The Land Rover was built as a post-war utility vehicle in a time when resources were scarce, so the design had to be both simple and functional. Over time, that simplicity of design has lent itself to many weird and wonderful modifications. 

Some of them have been adapted for sport performance, some for leisure and entertainment, and some out of necessity. 

One of these modified versions is the ‘Flon Rover’, as used by Network Rail, which is a road-rail Defender conversion.

What is a road-rail conversion?

Though perhaps not useful for the majority of Land Rover owners, the modification involves fitting electro-hydraulic bogies. The rail gear is lowered onto the track once the car is aligned and raised up afterwards.  

Although not quite the speed Land Rover engines are used to travelling at, rail-road conversion Land Rovers can travel up to 20 mph when on tracks. They can also manage 15 mph moving along them in reverse. 

The Network Rail vehicle is not the first road-rail conversion for a Land Rover. Previously, road-rail Land Rovers have been used to access remote parts of train tracks where repairs or inspections were needed.

Some Series I Land Rovers were modified to run on rails, too. However, for those vehicles, the road wheels had to be replaced with rail wheels before they could move along the tracks. 

Why was the ‘Flon Rover’ made?

We have all heard the jokes about trains being delayed by a leaf on the line, but damp leaves can cause a loss of friction on the rails. This can potentially cause derailments when travelling at speed.

The ‘Flon Rover’ allows for a solution called Interflon OTR to be sprayed onto the rails, which stops the build-up of foliage by breaking down the organic matter. 

The compound is sprayed onto the rails at the rear of the car and applied overnight to prevent disruption to schedules. Cleaner rails mean a safer, on-schedule train service and make the Defender a national hero once more.