We have been looking for a Series 2A Land Rover for a while, but ridiculous prices and the rust buckets that people were trying to sell us meant the search was taking longer than we hoped. Jamie was insistant one would turn up with straight panels, and he was right!
It's a 1967 2a with the 2.6 engine and 109 chassis. We prefer the bigger chassis as you can do more with it, particularly carry boards!
Now the 2.6 isn't the most desirable engine, but this car was sooo original in every way that we thought it was an interesting bit of LR history to play with. It'd be a shame to cut it up or replace the engine for those reasons. Some people say it's too tricky to work on or uses too much fuel, but Jamie is keen to learn a new engine and I have faith he has tricks to make the fuel economy better.
The six badge is also sought after and rare which is cool. The farmer we bought it off had it in his barn for five years and before that it had one owner, and we reckon the 58k on the clock is pretty spot on. So much of it is original which is brilliant.
The 1967 Australian Series 2A 109 Land Rover 2.6 was part of a unique production run tailored to Australian conditions. This model was assembled locally by Pressed Metal Corporation (PMC) in Sydney and featured a 2.6-litre straight-six petrol engine, offering more power than the standard four-cylinder versions.
By 1967, the 2.6-litre IOE (inlet-over-exhaust) straight-six had been refined for Australian use. It was originally developed for the Rover P4 sedan and produced 123 hp and 190 Nm of torque. While it delivered improved towing capacity and performance in heavy-duty applications, it was known for high fuel consumption and required careful maintenance, especially regarding its Westlake-designed cylinder head.
The 2A featured:
- Heavy-duty chassis and suspension, suited for Australiaβs harsh terrain.
- 4-speed manual gearbox, with synchromesh on select gears.
- Larger radiator and cooling modifications for hot climates.
- Tropical roof and additional vents, improving airflow.
- Optional Army-spec versions, including troop carriers and ambulances.
The Australian Army widely adopted the 2A 109, particularly the General Service and Workshop models. In civilian applications, the 2.6-litre variant was favored for government fleets, farms, and remote-area transport, where extra torque was useful. However, its thirsty engine and maintenance demands meant it wasnβt as common as the 2.25-litre four-cylinder models.
By 1972, the Series 2A was replaced by the Series III, which continued to offer the 2.6-litre engine until it was phased out in favor of the Rover V8 and diesel options. Today, a 1967 Series 2A 109 with the 2.6-litre engine is a rare and sought-after vehicle among collectors, particularly ex-military models with original fittings.
Now before you go saying that was written by AI, IT ABSOLUTELY WAS. What do you think I am, a Land Rover expert? To be honest I know more than a lot of people and can hold my own in Landie conversations but my life is way too short to summarize online articles when that's what Chat GTP is for.
One of the cool things about the 2A is the metal dash. The s3 had the bolt on leather or vinyl covered dash which was standard even into the Defender era.
You can also tell the 2A as it has lights between the wings not on the wings like the S3 and later LR models where the grill was pushed forward to make bigger engines.
Here's the Series 3 where you can totally see the difference.
Anyway, exciting stuff! We are definitely going to start a YouTube soon, so it'd be great if you could follow us here so we can start feeling like it's a worthwhile thing to do!
With Love,
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