PRESERVING DENNY’S RANGE ROVER CLASSIC
History can and should help shape our future, even though it often fails to do so. Some consider owning a classic car frivolous, or at least an indulgence, yet it is not just about enjoyment but also preserving and honouring our heritage. So, when it comes to owning a vehicle with an extra special history, the experience is a no-brainer.
Tracing vehicle history and ownership details these days is more difficult than it used to be because of clearly overdone privacy issues. Happily, if a car has had just a few previous keepers or, on rare occasions, just one owner, there is a real chance to build an accurate history.
Son Jamie and I have long held a soft spot for the first-generation Range Rover, and we had both owned examples of the classic model. My fourdoor ’80s example had done serious time in Africa but was powered by a 2.5-litre, 83kW Italian VM turbodiesel four-cylinder engine, rare for the New Zealand market. It was as slow as a wet week.
We both needed a better Range Rover experience and, ideally, it had to boat and trailer. Also in attendance was Hulme’s first car, the MGTF, along with an early 1960 red Austin Mini 850 that the Te Puke driver had acquired new in England during his initial European racing adventures.
