Jay 36 (left) and Jay 19 during Hot Environment Testing of the V8 Efi in the USA in August 1989
Photos of the new vehicle were leaked and appeared in Autocar in February 1988
“ANOTHER challenge that the Project Jay team had to overcome was a major strike at Solihull, when around 6000 Land Rover hourly-paid workers went on strike for five weeks in early 1988,” remembers Brian Hipkins. “This was a particularly crucial time for the Build and Validation Programme and posed a significant threat to our crucial first builds. But due to the high level of commitment shown by all those involved in the build of these vehicles in Block 38, the Build Programme remained on target.
“A leaked photograph of a complete Jay design buck appeared on the front cover of Autocar magazine on 24 February 1988 under the headline ‘The Secret Range Rover for 1990’, and the company made a great show of trying to find the person responsible, including appointing John Stalker, the ex-deputy chief constable of Greater Manchester Police, to lead an investigation. No one was ever identified, and rumours circulated that the leak had been made by the company itself, to focus the striking workers’ attention on what they were throwing away!”
Brian has some more historical treasure to show me, including Issue Three of the Build and Validation Programme, dated 8 October 1987, which lists individual vehicles and their planned build dates and specifications, and what purpose each vehicle
