For me it's about character I think. it's a 10 minute walk from my house to the landy (I live in a fishing village with skinny streets, really skinny) and when I walk along to it I smile as soon as I see it poking up above the line of cars, I can't help it, I just grin like a bloody idiot.
I get in it and the height of it puts me at about the same height I would be if I was standing next to it, none of this stooping down, and I like that, I'm used to being bigger than people around me at 6'4" and I'm the same height in my landy.
I start the engine up and let it warm up for 5 minutes and it feels like home.
then I pull away and manovre out of the tiny parking space with the ease that is absent from most smaller car drivers around here, it makes me feel good about my abilities.
when I'm driving around everyone I know can recognise me easily so I get plenty waves, and of couse I always exchenge a wave and a stupid grin with other land rover drivers.
my work takes me into rough countryside and I feel confident going there in my landy, anywhere I think I can go I have been able to, my landy has not failed me yet. and I'd never get to such places on foot as I can't walk further than 100 yards at a time.
when I'm working on the landy it's usually so easy and everthing is tough and chunky, and I'm always being approached by people who used to have one or have friends who have them and have fond memories and/or amusing stories involving said landy.
I was even chatting to another photographer I know, he's part-time and hi his day job he has to drive a landy and he insisted he hates them, but he still had a selection of good things to say about them, and he's the only person I've ever met who doesn't like them.
I go to pick the kids up from school and I park among the shiny mercedes and pristine discos and rangies and there I am in my mud-splattered landy, and all the kids love-it, big chunky tyres, mud-spray, daft bloke in it in a funny hat, they always want to stop and look at it, the boys come over with comments like "cool truck" or "I like your landy" or sometimes, "cool jeep" (little sod).
Land Rovers are very very cool. they are what cars should be.
you drive it and you feel like you are driving it. when I drive most cars I look at thinking "do I actually need to be here?".
land rovers, we love-em. everyone loves-em.
Regards. Mark.(AKA, Mr.Nice.)