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Current Owner: Unknown
Previous Owner(s): Pinson family, Walsall, Staffs; St.Bede's Preparatory School, Bishton Hall, Rugeley, Staffs.
September 2018: St.Bede's Prep School has closed, and the contents of Bishton Hall offered for auction by Hansons from October 10th to 15th. The online description states:
“There is even a series 1 Land Rover from 1958, estimate £5,000-£8,000. You could buy a classic car to explore your own country estate.”
I understand it sold for £19,000, but I have no further details.
I had an email from Jim Pinson, from Wellington in New Zealand, who said:
Was Googling [around] and found the reference to this old classic! My family owned it in Walsall from about 1980 to 1995. My father paid 600 quid for it! My sister and I learned to drive in it in the 80s.
We had a roll bar fitted — it was superb. Got stolen and stripped of some original parts in about 1995 I think.
Well clearly it was repaired and put back on the road for St.Bede's. Good to hear more of its history.
Chris Hill emailed me with even more information:
I was browsing through your website and saw that you’d recently received an email from Jim Pinson. I used to work for Jim’s father in the late 80s and knew SXF 474 very well. Jim’s father sold or transferred it to the company that he was senior partner of [and] it was used as the spare company pool car. It was resprayed around that time and I’d find any excuse to take it home and fettle it up a bit. I replaced the engine, as the original had suffered a cracked block, which had been repaired but opened up again.
 Chris Hill outside the Pinson offices |
 Chris Hill (right) and his brother-in-law replace the engine |
It was stolen from the company premises sometime around 1990, only to turn up a few weeks later in Wolverhampton. It had been stolen for parts, namely the roll bar that had been fitted, windscreen wiper motors and the brand new tyres that had not been long fitted — the thieves very kindly left it on a ropey old set. With the insurance pay out I put it back together and was able to treat it to a new hood.
The company sold it in 1992 just before I left. I have many fond memories of it, including taking it off road over a freshly ploughed field and a roundabout. [Intentionally?; Ed] I’ve included a couple of old photos from that time that I still have showing it. The DVLA show it as still being taxed but I have no idea of its whereabouts today.
A lovely bit of extra detail, Chris — thanks.
[To add (or alter) information on this page, please contact me on sxf@teeafit.co.uk.]