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HomeCar CultureAt 87, she gets a literal ride along Land Rover memory lane

At 87, she gets a literal ride along Land Rover memory lane

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When she attended the 70th anniversary party for Land Rover back in June, 87-year-old Dorothy Peters took along some photos of the day when she worked for the British automaker back when she was a teenager. 

Among those who noticed her photos was Mike Bishop, engineering specialist and heritage expert for Land Rover Classic.

A teenaged Dorothy Peters poses with Land Rover No. 16

“Over the course of Land Rover Fest I was fortunate enough to talk to many enthusiasts and former employees,” he recalled. “When I was approached by a very charming lady with some pictures of her time at Solihull, I had no idea we would share a special connection.”

That connection was to the 16th Land Rover to roll off the assembly line. Peters poses next to the vehicle in one of her photos. As it turns out, Bishop now owns that very same vehicle.

“Her enthusiasm for the company and this vehicle in particular was wonderful as was her surprise when she discovered I now owned the car,” he said. “I knew instantly we needed to reunite them.”

So, over the course of the ensuing months, Bishop and others at Land Rover worked with Peters’ daughter to create a surprise for her, a ride in No. 16 on the company’s off-road course.

Dorothy Peters was reunited with a car she knew when she was a 15-year-old working at Land Rover | Land Rover

Peters was only 15 when she went to work in the service department at the Lode Lane factory where the first Land Rovers were being produced. 

“I couldn’t believe the reaction to my pictures at the Festival in Solihull,” Peters said. “I had no idea this one conversation would take me on a journey down memory lane and on the wonderful off-road track at Solihull. It all felt like a dream and I won’t ever forget it.”

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Larry Edsall
Larry Edsall
A former daily newspaper sports editor, Larry Edsall spent a dozen years as an editor at AutoWeek magazine before making the transition to writing for the web and becoming the author of more than 15 automotive books. In addition to being founding editor at ClassicCars.com, Larry has written for The New York Times and The Detroit News and was an adjunct honors professor at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.

5 COMMENTS

    • Me too, Stephen. It is the remembrance and the embracement of those memories – – -good memories- – -that tell a story that deserves to be told. I am a better person knowing of Ms. Peters and Mr. Bishop and their ties to Land Rover.

  1. That is so cool ! I got the chills reading this ! I believe the car would have a real connection with her 🙂 This was a great story !! I have a story with my brothers 77 Mgb that he gave me. He was 10 yrs older and passed resently, and that 77 mgb ….. oh… long story, but that story is so cool !

  2. What a beautiful memory for Mrs. Peters. What a beautiful surprise for Mr. Bishop. I really enjoyed watching the video. It was heart felt. The #16 Land Rover looks beautiful as well. Thank you for sharing Larry, I loved it

    Anthony

    • How wonderful Land Rover did this for her that is a great company to recognize one of their employees who worked for their company and 3/4 of a century ago!

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