1952 MINERVA JEEP Serial number 3663069 Ex Belgian army Collector's grey card To understand the history of the birth and success of the Land Rover, we have to go back a few years, during the Second World War, where a car, on the Allied side, became a symbol of freedom, efficiency and robustness: the Willys Jeep. Once the war was over, the Jeeps were scattered all over the world and became a source of inspiration; one of these cars ended up in the country house of a certain Maurice Wilks, Rover's chief designer. In the aftermath of the war, Rover was in trouble and Wilks was looking to build a simple and solid 4X4. The result was presented at the Amsterdam Motor Show in 1948: the Land Rover Series 1. Due to steel shortages, the government forbade Rover to manufacture its Land body on a large scale, so the brand turned to aluminum from the aeronautics industry to dress its off-roaders. In the early 1950s, Land Rover distributed Series 1s to students going on expeditions, and the expected success was not long in coming; orders poured in from all walks of life: mainly the army, law enforcement agencies, firefighters, ambulance drivers, but also private buyers for their farms, mostly replacing the tractors often requisitioned during the war. In 1951, the Belgian Ministry of Defense launched a call for tender for the delivery of a 4X4 with the obligation that it be assembled in Belgium. The Minerva company won the tender, with a manufacturing under license Land Rover. Unlike the original Land Rover's aluminum bodies, the Minerva's is made of sheet metal. The one we offer is in a very nice condition. Brakes, engine and timing have been recently revised. So put on your rangers, and let's go for the adventure. 1952 MINERVA JEEP Serial number 3663069 Ex Belgian army Collector's registration card To understand the history of the birth and success of the Land Rover, we have to go back a few years, during the Second World War, where a car, on the Allied side, became a symbol of freedom, efficiency and robustness: the Willys Jeep. Once the war was over, the Jeeps were scattered all over the world and became a source of inspiration; one of these cars ended up in the country house of a certain Maurice Wilks, Rover's chief designer. In the aftermath of the war, Rover was in trouble and Wilks was looking to build a simple and solid 4X4. The result was presented at the Amsterdam Motor Show in 1948: the Land Rover Series 1. Due to steel shortages, the government forbade Rover to manufacture its Land body on a large scale, so the brand turned to aluminum from the aeronautics industry to dress its off-roaders. In the early 1950s, Land Rover distributed Series 1s to students going on expeditions, and the expected success was not long in coming; orders poured in from all walks of life: mainly the army, law enforcement, firefighters, ambulance drivers, but also private buyers for their farms, mostly replacing the tractors that were often requisitioned during the war. In 1951, the Belgian Ministry of Defense launched a call for tender for the delivery of a 4X4 with the obligation that it be assembled in Belgium. The Minerva company won the tender, with a manufacturing under license Land Rover. Unlike the original Land Rover's aluminum bodies, the Minerva's is made of sheet metal. The one we offer is in a very nice condition. Brakes, engine and timing have been recently revised. So put on your rangers, and let's go for the adventure.