4×4S.ORGTHE REGISTRY LAND ROVER GLOSSARY · 87 TERMS

Glossary

Land Rover glossary

87 terms used for Land Rovers by the factory, the owners' clubs, the armed forces and this registry, each with a short definition and, where the registry has one, a link to the page concerned. Grouped by subject; sources at the end.

Models and marques

Series I
The first Land Rover, built 1948–58: an 80-inch wheelbase at launch, then 86 and 107 inches from 1954 and 88 and 109 from 1956. Leaf springs, an aluminium body on a steel chassis, and the 1.6- then 2.0-litre petrol engine. →
Series II
The 1958–61 redesign by David Bache: the rounded lower body sides and the 2.25-litre petrol engine, on 88- and 109-inch wheelbases. →
Series IIA
The 1961–71 revision of the Series II, distinguished mainly by the 2.25-litre diesel; from 1968 the headlamps moved from the grille panel to the wings. The largest-selling of the Series models. →
Series III
The 1971–85 model with a plastic grille, a synchromesh gearbox on all forward gears, and a revised dashboard. The last of the leaf-sprung line. →
Stage 1 V8
A 109-inch Series III of 1979–85 fitted with the Range Rover's 3.5-litre V8 and permanent four-wheel drive, named for the first stage of the government investment that produced the coil-sprung models. →
Ninety and One Ten
The coil-sprung models of 1984 and 1983 (wheelbases of 92.9 and 110 inches), sold under those names until the Defender name was adopted in 1990. →
Defender
The name given to the Ninety, One Ten and 127 from the 1991 model year, kept until Solihull production ended on 29 January 2016. The 127 became the Defender 130. →
Forward Control
A cab-over-engine layout on a Land Rover chassis: the 109-inch Series IIA FC of 1962–66, the 110-inch Series IIB FC of 1966–72, and the V8 101 of 1972–78. →
101 Forward Control
The 101-inch-wheelbase military forward-control vehicle of 1972–78, built for the British Army with the Range Rover V8 to tow the 105 mm light gun; about 2,600 were made. →
Lightweight
The ½-ton, 88-inch air-portable military Land Rover of 1968–84, narrowed and stripped so that it could be carried under a helicopter. Series IIA then Series III based; not a separate marque. →
Perentie
The Australian Army's Isuzu-engined 110 and 6×6, assembled by JRA at Moorebank, New South Wales, from 1987 under Project Perentie. →
Santana
Metalúrgica de Santa Ana of Linares, Spain, which assembled Land Rovers under licence from 1958 and developed its own derivatives (the 1300 and 2000 forward controls, the Series-based Ligero, the PS-10 and Aníbal) until 2011. →
Minerva
The Belgian company that assembled Series I Land Rovers under licence in 1952–56, mostly for the Belgian army, with steel bodywork of its own. →
Wolf
The British Army's designation for the strengthened Defender 90 and 110 of the 1996 contract (the XD, 'extra duty'), with a reinforced chassis, uprated axles and the 300Tdi engine. →
Snatch
The armoured Defender 110 patrol vehicle developed for Northern Ireland in 1992 (Snatch, later Snatch 2 and Vixen), named for its 'snatch' role in arrests. →
WMIK
Weapons Mount Installation Kit: a stripped Defender 110 or Wolf fitted with a roll cage and machine-gun mounts, used by British forces from the late 1990s; the RWMIK is the revised version. →
Range Rover Classic
The original Range Rover of 1970–96, retrospectively called the Classic after the P38 succeeded it. →
Camel Trophy
The annual expedition competition of 1980–2000 sponsored by the cigarette brand, run in Land Rovers from 1981 to 1998 (Range Rover, Series III, Ninety, One Ten, Discovery, Freelander), finished in the sandglow yellow the vehicles are known for. →

