April 30: Land Rover was born on this date in 1948

Sixty-five years ago today -- on April 30, 1948 -- the first Land Rover prototype premiered at the Amsterdam Motor Show. Cobbled together from Rover parts (it used a 1.6-liter engine from the Rover P3 sedan) and a Jeep chassis, the Series I was billed as "a go-anywhere vehicle, a portable source of power, and an alternative to the light tractor."* To illustrate the utilitarian nature of the vehicle, doors were sold separately.

[Photo credit: Land Rover Our Planet / Flickr]