Dear Rovers North,

I’m new to Defender ownership and spent the better part of the winter working on it. Now that I own one, I swear I catch them where I never saw them before.

Oliver Schmittenberg
Perrysburg, OH

[Welcome to the Defender enthusiast community! Start practicing your wave to other Land Rover owners. – ed.]


Letters to the Editor – Fall 2021

Dear Rovers North,

On a recent trip to California, I saw a Series Land Rover with some good kit parked in Malibu near the beach at Paradise Cove. I thought it looked nice with the mountains in the background. I live here in Richmond, and my uncle, Bo Prillaman, suggested I share it with your readers.

Carolyn Symons

Richmond, VA

[Your Uncle Bo is a wise man and a genuine enthusiast. Thank you for sharing this with us – any reader recognize it? -ed.


Letters to the Editor – Fall 2021

Dear Rovers North,

For his 6th birthday, our son, Parker, had lunch at the T-Rex Restaurant at Disney Springs, in Orlando, FL. You can see his enthusiasm for the 109”!

Brittany Burrell

Loganville, GA

[Judging by his smile, we can guess what he’ll want for a birthday gift when he turns 7! -ed.]


Dear Rovers North,

I have 26 years as a Rover enthusiast and Rovers North customer. Being the old photojournalist that I am, I noticed a few Defender 110s hidden amongst the dozens of motor pool vehicles left behind this week at Bagram Airbase after most of our troops left. Obviously the thought came to mind that these Rovers were for the taking. All I have to do is fly over to get one… (After all, I was stationed at Incirlik in Turkey in the early ‘80s in the USAF.)

Gene Page
Micanopy, FL

[In light of recent events, perhaps you’ll want to hold off on that flight? And we haven’t forgotten the wonderful stories you’ve shared with our readers over those 26 years. -ed.]


Dear Rovers North,

Letters to the Editor – Fall 2021

A lot has changed in the last 11 years since my last customer experience email. While I still don’t need to buy lots of parts (knock on wood, my Land Rover is the most reliable vehicle in our family fleet of my Land Rovers, Toyotas and Subarus!), I have endeavored to continue to be a Rovers North customer. The past few years have been exceptional. Online and phone sales have been perfect. I have also started working with Zack Griswold, who has been amazing. He facilitated my favorite purchase from RN, one of the Penman trailers. I absolutely love it! While it was nearly a year in the works, it was so worth the wait and his communication was spot-on. While COVID delays could have been frustrating, his prompt, informative and professional communication worked for me. I don’t know if you have customer service awards for your staff, but if you do, please consider Zack for an award. I am a very happy camper and I recognize and appreciate all of the hard work Mark Letorney and his team puts in so that I, and all of the Land Rover enthusiasts, have such a great resource in Rovers North. In short, thank you!

Paul Clay

Pullman, WA

[Thank you for letting Rovers North provide you with parts and expertise on your Land Rovers. We’re delighted that you found working with Zack “amazing” and hope we can continue to be a part of your Land Rover experience. – ed.]


Dear Rovers North,

It’s been some time since I brought my low-mileage, completely stock Poppy Red ‘73 NAS Series III to the British Invasion event in Stowe, VT, in the mid-2000s. I sold it two years ago, after having owned it for over 18 years. It was on the Orvis gift idea cover this past Christmas season. No doubt it’s in Nantucket or Martha’s Vineyard now!

Fast forward to the last few weeks. My Audi SQ5 lease was ending and I needed to either buy it out or get something else. I’d been eyeing a new Wrangler Rubicon EcoDiesel with the Skytop, but afraid that it wasn’t really me. The D110 is nice, but now that our son is in college, I didn’t need something that large. I kept reading your test drive on the new Defender 90 and ultimately took delivery of one. It is a base model with a 4-cylinder engine, steel wheels, cloth seats and no sunroof, but it does have a heated steering wheel and heated seats, along with air suspension. I’m so happy to have a Land Rover again.

Also, great job on the magazine – I really enjoy it! Although I’ve not bought parts from Rovers North recently, as I didn’t have my Series anymore, I hope to continue receiving it. 

Best,
Kurt Krauss

Boonton Township, NJ

[You chose a terrific combination of options for your Defender 90, even our favorite color! -ed.]


Dear Rovers North,

Letters to the Editor – Fall 2021

Karen and I lived at 10,240 feet in the Colorado Rockies for twenty years. It snowed 400 inches per year and summer came on Tuesdays some years – and would only last a day! During this time we owned every four-wheel drive out there: Jeeps, Mitsubishis, Subarus, Land Cruisers and even a couple of Suzukis and an Isuzu Trooper. One day, Karen was stuck in a Jeep, and a Land Rover came by and pulled her right out, without even getting out to lock in the hubs. From then on, we only used Land Rovers – wife’s orders! She passed away in July but always loved her Land Rover! Here’s a photo of us and our Rovers in the driveway back in 2000. We ALWAYS made it home in those, which is why I still drive a Range Rover to this day. THANKS!

John Wedding

Pueblo, CO

[Please accept our condolences and thank you for sharing Karen’s enthusiasm for the marque. We anticipate that her outdoor-adventure and Green Oval spirit will live on through her children and grandchildren. -ed.]