Bodies and wheelbases

Wheelbase
The distance between the front and rear axle centres, the figure Land Rover named its models by: 80, 86, 88, 107, 109 (Series), 90, 110, 127/130 (coil-sprung) inches. The Series 88 and 109 are the short (SWB) and long (LWB) wheelbases. →
Base model
In this registry, a factory configuration — Series I 88-inch, Defender 110, Perentie 6×6 — with its body styles and factory colours, on which named vehicles were built. →
Named vehicle
In this registry, an individual type that can be documented with sources: a fire appliance, an armoured car, an expedition truck, a works prototype. →
Hard top
The utility body with a fixed aluminium roof over the load area, with or without side windows. →
Soft top
The utility body with a canvas tilt over metal hoops; 'full-length' when the canvas covers the cab as well. →
Truck cab
A cab with a rigid roof and rear panel over an open load bed — the pick-up. →
Station wagon
The enclosed passenger body with side windows and rear seats (seven seats on the 88, ten or twelve on the 109), built and numbered separately from the utility bodies; the 109 station wagon had a distinct chassis-number series. →
Safari roof / tropical roof
A second roof skin fitted above the station-wagon roof with an air gap between them, with roof vents, to keep the cabin cooler in hot climates. Called the tropical roof in the parts books; 'Safari' is the usual name. →
Alpine lights
The curved windows in the roof sides of a station wagon, giving rear passengers light and a view upwards. →
Hi-Cap / HCPU
High-Capacity Pick-Up: the wider, deeper load bed offered on the One Ten and the Defender 110 and 130. →
County
Land Rover's trim name for the better-equipped station wagons from 1982 (cloth seats, tinted glass, side stripes), later a Defender trim level. →
Bulkhead
The steel panel between the engine bay and the cab that carries the dashboard, the pedals and the windscreen frame; on Series vehicles it also carries the chassis plate. A common rust point.
Tub
The rear body of a utility Land Rover: the load area behind the cab, with its wheel boxes and tailgate.
Cappings
The galvanised steel trims along the top edges of the body panels and the tub sides.
Birmabright
The aluminium-magnesium alloy the Rover Company bought for the Land Rover's body panels in 1948, when steel was rationed and aluminium was not.
Galvanised chassis
A replacement or new chassis hot-dip coated in zinc against corrosion; the original chassis were painted. A common term in sale descriptions.

Chassis numbers and identification

Chassis number
The factory's serial for a vehicle, stamped on the chassis and on the identification plate. Its form changed five times between 1948 and 1980; the registry tables every scheme and decodes any number. →
VIN
Vehicle Identification Number: the 17-character form adopted from the 1980 model year (SAL, model code, class, body, engine, transmission, model year, plant, serial), 14 characters on the earliest examples. →
Suffix letter
The letter after a 1962–79 chassis number (A, B, C …), marking design changes announced in the factory Service Newsletters. It does not give the year of build. →
Prefix
The first three digits of a 1962–79 chassis number, identifying the model, engine and market: 241 is an 88-inch petrol Series IIA for the home market, 901 a Series III 88 petrol. →
Home / export / CKD
The markets a factory numbering block covered, in the order home market, export right-hand drive, CKD right-hand drive, export left-hand drive, CKD left-hand drive. →
CKD
Completely Knocked Down: a vehicle shipped as a kit of parts for assembly abroad (Belgium, Spain, Australia, South Africa, Kenya and others), with its own chassis-number series. →
NADA
North American Dollar Area: the specification and chassis series of vehicles built for the United States and Canada, with their own lighting and bumpers. →
Model year
In a VIN, the tenth character: a letter or digit for the model year rather than the calendar year of build (A for 1983–84, G for 1990, 1 for 2001 …); the codes were reused from 2010. →
Chassis plate
The identification plate riveted to the bulkhead (Series) or the brake-pedal box (coil-sprung), carrying the chassis number and, on later vehicles, the paint code and weights. →
Heritage Certificate
A build record issued by the British Motor Museum from the surviving factory despatch ledgers: build date, original colour and trim, engine number and first destination. The reference for a vehicle's original specification. →
Engine number
The serial stamped on the engine block, with its own prefix and suffix series; recorded on the Heritage Certificate and, for military vehicles, in the registration ledgers.
Paint code
The factory's identifier for a colour: an LRC number with a three-letter code, a British Standard BS 381C shade, or a supplier reference. →
BS 381C
The British Standard colour chart for paints, used for military and utility colours: Deep Bronze Green is BS 381C-224, RAF Blue 633, Light Stone 361. →
ARN
Army Registration Number: the Australian Army's six-digit registration painted on a vehicle and recorded in its ledgers beside the chassis number. →
ERM
Equipment Registration Mark: the British Army's registration format (two digits, two letters, two digits, e.g. 24 KB 37) carried on military Land Rovers from 1949. →

