Worthy of a Prize :)

 "A work in progress they said, but a lovely expedition vehicle already and worthy of a prize"

Kind words from a real Land Rover expert. Frank Elson 

We were happy to feature in his write up and the picture gallery in Land Rover Monthly 

Proud as Punch - Kelmarsh 2017

You have to arrive before 8pm said the instructions for the Kelmarsh show and despite that being a real challenge to get there after work, we made it in time for the last of the sunshine, so here we are in the evening golden glow of the last hour of light 

The next day the dawn broke not so sunny but it was still a fine day as long as you avoided PC's Rhys and Huw who would give you any number of tickets as they buzzed around in their 'Mini Me'

The organisers tried hard to avoid fact that the the weather was getting windier, and even had a go at launching the Land Rover balloon. I'm sure it made it at least a foot off the ground, but was fun to watch all the same

Later on the sun did come out and the SWLRC stand looked excellent even if our awning was a little sad (it did cost £35.00 after all). We had quite a few visitors and it was really nice to meet Les and Jane from the 127 club and listen to all the excellent work they have done on their vehicle.

Events in the main ring tended to feature either mud, or shiny things like below and were vaiously watchable depending on the weather, but given the level of interest we had in Katy it was not that easy to get to watch things on the weekend days (Friday there were not so many people there)

Out of the arena one of our members was saved from disappointment by the Challenge South West team.  Thanks guys if you ever need a jump start in South Wales I am sure we will do our best to return the favour!

In my area of interest there were some lovely ambulance vehicles. 

Too many to show here, but in highlight 2 absolutely top notch camper conversions based on Pulse Land Rovers in the North Wales Land Rover club, and this pristine looking one (on the outside at least, it is also a camper)  

And in the stand next to us this cracking Locomotors - also a camper conversion with LPG conversion to feed the original V8 which is still in place

Finally we had a team photo at the front of Kelmarsh Hall

And then one just of Katy

Finally, finally we were incredibly honoured to be singled out by Frank Elson of the Land Rover Monthly Magazine for this wonderful certificate

As she is a work in progress I came home armed with a load of spares and even more ideas on how we should improve her so my To Do list is even longer

All in all a fun weekend was had by all of us and I am sure that we will make a return journey at some time future

Be Positive

On the recent trip to Anglesey, and afterwards as well Katy suffered from a slew of electrical issues 

I chased loads and loads of symptoms 

All the advice I got was "check your earth". 

Well I did and it wasn't a problem, but what eventually was identified as being the problem thanks to a mate in the SWLRC was in the positive connection.. so here is a shiny new one and all is well with the world (well Katy's electrics anyway) 

Anglesey Unplanned

The plan was simple - head to Anglesey in convoy with SWLRC, No plan other than that 

The start wasn't so simple it took a new top hose and ... 

Plenty of cleaning up to get us going

It was a wonderful night camping in Builth Wells

And they all looked as good in the morning

 Then we went to Claerwen Reservoir Dam. Scene of the famous 1986 Land Rover Advert

And on through the lanes, sometimes taking the correct route ...

 All to end on Anglesey where Land Rover was apparently thought up by Maurice Wilks and his brother Spencer Wilks

And a quick trip to Red Wharf Bay where the first design was drawn in the sand

Sadly Katy had had electrical gremlins all the way up so after I managed to start her I decided on a non-stopping (of the engine) run back

I did stop just south of Snowdonia as the view was so wonderful - here she is with the engine Running

Up Up and Away...

2:00 pm CD doesn't work...
2:30 pm It does ...

not me ... good customer service so I'll happily give them a plug

Land Rover BAR

Well we didn't win the Americas Cup, and last weeks crisis at my work meant I could not be doing more prep that I wanted to be doing on Katy, but none of that stopped the Land Rover BAR team putting on a good show down at the Cardiff Bay Yacht Club

I dropped in to see what was on show and as expected it was the new stuff.

First of all to look at is the new Velar. its a smooth looking vehicle and comes heavily loaded with a lot of driver facilities and I am sure its got a decent processor inside (do car reviews need to start listing that like PC reviews ?)

It was open and I was invited in.. so even if I can't afford one I now have at least sat in one.

