What is a Series I?

The Rover Car Company decided in 1947 to build jeep-like 4x4 vehicle as an export model. The named it the "Land-Rover" The model was introduced to the world at the Amsterdam Motor Show in April 1948. After a prototype and then a pre-production of 48 trucks, main production began in July 1948.

Then first model had a wheelbase of 80" A wheelbase is the distance from the center of the front wheels to the center of the rear wheels. In 1954 the model was stretched to 86" to make a longer load bed. Also in 1954 a 107" pickup was introduced. In 1956 the wheelbases were extended to 88" and 109" to accommodate a new engine. Hence these Land-Rovers are frequently referred to by their wheelbase: 80" 86" 88" 107" and 109"

In 1958 a new updated version with a more stylized body was introduced. The new version was christened the "Series II" Which meant that the 1948 to 1958 old body styles became retroactively known as a "Series I"