Australia truly is the lucky country. Why? Two reasons really. In the late 70s Rover Australia saw fit to mount the mighty Isuzu 4BD1 in the Stage One and 110 Land Rovers and history was created.

Secondly, we now get a second bite of the cherry with the release at auction of approximately 3000 ex-military 110s!

The 110 Land Rover with the 4BD1 is arguably the best Land Rover ever produced.

There is plenty of information out there about the 110 Land Rover used by the Australian Defence Force. Code-named 'Perentie' after the Australian lizard and the name of the original selection trials, the Perentie 110 was produced in both 4×4 and 6×6 configurations.

Both were fitted with the 3.9l 4BD1 Isuzu engine mated to the LT95 four speed gearbox. The 4×4 was naturally aspirated; the 6×6 was fitted with the 4BD1-T turbocharged version.

Why the hoo-ha over a thirty-something year old vehicle?

You need to drive one to understand, and those who have will agree there is no equal.

The 4BD1 is not for everyone, but if you want bulletproof reliability coupled with bags (and bags) of torque, then the 4BD1 has no rival.

Depending on the variant, you get maximum torque at 1800rpm, with most of this available at idle.

The 4×4 Perentie will return 10l/100km on the highway and you can expect a service life from ½ to one million kilometres (and then a cheap rebuild and you can go again!).

Other Land Rover engines may offer better performance, or better economy, but none offer the whole package like the 4BD1. Certainly none can offer the same stump-pulling torque at almost no revs even with complex electronic systems like stall control, hill start assist or hill descent control.

The Perentie was built as a bare bones no-nonsense soldier-proof vehicle. As such it is rough by modern standards, however some things can be done to drag them into the 21st century and at KLR we can help you create the best vehicle for your budget, because we not only love these machines, but we really do know how to get the most out of them.

Here’s a link to some proven KLR upgrades that will transform your vehicle!