It seemed a bit roomier than the Evoque which is good in my mind, but I would still have the seats a little less bucketed if it was me. The multiple displays with movable controls (you can drag and drop controls and displays between them) really do make it feel like something for the Star Trek generation (thank goodness that's me)

Its not released yet of course, but I hear that orders are coming in well and that's got to be good for the company to keep it looking after people like me driving its "heritage range". Thanks to James for the fascinating overview.

The key item for the day was all the children being taken out sailing and that was really good to see, I was over age for that part of the event, but it was a good chance for me get some pictures anyway, and a really nice chat with the CBYC team.. they nearly convinced me to get back on the water and do some more sailing

And finally I got taken for a ride in a Discovery 5 on the display circuit. Its larger and roomier again of course and an incredibly capable vehicle with some obvious Land Rover Heritage

As you can tell from my inane questions I'm not up to speed on the modern Land Rovers... of course if they want to lend me one I can practise :-)

Here's the video (click on the picture and it will open a new window) with some static pictures below

Overall an entertaining couple of hours, some truly impressive vehicles, and good luck to the Land Rover BAR team next year 

Not Quite an Ambulance

As this blog is Ambulance focussed and as Land Rover have created an ambulance related vehicle it only seems fitting to share it

As they want their news shared I am sure they won't mind too much if I borrow an image

Click the picture to see their story

Cardiff Car Show 2017

With a successful MOT and a cleaned Katy I planned to head out for the Cardiff Car Show early, to meet up with the rest of SWLRC and then drive in together.

Two problems delayed me from doing that: -

• Server / network maintenance had over run at work 
• I could not find my keys anywhere

The latter was the biggest issue as the lost keys had the house key on and I had worries about leaving in case someone had picked them up. 

A full 2 hours later I found the keys in the garage where I had obviously put them and was finally able to set off and belatedly join the team at the event. 

Overall it was a good show, better than 2 years ago certainly, I think the new location is starting to gather people in or maybe that was just the excellent weather

The SWLRC highlight of the day had to be Pete Phillips entry in the main ring, which I was able to record with my new camera  

MOT 2017

PASSED !

Tyre valves were the only advise, annoying as they were replaced when I had new Wolf wheel rims only 5 years ago and I have actually had 2 fail - so definitely not a good batch of rubber used to make them

But the fix is cheap and I will get it done soon before any big runs

Pilchers Military Defender Turns up

In my Ambulance history page I have noted the Pilcher Greene defender 110 ambulances in the civilian section ... However I saw this recently http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Land-Rover-Ambulance-camper-defender-110-2-25-petrol-/162445506648?

Interestingly the final picture had a military contract number, so I may need to add another section to the pages. If anyone knows more please feel free to contact me via a comment below or via the contact form 

If you are interested, the vendor can be contacted through his email address hhroadss@gmail.com. My thanks to him for permission to post his pictures, and for keeping another piece of Land Rover history on the road

2016 Round Up

2016 was a fun if slow year with Katy the Land Rover. I can't entirely call it quiet as you will read. below

At the start of the year there was definitely a need  for some sort outs which I needed some help for. I was working out of the country a lot in january and February so it was not until March when i got started

The first was some electrics which I definitely needed my friend Dave's help with over the course of a couple of excellent days we got the lights and the reversing camera working, but we did have an unexpected result with the lights as you can see in the video

After that it was off to Newport caravans in May for a new skylight and then some work I did myself getting the Radio to work properly and we attended our first show of the year with the SWLRC

Then a real mystery came in when a Geoff Fletcher author of British Military Land Rovers sent me an interesting picture

Katy then became a regular commuter as Rhian's Mini was in for some work in June and July and she definitely got some attention in the BGS car park and in Cheddar gorge

I eventually tracked down that picture and Rhian and I were made welcome by the Scots Guards at the Bourlon Barracks at Catterick camp in August after a trip to Scarborough

Then it was off to Margam with the SWLRC again in September before a year end put away in November because I knew I would be working away a lot again in the run up to the end of the year. This  year I invested in an intelligent charger and so far the investment has been worthwhile as it's been very good to have it on and the battery looked after

The final Land Rover event of the year was our trip with the SWLRC to the Land Rover Reborn tour at Solihull

The final event for 2016 came in as a complete surprise when we were listed on getoffroad.com as one of the best Land Rover blogs to read. I need to add that I have not used them as a supplier, but as they have been so nice I am happy to give them a link back

All in all not a bad year for being so busy doing other things, but I do hope to be out and about more often and doing a few more upgrades in 2017