VISION
THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
IAN and ASHLEY WHITING - Father and Son team
Back in April 1948, the original Land Rover was revealed to the world at the Amsterdam Motor Show. The pre-production model – know internally as Car Number 7 – was the first Land Rover that the public had ever seen. The vehicle changed hands over the next 20 years until it was presumed lost without record in 1968. In 2016, the car was found in a pretty sorry state, completely covered in mud. It was subsequently investigated and then meticulously restored by Land Rover Classic’s restoration team, who began to uncover some of the incredible details of the one-of-a-kind vehicle they had discovered.
Our Team
Ian Whiting
Part of the team that brought this precious example back to life was father and son, Ian Whiting (61) and Ashley Whiting (31). They, along with their team of restoration experts, helped to conduct a lengthy, ‘patina restoration’ on the vehicle – preserving the rust and exterior state, while completely overhauling the inner workings and mechanical components, making it completely safe to drive on the road. They even placed a 1948 coin they had found under the tub capping back in its place, which they believed had been put there for good luck during its first build.
The vehicle now sits as the pinnacle of what can be achieved at Classic Works, serving as a reminder of the beginnings of the Land Rover story and Spencer Wilks’s vision to create an accessible and practical overlanding vehicle.
Our Team
Ashley Whiting
Both Ian and Ashley are Land Rover enthusiasts at heart, and frequently work together on examples of their own. Ashley owns a Series II Land Rover from the early Sixties and Ian, ironically, owns the father model – a midFifties Series I. They both love the rough-and-ready ethos of the older Land Rover Series models, and how easy they are to work on.
They both even know the exact, perfect Land Rover models that they would love to build. “A marine blue Series III short wheelbase with truck cab – that would be the dream”, Ashley said.
“A four door Range Rover Vogue SE with a classic V8 in it for me”, added Ian.