Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
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This is a reworked and reuploaded version of the original video.
Hello! :D
Another seldom remembered aspect of British Leyland, the Sherpa vans and Freight Rover division of the expansive corporate monolith was in fact one of the firm's biggest profit makers during the early 1980s, accounting for a proportion of the UK van market that even gave the venerable Ford Transit a run for its money.
However, while this success was carried through briefly following its sale to DAF NV during 1987, the long-term future for Leyland-DAF and later the LDV Group was unfortunately dictated by its inability to create more modern vehicles, with the demands for vans with a greater degree of comfort, safety and performance seeing the near 30 year old products of the Washwood Heath company look distinctly out of place.
Chapters:
0:00 - Preamble
0:40 - Origins and Changing Tastes
2:36 - Innovation on a Shoestring Budget
6:45 - Enter the Sherpa
8:49 - Freight Rover and Privatisation
10:57 - Double Dutch
13:18 - Refreshing the Range
14:45 - Problems Begin
16:38 - The LDV Group
19:13 - Showing Their Age
21:36 - International Collaborations
25:24 - The First Collapse
26:53 - The Final Collapse
28:33 - Conclusion
All video content and images in this production have been provided with permission wherever possible. While I endeavour to ensure that all accreditations properly name the original creator, some of my sources do not list them as they are usually provided by other, unrelated YouTubers. Therefore, if I have mistakenly put the accreditation of 'Unknown', and you are aware of the original creator, please send me a personal message at my Gmail (this is more effective than comments as I am often unable to read all of them): rorymacveigh@gmail.com
The views and opinions expressed in this video are my personal appraisal and are not the views and opinions of any of these individuals or bodies who have kindly supplied me with footage and images.
If you enjoyed this video, why not leave a like, and consider subscribing for more great content coming soon.
Press the Join button to get access to new videos a week ahead of schedule by becoming a channel member for just £2.99 a month!
Paypal: paypal.me/rorymacve?country.x=GB&locale.x=en_GB
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Thanks again, everyone, and enjoy! :D
References:
- AROnline (and their respective sources)
- Wikipedia (and its respective references)
Join this channel to get early access to new videos a week ahead of their public release:
youtube.com/channel/UCC8R7kmt-W14zWUcr8mymEQ/join
This is a reworked and reuploaded version of the original video.
Hello! :D
Another seldom remembered aspect of British Leyland, the Sherpa vans and Freight Rover division of the expansive corporate monolith was in fact one of the firm's biggest profit makers during the early 1980s, accounting for a proportion of the UK van market that even gave the venerable Ford Transit a run for its money.
However, while this success was carried through briefly following its sale to DAF NV during 1987, the long-term future for Leyland-DAF and later the LDV Group was unfortunately dictated by its inability to create more modern vehicles, with the demands for vans with a greater degree of comfort, safety and performance seeing the near 30 year old products of the Washwood Heath company look distinctly out of place.
Chapters:
0:00 - Preamble
0:40 - Origins and Changing Tastes
2:36 - Innovation on a Shoestring Budget
6:45 - Enter the Sherpa
8:49 - Freight Rover and Privatisation
10:57 - Double Dutch
13:18 - Refreshing the Range
14:45 - Problems Begin
16:38 - The LDV Group
19:13 - Showing Their Age
21:36 - International Collaborations
25:24 - The First Collapse
26:53 - The Final Collapse
28:33 - Conclusion
All video content and images in this production have been provided with permission wherever possible. While I endeavour to ensure that all accreditations properly name the original creator, some of my sources do not list them as they are usually provided by other, unrelated YouTubers. Therefore, if I have mistakenly put the accreditation of 'Unknown', and you are aware of the original creator, please send me a personal message at my Gmail (this is more effective than comments as I am often unable to read all of them): rorymacveigh@gmail.com
The views and opinions expressed in this video are my personal appraisal and are not the views and opinions of any of these individuals or bodies who have kindly supplied me with footage and images.
If you enjoyed this video, why not leave a like, and consider subscribing for more great content coming soon.
Press the Join button to get access to new videos a week ahead of schedule by becoming a channel member for just £2.99 a month!
Paypal: paypal.me/rorymacve?country.x=GB&locale.x=en_GB
Ko-Fi: ko-fi.com/rorymacve
Thanks again, everyone, and enjoy! :D
References:
- AROnline (and their respective sources)
- Wikipedia (and its respective references)
