‘It’s taken 15 years and a lot of determination’

1977 Range Rover Terry Akers, Brighton

I've owned my 1977 Bahama Gold two-door classic Range Rover since August 2001. It looked pretty reasonable for its age and 68k mileage but on closer inspection it revealed a lot more work was going to be involved if I wanted to achieve my ambition of returning it to its showroom condition. Well, 15 years later and after a lot of determination, money and help from a couple of key individuals (Shaun Bateman and Dave Marshall) she is done. It's cost rather more than the £5k originally budgeted, but I have loved the restoration, especially the final eight months working with Dave, sourcing and fabricating parts from Dunsfold Land Rover and putting it all back together. I have gone to great lengths to put all the original stickers and decals on the car, including those for the Lex Mead dealership that sold it in May 1977.