STEP BACK IN TIME
Reborn sounds like it could be an aged rock band — but is in fact the reincarnation series of cars produced by Jaguar Land rover’s Classic Works division.
The company’s experts from ryton-on-Dunsmore, near Coventry, hunt down old, collectable and salvageable examples of the firm’s best loved vintage cars — and bring them back to life.
You can see some of them in action at this weekend’s Goodwood revival in Sussex. I have been behind the wheel of a few of them, including the original Series I Land rover from the late Forties, a swinging Sixties e-Type Jaguar and a pukka original Seventies range rover.
The car firm has tapped into the growing market for old- style mechanical ‘stuff’ — a revolt against the digital age and anything that needs wi-fi or 4G.
other car firms are capitalising on the trend, too. Aston Martin is bringing back the classic 007 Db5 and Prince Harry had a converted electric e-Type at his wedding to Meghan.
‘reborn’ works like this. JLr Classic’s experts scour the world for ‘base’ vehicles suitable for the ‘reborn’ treatment. They must be 80 per cent original. So what are they like to drive? Charming. With all the little niggles and nuances that you would expect from a classic car.
Anyone under 40 probably doesn’t know what the ‘choke’ on a car is — never mind what it does. Yet when the e-Type began to stutter, I instinctively felt myself reaching for it to ensure it fired up correctly. Taking the range rover out for a spin was enlightening too. The shift-stick requires not only listening to the revs, but ‘feeling’ them as well.
And the green aluminium and canvas Series I Land rover 4X4 with a 1.6-litre engine is astonishing. Its post-war construction from 1948 is simple and brilliant.
Jaguar Land rover Classic director Tim Hannig said: ‘This is a wonderful way to keep our rich automotive heritage alive.’
There’s always a catch however. The reborn range rover will set you back £140,000, the Land rover Series I £75,000, and the Jaguar e-Type £295,000.