Engines and transmission

IOE
Inlet-over-exhaust: the valve layout of the Rover petrol engines of 1948–80 (the 1.6, 2.0, 2.25 and 2.6-litre units), with overhead inlet and side exhaust valves.
2.25 (2¼-litre)
The 2,286 cc four-cylinder engine introduced in petrol form in 1958 and diesel in 1961, fitted to the Series II, IIA and III and, in developed form, the early Ninety and One Ten. Three main bearings until 1980, five from then (the 'five-bearing' engine).
2.6 (six-cylinder)
The 2,625 cc six-cylinder IOE petrol engine offered on the 109 from 1967 (Series IIA and III) and the Forward Control.
Rover V8
The 3.5-litre all-aluminium V8 the Rover Company bought from Buick, fitted to the Range Rover (1970), the 101 (1972), the Stage 1 (1979) and the coil-sprung models; later 3.9, 4.0 and 4.6 litres.
200Tdi / 300Tdi
The 2.5-litre direct-injection turbodiesels of 1989–94 (200Tdi) and 1994–2006 (300Tdi), developed from the 2.25/2.5 diesel; the engines of most Defenders and Discovery 1s.
Td5
The 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbodiesel of 1998–2007 fitted to the Defender and Discovery 2, unrelated to the four-cylinder line.
Puma / TDCi
The Ford Duratorq turbodiesels fitted to the Defender from 2007 (2.4-litre) and 2012 (2.2-litre), known by Ford's engine-family name; the last Defender engines.
Isuzu 4BD1
The 3.9-litre Isuzu four-cylinder diesel, naturally aspirated or turbocharged (4BD1-T), fitted to the Australian Perentie and to Australian-assembled 110s. →
Low range
The lower set of gear ratios in the transfer box, selected for slow, high-torque work off road; 'high range' is the road set.
Transfer box
The gearbox behind the main gearbox that drives both axles and provides high and low range; on the Series models it also selects two- or four-wheel drive.
Permanent four-wheel drive
Drive to both axles at all times through a centre differential, as on the Range Rover, the 101, the Stage 1 and all coil-sprung models; the Series models had selectable four-wheel drive in high range (and permanent in low), apart from the Series I's freewheel.
Centre differential lock (diff lock)
The lock on a permanent-four-wheel-drive transfer box that ties the front and rear propshafts together so that one spinning axle cannot take all the drive.
Free-wheeling hubs
Front-hub couplings that disconnect the front half-shafts when four-wheel drive is not selected, reducing wear and noise on the road; the Land Rover-approved hubs were made by MAP of Tavistock, later Fairey.
Fairey overdrive
A bolt-on overdrive unit for the Series transfer box, made by Fairey Winches, giving higher gearing for road use.
LT77 / LT85 / R380
The five-speed gearboxes of the coil-sprung models: the LT77 (1983–94, four-cylinder and later all engines), the LT85 (1984–91, V8 and Isuzu; also used by Santana), and the R380 (1994–2006, 'rated to 380 Nm'). The LT95 was the four-speed of the Range Rover, 101, Stage 1 and early V8 110.
Salisbury axle
The heavy-duty rear axle with an integral, non-detachable differential fitted to the 109, the 110 and the 130; the lighter 'Rover' axle has a detachable differential in a banjo casing.
PTO
Power take-off: a drive taken from the gearbox or transfer box to run equipment — a winch, a welder, a pump, a saw bench — through a rear or centre PTO. →
Capstan winch
A front-mounted winch driven from the crankshaft nose, on which the rope is wrapped and hand-tended rather than spooled on a drum; the classic Series accessory. →

