LaaLaa is my 1971 Land Rover Air Portable aka a lightweight. I bought her in 2001 when we needed a second car but had very little money for such a thing; I was dispatched with £1000 to buy an old Mini or Fiesta but came back with something really quite different!

In Sept 2001, after a frantic fix-up, my friend Tristan and I took her to Morocco and the Sahara Desert. During that time me and LaaLaa formed a bond, so when I got a different second car I borrowed a garage in which to store her. But she didn’t languish well so she’d have to go to a more loving home… Fortunately shortly after that foolish thought, we moved and the new house warranted having a utility vehicle and had the space to store her so I still have her! She’s great fun, a head-turner and extremely useful!

Some other pictures…

March 2001: LaaLaa being collected using Rosa the Range Rover.

March 2001: This is what I bought… What was I thinking? All I’d done by the time this photo was taken was swap hard top for the canvas that came with her.

August 2001: Wrote to the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust to confirm exactly when LaaLaa was made. Cool to find out she is one year older than me, to the day. Even cooler is that this allowed me to get her re-registered with an age related number plate and get free road tax under the historic vehicle scheme!

September 2001: After many many weekends of fettling her into reasonable shape, my friend Tristan and I took LaaLaa to Morocco & the Sahara Desert.

May 2002: Photo of LaaLaa appeared in Land Rover Enthusiast magazine.

June 2003: A good example of the sort of things LaaLaa has to do in order to earn her keep. That’s well over half a tonne of bricks in the back, yet didn’t drive any differently! Makes you wonder how people manage without a Landie!

August 2006: Pressure washed the chassis ready for a bit of pre-MOT welding, only to reveal the full extent of the rot. After much contemplation I decided to fit a new chassis. Airbrushing out the axle stands amused a chap called James

September 2006: Andrew looking very happy as he’s helped get me to the no-turning-back-now stage.

February 2007: LaaLaa was back on the road after fitting the new chassis.