Model History

The Santana company was founded in 1956 as “Metalurgica de Santa Ana” and, just like Lamborghini, originally manufactured agricultural equipment.  Three-years later they reached an agreement with Land Rover, allowing them to manufacture the Rover Series II in other parts of the world.  The large majority of the vehicles manufactured in these first years went to the Armed Police, Civil Guard, Ministry of Public Works, and Spanish Armed Forces.

Exporting their trucks to areas the Land Rover company couldn’t reach themselves, Santana realized they could grow their business in other ways . They supplied fully-built and completely knocked-down (CKD) kits to be assembled in Central and South America, North Africa and the Middle East, Morocco, Iran and Costa Rica. Because of this, Santanas didn’t get to enjoy the posh areas of Europe as much as Land Rovers did…and as a result Santana had to deal with complaints/failings at a faster pace. This eventually led to the evolution of many slight differences between the Land Rover and Santana models in the years to come.

Santana saw huge success with their military vehicle…so much so they offered a variant for civilian use. It was a development parallel to the Land Rover 1/2 ton British Lightweight, with which it has little in common. A number of improvements were introduced including a new engine block and suspension changes. The market for leisure vehicles was rapidly growing (think Jeep) and so Santana produced the ‘Ligero’ (Ligero = ‘Light weight’), a civilian version of the Series III ‘Militar’ lightweight-style vehicle.  Soft-top or hardtop options were available, as were varied color choices. The arrival of new competitors, mainly Japanese, caused their withdrawal from the Rover market and the eventual contractual arrangement with the Japanese automaker Suzuki.

Car History

Today Second Daily is proud to present this left hand diesel Santana 109 wearing new period correct Keswick Green. It has been fitted with a new interior with seating for nine and shows approximately 37900kms on the odometer. It has received new interior door panels, door seals, shocks, glow plugs, brake slave cylinder, bumper corners, headlight bezels, seat belts up front, and carpeting. The body presents without dents and has only minor apologies inside such as a cracked dashboard and missing heater vent.

Exterior

Outside the new paint wears well. The diamond plating is said to cover up nothing, the seller reports this Santana is rust free except for some minor rust on the door screw heads and some minor surface rust on some of the galvy capping. Door bottoms are reportedly solid. There are no reported dents or any that could be seen. No obvious mis-alignments can be seen.

The grill and lights have been changed out from original though you would never know that unless you knew that. Perhaps you’ve heard, “how can you tell the difference between a Land Rover and a Santana? You can’t, unless you can.” Inside hint, count the number of observation panels in the roof and windshield wipers…that will give it away.

The 7.5×16 Conforts over white 5-lug steelies look the part and show plenty of tread left. The rear mounted spare is a close-enough match.

Interior

Inside, seating is for nine, front (2), middle (3) and rear (4) jump seats. This 109 has received all new vinyl seating surfaces, carpeting, and paint to match the exterior. The floor pans show no signs of rust, and everything appears quite neat and tidy. The non-original wooden steering wheel adds a nice textured feel.

The headliner and trim all show well, some minor areas of imperfection can be seen but remember, this is a utilitarian 9-seater with 7.5×16 military tires outside.

Final Thoughts

This Santana is a great example of a light restoration done tastefully, not overdone with bespoke Sawtooth wheels and Puma dashes, but rather a few modern touches of improved seating in an otherwise sparse interior, along with an exterior staying mostly original and raw. If you’ve come looking for cruise control and fine leather stitching, we’re sorry but those are about $80k more than the current reserve set here. We also prefer this approach to the those builds but don’t let our opinions bias you.

Here is your opportunity to get into a rust free left hand drive 5-door Santana / Rover Series for less money than a rotted out NAS D90 good for only a title. This 109 has a clean clear title in the seller’s name and ships from southern Georgia (the state, not the country).

Register to bid now.

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