanner, and simply unscrew the afflicted piece of bodywork (which was probably pretty dented beforehand, anyway)" is a bit idiotic as I daresay any Indian would be better at fixing bent bodywork than the average Brit!
Great company. I just wish that the US’ absurd safety regulations didn’t prevent the exceptional Land Rover Defender from ever coming back to these shores. That’s a REAL SUV.
Say Ta-ta to Land Rover and Jaguar!
Imagine !
A curry powered Land Rover!
I’ve never driven a Land Rover, always wanted to.
No disrespect to Indians or Tata, but I feel their ( the Brits) pain. It was the same for me when Daimler took Chrysler.
That was part of our history, our culture, it was US!
I’ve owned several Range Rovers...have an ‘89 and an ‘03 at the moment. The ‘89 is from the British-owned era, and the ‘03 is from the Ford era (but designed during BMW’s ownership, fortunately!) BMW management ended up referring to Land Rover as The English Patient. I love ‘em though! We’ve had the ‘89 since 1991, and the ‘03 since new.
Gotta love that English funny-speak.
Had I not spent some time in Jollye Olde England, I might think the author was describing some sort of perverted sexual act.
What a great vehicle. My introduction to rallying began with one of these machines. Regardless of the terrain, whatever the speed, you just couldn’t break the things! I would take one in a heartbeat!
These things will go places that most other so called “off-road” vehicles would balk at.
“Prang” is also Air Force and test-pilot-speak.
I think it means a botched landing.
From what I’ve heard about them, they’re usually on their way to the repair shop.
Did the Indians also buy up Lucas? LOL
PRANG is the sound of bending metal. When you "prang it" it means you bend it which means you more than botched the landing. A prang can be minor damage which you walk away from with minor repairs or it can be a flaming ball of fuel and metal of which most is melted. Prangs are not good!
“Did the Indians also buy up Lucas? LOL”
THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS
Old joke: the reason Britons drink their beer warm is because they own Lucas refrigerators.
Some commentators think Tata’s ownership might be better than Ford's decidedly mixed management of the two specialist car makers. Through its ownership of Corus steel and Tetley Tea, Tata has built up a fine reputation in the art of arm's-length management.
“Barring disasters, Tata has perfected this delicate art and the brands can more than take Indian ownership,” said the KPMG Professor of Automotive Management, Peter Cooke. “Senior finance people will go in and Tata will benefit from the technical base of both companies, as well as Jaguar's hold in North America and Land Rover's global reach.”
Tata made its hands-off intentions clear earlier this month at the Geneva motor show, when chairman Ratan Tata said: “We plan to retain the image, touch and feel of these brands, and not to tinker with them in any way.”
Landrover bodies have always been made of aluminium, and don't rust. One of the reasons why so many 50-year old Land Rovers are still working the farms.
I learned to drive in a 1948 Land Rover (the first year they were made). In those early models there was no syncromesh, so you had to double declutch for every gear change. There were no exterior door handles: the doors had a curious triangular canvas flap, which you had to reach through to open the door from the inside. And to refuel you had to lift out the driver’s seat to reveal the fuel tank underneath - good incentive not to smoke! When I bought this as a student in 1964 it had already done 150000 miles. Immediately after passing my driving test I took it with a friend in a three month trip throughout Europe, including the roughest roads imaginable in Yugoslavia and Greece. No mechanical preparation before we went. Not a single mechanical problem on the road, apart from a couple of punctures.
Amazing vehicle.
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