Maybe........I did check a few Searle numbers while at Gaydon and did confirm that a similar methodology could be applied, but I think the assumption that all Land Rovers going from Solihull to Searle must be Carawagons is probably flawed for just the reason you mention. Searle converted and supplied Land Rovers a number of those would have been standard vehicles.RMS wrote:I wonder if we'll get a volunteer to check the records for Searle vehicles
Do you know if MW also sold 'standard' Land Rovers? I know Searle/Carawagon International sold non-Carawagons! Eg. Patrick's SWB was supplied by Searle, though it has never been a Carawagon or Safari Sleeper - just has a "Supplied by Searle" badge on the back
However Martin Walter converted LandRovers, Bedfords, VW etc but did not operate as a direct retail outlet, hence in my humble opinion did not sell standard Land Rovers or any other marque. When you bought a Dormobile it was bought from a local dealer and this is where the Land Rover factory records are less than useful as there is no way of knowing where a Dormobile was eventually retailed from.
To trace where any standard Land Rover was supplied from is simple, the Factory Records tell you which dealer or organisation it was despatched to (some of these despatches are very interesting in their own right, with vehicles sent to every corner of the British Empire) however tracing a LandRover Dormobile post conversion is impossible from the Factory records as the entry is to MW Folkestone not the retailing dealer. I can still remember as a youngster in the early 70s watching my father drive down the road after collecting our first Dormobile which came via Westover Motors in Poole.
Kind regards
Phil
