The Ford Bronco Half Cab was a rare version off the iconic 4×4, just 2,317 were built in 1969, as the overwhelming majority of buyers opted for the slightly more practical wagon body style. Officially called the Bronco Sport Utility Pickup, the motoring public quickly nicknamed it the “Half Cab”, and today this is the…
A 50 Year Adventure is a documentary about one of the world’s most famous, and most successful 4×4 manufacturers – Land Rover. The film shows the story of the development of the first Land Rover in the years shortly after WWII, it offers a detailed glimpse into its origins including some fascinating early footage. The toughness and…
The Story of the East Coast Defender Project 13 The Land Rover Defender 90 shown here has been through a full tear-down and rebuilt at the hands of East Coast Defenders – it was commissioned by professional Major Soccer League player Servando Carrasco and his Olympic soccer star wife, gold medalist Alex Morgan. They worked closely with the…
The Jeep Wagoneer is credited by many with being the first luxury SUV, long before the term SUV was created, and decades before the genre became one of the most popular in the automotive world. It stayed in production from 1962 till 1991 – an astonishing 28 years, and the third longest production run in…
The Land Rover first appeared in the years just after WWII, resources were strictly rationed in the United Kingdom and practicality was cherished above all else. The initial concept was to take the best elements of a tractor and blend them with the best elements of the Jeep – creating a vehicle that could be used on…
The Lamborghini LM 002 was the first production 4×4 built by the Italian supercar (and tractor) builder, it was based on their 1977 Cheetah 4×4 prototype which had been intended for military use – with a rear mounted Chrysler V8. It’s not known how well-formed the plan was for a Lamborghini-badged military vehicle, although it’s clear…
The Toyota FJ40 Land Cruiser is one of the major players from the world of civilian 4x4s that began mass production after WWII – a time when the original Jeep had introduced 4x4s to millions of young men around the world. The first J40 series Toyotas began rolling off the production line in 1960, they were…
The Land Rover Defender 90 Heritage was a special edition series based on the iconic 4×4 platform that started in 1998. Land Rover occasionally created special Defenders to mark special occasions or as a hat tip to their history, and the Heritage edition was bookended by the Defender 50th, and the Tomb Raider Defender of…
The Steyr-Puch Haflinger was developed in the late 1950s as a replacement for the ageing American-built Jeeps that were still being used by the Austrian military. The engineering that went into the unusual looking Haflinger was outstanding, and despite its unconventional appearance its capabilities as an off-roader are exceptional. The head engineer was Erich Ledwinka,…
The Dodge Power Wagon was introduced in 1945 as a civilian version of the mighty Dodge WC military truck that had been used extensively throughout WWII. The re-modelled civilian version became immediately popular with farmers, outdoorsmen, and others who needed a truck that could carry cargo and go anywhere. The Power Wagon also had a…
The Ford Bronco was one of the first three mass-produced SUVs to be built in America, along with the International Harvester Scout and the Jeep CJ-5. The genre that the three 4x4s pioneered has gone on to become one of the most popular and lucrative in automotive history – now catered to by dozens of…
The Willys M38 Jeep was the revised and updated version of the civilian-specification CJ-3A, which itself was an update of the venerable WWII era Willys Jeep MB. Willys developed the M38 to supply the US military for the Korean War, although by the end of the conflict most of the Jeeps that had been used…
