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Originally, the name Land Rover referred not to a whole company, but to a single
civilian all-terrain vehicle launched on April 30, 1948, at the Amsterdam Motor
Show. Later, it became the name of several distinct four-wheel drive models,
before it began to refer to Land Rover the company, a British manufacturer of
sport utility and all-terrain vehicles based in Solihull England.
Land Rover began its life as an internal division of Rover. Since then, it has
designed and produced several vehicles under a succession of owners, including
British Aerospace, British Leyland, and BMW, before becoming part of the Premier
Automotive Group, the luxury-car division of the Ford Motor Company. It's also
one of the longest lived and best known maker of rugged SUV's, coming second
only to the American Jeep in terms of age.
While Land Rovers are manufactured primarily at the plant in Solihull, near
Birmingham England, production of the Freelander has recently been reassigned to
the Jaguar factory at Halewood near Liverpool. Additionally, the former BL/Rover
Group technical center in Gaydon, Warwickshire houses the company's research and
development headquarters.
In addition to being the vehicle of choice for the Camel Trophy as part of a
sponsorship deal, Land Rovers have also competed in the Paris Dakar Rally, and
it also has its own G4 challenge.
Somewhat ironically, while Land Rover continues to thrive, it's founding
company, Rover, collapsed in 2005. |
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