Military terms

GS
General Service: the MoD specification on the heavy-duty chassis with uprated cooling, 12-volt electrics, infra-red and convoy lighting, without radio fittings. →
FFR
Fitted For Radio: the GS specification with 24-volt screened electrics, a radio table and aerial mountings for the Larkspur, Clansman or Bowman sets. →
FFW
Fitted For Wireless: the earlier (1950s–60s) name for the radio-fitted specification, before FFR. →
CL
Commercial Logistics: a civilian-specification vehicle bought for the forces in military paint, 12-volt, without the GS chassis or lighting changes. →
Airportable
Built or stripped to be carried by aircraft or under a helicopter: the 1963 Series IIA 109 airportable and the ½-ton Lightweight. →
Winter/Water (Winterised/Waterproofed)
The Royal Marines' cold-climate and wading specification for the Wolf and earlier 110s, with a heater kit, snorkel and sealed electrics. →
TUL / TUM
Truck Utility Light and Truck Utility Medium: the British Army's designations for the Defender 90 and 110 (the Wolf being TUL/TUM HS, 'high specification'). →
Clansman / Larkspur / Bowman
The British Army's radio systems (Larkspur from the 1950s, Clansman from 1978, Bowman from 2004) that FFR vehicles were wired for. →
Convoy light
The small lamp under the rear of a military vehicle, shining down on the white-painted differential, for following in blackout conditions. →
Bridge plate
The yellow disc on the front of a military vehicle giving its bridge classification (weight class). →
Demob / cast
Sold out of military service (cast: struck off the Army's register); an 'ex-MoD' vehicle. →

Manufacturing and history

Solihull
The Rover Company's factory at Lode Lane, Solihull, where every British Land Rover was built from 1948 to 2016. →
Rover Company / British Leyland / Land Rover Ltd
The successive owners of the marque: the Rover Company (to 1967), Leyland Motors and then British Leyland (1967–), Land Rover Ltd as a separate company from 1978, BMW (1994), Ford (2000) and Tata's Jaguar Land Rover (2008). →
Coachbuilder / converter
A firm that built or modified bodies on Land Rover chassis — Carmichael and HCB-Angus fire appliances, Marshall and Lomas ambulances, Pilcher-Greene, Shorland armoured cars — as distinct from the manufacturer. →
Special Vehicles (SVO)
Land Rover's own in-house conversion department (Special Projects, then Special Vehicle Operations) that built ambulances, fire tenders, six-wheelers and one-offs on the standard chassis. →
Dunsfold Collection
The private collection of Land Rover prototypes and rarities at Dunsfold, Surrey, one of the registry's sources. →
Licence-built
Assembled or manufactured outside Solihull under agreement: Minerva (Belgium), Santana (Spain), Tempo (Germany), JRA and Pressed Metal Corporation (Australia), among others. →

Registry terms

AI rendering impression
The registry's own 3D model of a vehicle painted into a working scene by an image model — labelled as an impression wherever it appears and never used as evidence. →
Review status
Whether a record is researched (its facts cited) or draft (a summary with sources, some facts still to be confirmed); printed at the foot of every record. →
Sources & evidence
The list at the end of every vehicle page of the documents, photographs and archives the record relies on, with the date each was consulted. →

Sources

  1. 1Land Rovers GS, CL & FFR — EMLRAEx-Military Land Rover Association
  2. 2Early military Land Rover classification — EMLRAEx-Military Land Rover Association
  3. 3Buyers' guide for the Lightweight — The Military Lightweight ClubThe Military Lightweight Club
  4. 4Chassis numbering — Land Rover Series One ClubLand Rover Series One Club
  5. 5Chassis numbers by type — Land Rover FAQLand Rover FAQ
  6. 6Land Rover gearbox FAQ — Red90Red90
  7. 7MAP / Fairey free-wheeling hubs and capstan winch — LR Optional EquipmentLR Optional Equipment
  8. 8Land Rover enginesWikipedia
  9. 9Land Rover SeriesWikipedia
  10. 10Land Rover PerentieWikipedia
  11. 11Land Rover WolfWikipedia
  12. 12Heritage Certificates — British Motor MuseumBritish Motor Museum