Coolnvintage creates bespoke Land Rovers for discerning lovers of utilitarian style

Cold heaters and the smell of diesel, damp, oil and mould. Clunky transmissions, a jarring ride and glacial progress. Those are a few of the things I remember about Land Rovers from being bounced about in them as a child in the days before they were seen as hip accessories for well-heeled types with a yen for adventure.

Who could have seen that coming when the utilitarian vehicle now universally known as the ‘Defender’ (among the uninitiated) was employed almost exclusively as a workhorse, not as a trinket?

It all changed, ironically, around the time that Jaguar Land Rover decided the ‘old’ Defender was no longer fit for purpose. Its crash-unfriendly bodywork, lack of safety devices, harsh ride and terrible turning circle, they said, deemed it eligible for the axe in 2016 after almost 68 years of loyal service.

But, as Joni Mitchell sang in ‘Big yellow Taxi’: ‘Don’t it always seem to go, you never know what you got ’til it’s gone…’ Although in this case, plenty of people did know what they had (or what they wanted): a super-cool style statement which, due to its basic shape, simple engineering and built-in versatility, represented a perfect blank canvas on which to express an owner’s individuality.

One man who recognised that years ago is Ricardo Bessoa who set out to turn his love for old Landies into a business back in 2012 by founding Lisbon-based Coolnvintage (CNV), one of the first companies to specialise in next-level Land Rover restorations.

Bessoa, a self-confessed perfectionist, wanted his Land Rovers to be not merely presentable rebuilds, but rolling works of art with perfect panels, flawless paintwork and tailored upholstery draped over the top of a pristine chassis and perfect mechanicals.

Being a perfectionist, however, means Bessoa needs time to craft your dream Land Rover. As a result, it takes up to three years for his 17-strong team to transform a down-at-heel restoration project into a gleaming machine that will turn heads from Los Angeles to St Tropez.

The magic doesn’t happen in a typical, oil-soaked workshop but in a two-storey industrial building that feels more like a vast art space where the installations take the form of Land Rovers (strictly the ‘Series’ models built between 1948 and the early 1980s, and the Land Rover 90 and 110 ranges that followed before being renamed ‘Defender’ in 1990).

Rows of donor cars in the basement contrast with finished restorations on the ground floor to show the ‘before’ and ‘after’ of a CNV transformation, which can turn a £5,000 basket case into a leather-lined Landy on which the paint job alone has cost five times the unrestored car’s purchase price.

Bessoa admits he’s personally not much good with a spanner, but his artist’s eye and marketeer’s brain have put Coolnvintage at the top of the table among an ever-burgeoning roster of Land Rover restorers, customisers and resto-modders.

It helped that he was among the first to realise that there are plenty of millionaires (and billionaires) who don’t have the skill, time or inclination to do such work themselves, but will pay whatever it takes for someone else to create a vehicle that is entirely bespoke to their requirements.

Such types can be demanding, but few are as demanding as Bessoa himself, who was so determined that the rebuild process should be as smooth as possible that he employed UK-based consultancy the Kaizen Institute to work out the best set-up to ensure optimum workflow.

That means each project begins with every nut, bolt, washer and grommet being stripped off, labelled, photographed, bagged and boxed. Larger parts are palletised, with the components from each dismantled vehicle being kept together in crates in their own, dedicated areas.

After that, everything is individually assessed and either fully refurbished or replaced with another, OEM (original equipment manufacturer) part with the aim of keeping the rebuild as Land Rover-original as possible – and meticulous documentation of the whole process means there’s a permanent record of every part that comes off or goes on.

Where necessary, chassis are replaced with galvanised versions and body panels are preserved or remade to original quality. Even the smallest components are painted or treated to ensure maximum longevity, while final assembly (carried out after at least one dry run) aims for millimetre-perfect panel gaps, impeccable door closure and a rattle-free ride.

And since each build is unique, buyers can choose everything from the colour of the paint to the materials for the interior trim and from the type of engine (so long as it was originally used by Land Rover) to whether it drives through automatic or manual transmission.

While they are waiting, Bessoa keeps them interested by sending his own beautifully framed, large-format art photographs of unrestored bits from their car, such as an original, time-worn ignition key, a rusty radiator cap or a buckled VIN plate.

And, as soon as a lengthy build is completed, he records the engine sound at initial start-up and has it pressed onto a single, vinyl record that he hands-over on delivery.

Which all helps to explain why a Coolnvintage resto takes three years – and possibly why it costs upwards of £150,000, too.

Coolnvintage.com, @Coolnvintage