1973' Land Rover Range Rover Safari

1973 Range Rover

This B suffix Range Rover has a fascinating history having been first owned by Jaguar racing driver Duncan Hamilton and then used by the ITN journalist Michael Nicholson in his epic 14,000 mile journey home from South Africa to England, which was immortalised in his book Across the Limpopo.

Constructed in 1973 it was delivered to Duncan Hamilton in Lincoln Green with a Palomino interior and came with a number of factory optional extras including full leather upholstery, which was not standard at the time of production, including leather door cards, leather seats and full Webasto sunroof.

Hamilton used the car as a daily driver for a few years before selling it in 1976 to ITN reporter Michael Nicholson. When Nicholson moved to Johannesburg to become ITN’s first bureau chief in South Africa the Range Rover went with him and remained there during his four year posting. When it was time for Nicholson to return home in 1981, rather than fly back, which would have taken only16 hours, he decided instead to go overland and drive his family home in the Range Rover, a trip that would take nearer to five months. This journey covered some 14,000 miles and progressed from South Africa, onto Zambia, through the Nyika Mountains in Malawi, passing wild Rhino in Tanzania's Ngorongoro, encountering a Bull Elephant on the road in Dar es Salaam and meeting Masai warriors before crossing the Serengetti to Kenya. They struggled over the washed away bridges of Wei Wei and pushed on to Sudan & Egypt before finally heading up through Greece and reaching England in July. Nicholson subsequently wrote a book, Across the Limpopo, which documented the story of his family’s adventure and the car is extensively featured in it.

In the years following their trip home the car saw limited use and was then dry stored by a later owner for many years before undergoing a full bare shell professional restoration, which has just been completed by Range Rover specialists Bishops 4 X 4.

Offered in excellent freshly restored condition and accompanied by a copy of the Nicholson’s book, including numerous photographs of the car in Africa, it provides an unmissable opportunity to acquire an iconic early range Rover and a unique piece of endurance motoring history.

Please contact us for further details.