Not only farmers had appreciated the practicality of the new SUV. First generation Land Rover was used as military light utility vehicle in several countries. Military experts have recognized the reliability and versatility of Land Rover. Delivery of these vehicles to the armed forces of foreign countries had become an important part of the company’s business.
New Range Rover was considered a vehicle for amateurs among the fans of the Land Rover. Many of them had doubts that new car was as reliable as the previous model. All doubts were dispelled two years later, when a number of Range Rover vehicles, managed by a group of British soldiers under the command of Major John Blashford-Snell, made a rally from Anchorage, Alaska to the Argentine city of Ushuaia. The British Trans-Americas Expedition of 1972 became the first vehicle-based expedition to traverse the Americas from north-to-south, including traversing the roadless Darién Gap.
In 1997 Land Rover Freelander was launched. More compact than Discovery, this sport utility vehicle became Europe’s best-selling four-wheel drive model. It was produced for 19 years, changing two generations.