Land Rover celebrates 60th Birthday

Land Rover is one of the iconic British brands. For over 60 years the all-terrain multipurpose vehicle has carried drivers all over the world - even taking the country's soldiers into battle in combat zones across the globe.

The robust lines of the original Defender model are instantly recognisable to generations of Britons, both rural and urban, and the vehicle is the centre of a cultish following.

But the last few years have not been kind to the company.

Land Rover is up for sale again. After moving through a succession of hands in recent years, including British Leyland, British Aerospace and BMW, the company has fallen into the hands of American manufacturer Ford.

The company still isn't making money, however, and the downturn in the American domestic market has made Ford revaluate it position - putting Land Rover, Jaguar and Aston Martin on the market.

An Indian company, Tata Motors, looks set to acquire the unique marquee, but this is likely to prove to be just one more chapter in the brand's unpredictable history.

Debuting at the Amsterdam motor show in 1948, the Land Rover had begun life a year earlier when it was sketched onto a sandy beech by chief designer Maurice Wilks.

Chief designer at Rover, Wilks was driving an American Jeep on his farm in Anglesey, Wales, when he realised there was a gap in the market for a similar British vehicle - and Land Rover was born.

Early designs were based on Jeeps, but employing panels made from light alloy and a chassis fabricated from off-cuts to avoid the use of rationed steel and the need for complex and expensive press tools.

An instant success when it first stepped out in Amsterdam, Rover was being exporting its new product to more than 70 countries by the end of the year - with the first arriving in America in 1949.

Always under development new engines were developed, specifications modified and a ten-seater 107-inch wheelbase Station Wagon is launched.

Key to its success in these early years was the Land Rover's reputation for indestructibility.

Made from an alloy of aluminum - which was plentiful after World War II, obtainable from decommissioned planes - and magnesium; the vehicle's resistance to corrosion allowed the Land Rover to build up a reputation for longevity in the toughest conditions.

Interestingly, the choice of colour was also based on military concerns, in this case a surplus of aircraft cockpit paint, ensuring all early models came in various shades of light green.

Land Rover Series II was launched in 1958, again at the Amsterdam motor show - featuring a wider body with barrelled sides and sills to conceal the chassis.

At this time around 250,000 of the vehicles had been sold worldwide, with half a million sold by 1966.

Two years later the 'Lightweight' version of the Land Rover entered service in the British army.

In 1970 Land Rover put its best foot forward with the launch of the Range Rover. Aimed at a more discerning, urban market, the new vehicle had long-travel coil springs, endowing the vehicle with good road manners as well as remarkable articulation for off-road agility.

The Range Rover won the RAC Dewar award for outstanding technical achievement in 1971, as the brand passes the 750,000 sales mark.

Land Rover Series III was launched in the same year.

Consistent development ensured the vehicle was sold in over 120 countries by 1985, and by the company's 40th anniversary Land Rover had sold a total of 1.6 million vehicles worldwide - the company was sold to British Aerospace in the same year.

In 1989 the Land Rover Discovery was launched, alongside the Defender and Range Rover - a product range, along with the Freelander, which endures to the present day.

The Discovery moved Land Rover away from its traditional markets and into the burgeoning leisure sector. While based on the Range Rover, the Discovery was all new where it mattered. The interior with its distinctive facia style and striking light blue colour owed much to input from the Conran design consultancy. The exterior features a distinctive stepped roof with a single rear door mounting the spare wheel.

This, however, marked the highpoint for the company. In 1994 the Rover group, including Land Rover was acquired by the German car maker BMW, and in 2000 Land Rover again moved on, this time to Ford.

The four-millionth Land Rover vehicle was produced in 2007, the 60th anniversary of the company, along with a celebratory Defender model.

It's been a long ride for the brand, but one which has earned Land Rover a place in the British heart. Celebrating its 60th birthday, the future looks uncertain, but the company is sure to survive and prosper as it always has.