What Are The Most Expensive Classic Land Rovers?

If you had an unlimited amount of money, what would you buy first? Most people will say a huge mansion, a private jet or a luxurious yacht. However, if you were to ask a Land Rover enthusiast, their answer will more than likely be a classic Land Rover car (or even a whole rare collection!). To other people, a car gets you from one place to the next, but for Land Rover enthusiasts, it’s a pipe dream to own a collection of classic Land Rovers, which would be worth a substantial amount of money!

As Land Rover enthusiasts, this got us thinking and it led us to this question: what are the most expensive classic Land Rovers? Well, we already have a previous article about the rarest classic Land Rovers in the world, but what are the most expensive ones? We will share our interesting findings in this article. Let’s just say your jaw might drop to the floor, as this article may surprise you!

Winston Churchill’s Series 1 Land Rover 

In second place, we have former Prime Minister, Winston Churchill’s 1954 Series 1 Land Rover. It was actually modified by the Rover company and given to Churchill for his 80th birthday. In 2012, it sold for £129,000 (more than twice its estimate!) at a Cambridgeshire auction. 

The vehicle was modified with an extra-wide passenger seat, a padded fold-down armrest, a grab leather-clad handle fitted to the bulkhead, a wooden box for bricklaying tools and a heated footwell. After Churchill retired, the vehicle was passed down to his son-in-law before it was later sold off in the early 1970s at a farm sale for only £160. That’s much less compared to when it was sold in 2012!

The Land Rover Defender 2,000,000

In first place, the Land Rover Defender 2,000,000 sold for a world record figure of £400,000 at an exclusive Bonhams charity auction in December 2015. It was purchased by a bidder from Qatar. All proceeds raised from the auction were given to Land Rover’s humanitarian and conservation partners, the Born Free Foundation, the International Federation of Red Cross and the Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).

This one-of-a-kind 4×4 was named ‘Defender 2,000,000’ because it was the two millionth Series Land Rover and Defender manufactured at the Land Rover plant in Solihull, UK. To celebrate 67 years of iconic Land Rover production in the Solihull plant, the vehicle was built in May 2015 by an all-star cast of brand ambassadors and people from Land Rover’s history – this included Stephen and Nick Wilks, sons of the founders of Land Rover. 

The vehicle was fitted with many unique features including an engraved map of Red Wharf Bay – where the design for the original Land Rover was first drawn in the sand, embossed onto the leather seats with a ‘No 2,000,000’ Land Rover logo stitched onto the headrests. A custom-made aluminium plaque, signed by all of the people who helped to assemble the vehicle, is fitted to the driver’s seat. Its S90 HUE registration plate is a beautiful tribute to the first ever pre-production Land Rover, which had the famous registration plate ‘HUE 166’.

Classic Land Rover Parts From John Craddock

So there you have it, the top three most expensive classic Land Rovers in the UK (maybe even the world!). Each one tells a fascinating story and we hope you enjoyed reading about them as much as we did enjoy putting this article together! 

If you’re a Land Rover enthusiast or collector yourself and are looking for genuine Land Rover parts, spares or accessories, visit the world’s leading Land Rover parts specialist, John Craddock Ltd for everything you need to restore and maintain your classic Series or Defender Land Rover (or other Land Rover model for that matter!). For any enquiries, please feel free to get in touch with us.