My first car is an iconic Land Rover Defender… it’s since caught fire, been stolen, recovered and was even in my wedding

A LAND Rover Defender operator has revealed an unthinkable beingness of stories that began erstwhile helium picked up the iconic centrifugal arsenic his precise archetypal car, earlier helium had adjacent learned to drive.

Since then, helium has shared however the conveyance has undergone aggregate motor changes, suffered a fire, a theft, a societal media hunt for its retrieval, and has adjacent been utilized arsenic a camper van and a wedding car.

In a video filmed by Resto Revival, the Defender’s owner, James, describes however a accidental brushwood led to him picking up the “curious choice” arsenic his precise archetypal acceptable of wheels.

He said: “I was a precise tense driver. I wasn’t a earthy astatine each and came to driving rather precocious successful life.

“I was ne'er 1 of those radical who, astatine 17, got their provisional licence and went retired driving.

“For immoderate reason, it conscionable didn’t involvement me. Later on, I thought, for my occupation arsenic a videographer, I needed a car. But again, thing grabbed me.”

James ended up acquiring the Defender aft moving for a institution that owed him immoderate money. Instead of payment, helium opted for the celebrated 4x4.

James said that determination was “nothing rational” astir a Defender being his archetypal car.

“There was thing astir the aesthetic—the look, the mode it sounds erstwhile you commencement it up,” helium said.

“I mean, it conscionable looks similar thing retired of Jurassic Park, doesn’t it? It’s amazing. The thought of going retired connected adventures and into the countryside appealed to me.”

However, helium was astir forced to portion with it—on proposal from his mum.

“She didn’t similar it astatine first,” James said.

“She told maine to get a due car. I drove to AvailableCar, and arsenic I near the house, her words were, ‘Don’t travel backmost with that bloody Land Rover.’

“I was doing the paperwork for a small Audi A3, and the feline asked, ‘What are you doing with your Land Rover?’

“I said, ‘Well, I’ve got to get escaped of it. I’ve got to get a due car.’ He said, ‘We’ve each got due cars, mate. Keep the Land Rover for the weekend.’”

Affectionately dubbed Big Jan by James’ mum, the Land Rover’s rugged, off-road abilities were a blessing arsenic she became, arsenic James described, “too infirm” to bask walks astir places similar the Derbyshire Dales and the Peak District.

James added: “I could thrust her astir to each those spots she hadn’t seen for decades. It became our thing.”

Aside from being James’ play car, the Land Rover has been utilized successful antithetic circumstances—including arsenic a wedding car.

James said: “It was each dressed up with bunting and flags for my wedding.

“Like everything successful my life, my wedding was a spot different. I thought, ‘I’m lone going to get joined once—hopefully—so I privation to beryllium dropped disconnected successful the backmost of a Land Rover.’”

The mighty instrumentality has adjacent been utilized arsenic a camper van, implicit with a structure container connected top.

James said: “It conscionable pops up, and idiosyncratic tin sleep wrong it.

“The archetypal week we had it, we drove it astir Pembrokeshire. We picked a antithetic formation each night. My aged driving teacher told america astir places to visit.

“We’d enactment a pin connected the map, propulsion up connected a beach, popular unfastened the structure box, and unfastened a vessel of prosecco—or, to dependable much manly, a beer. It was awesome.”

However, it’s not each been plain sailing and pleasant memories with the Defender.

Mechanically, James’ pride and joyousness has suffered from a plethora of issues implicit the years—which has adjacent resulted successful assistance from his person and mechanic, Mega Hands.

“It’s been done the mill,” helium said.

“We’ve had everything—fires, theft, and each benignant of mechanical nonaccomplishment you tin imagine.

“I americium the slightest mechanically minded antheral ever to person been born, truthful I’ve relied heavy connected help.”

He explained that the Land Rover has besides gone done aggregate engines—at slightest 4 oregon five.

James added: “Finally, though, we’ve got a bully one. This motor has been successful for astatine slightest 5 oregon six years, truthful I deliberation we’ve got a coagulated 1 now.

“This motor is from a Discovery alternatively than different Defender.

“The Discovery 200TDi engines are a spot much plentiful, and galore radical accidental it’s the champion motor Land Rover ever made.”

Engines aside, helium besides says that a occurrence incidental involving the Defender was possibly its “lowest point.”

He said: “I was successful a pub with Mega Hands, and this bloke said, ‘Your Land Rover—it’s a beauteous aged vehicle. A existent household heirloom.’

“Five minutes later, helium comes backmost and says, ‘Do you realise your Land Rover is connected fire? Look retired the window.’ Sure enough, flames were coming retired of the bonnet.

“Mega Hands, for immoderate reason, had a elephantine occurrence extinguisher successful his Land Cruiser.

“He popped the bonnet and enactment retired the flames. I thought, ‘That’s crippled over. When your car sets connected fire, that’s God’s mode of telling you to stop.’

“But the mechanic said, ‘It’s fine.’ I asked, ‘What bash you mean it’s fine? It acceptable connected fire!’

“He explained it had conscionable boiled the brake and clutch fluid. He replaced that, and I was driving it again the next week.

“There are inactive scorch marks nether the bonnet. That was catastrophe fig one.”

It was adjacent stolen, with James revealing that, 1 morning, it was nary longer parked connected his driveway.

He said: “I realised it had been stolen successful the mediate of the night. I was distraught. I thought, ‘That’s it. It’s astir apt connected a vessel determination oregon stripped down for parts. I’m ne'er going to spot it again.’

He called the police, and by lunchtime, he’d received a telephone backmost saying it had been found.

“Some youths had stolen it, ragged it around, done a load of damage, and stolen what they could.”

Since the incident, James has kitted retired the Defender with a big of information extras, including steering locks, immobilisers, dormant antheral switches, and a tracker.

He added: “If this goes disconnected my thrust and I haven’t authorised it, the constabulary volition virtually scramble.”

In galore ways, James perfectly embodies thing that Top Gear fable Richard Hammond erstwhile said astir the Defender: “You tin ain the land, workplace the land, enactment the land, oregon bargain from the land, and you’d inactive look due stepping retired of a Defender.”

James added: “It’s not a footballer’s car. It’s the past large conveyance Land Rover ever made.”

Naturally, helium has nary volition of ever selling it.

He said: “I couldn’t carnivore to. I bought this for astir £2,000, and I deliberation it’s insured for £25,000 now. I don’t deliberation I could spend to bargain 1 again.

“If I ever got rear-ended, that would beryllium it. I’d beryllium heartbroken. It’s breached my bosom aggregate times, and I don’t privation to adhd up however overmuch it’s outgo me, but you can’t enactment a terms connected memories.”