Like her sister Bilberry, Briar is not a Series 2A model but the less common and short-lived Series 2. Although the Series 2 differed little from the later 2A, it represented a far more significant diversion from the original Series 1, which it replaced in 1958. The Series 2 was the first Land Rover to receive the attentions of the Rover styling department, introducing iconic features such as the ‘barrel sides’ to accommodate its wider track, plus the curved vertical rear quarter windows (on hardtop models) and distinctive angular but round-edged roof profile that remained a hallmark until production ended in 2015. Mechanically, the major change was a shift from the asthmatic 2-litre engines to the far superior 2.25-litre units.
Briar dates from the last year of Series 2 production in 1961 – she was exactly 2,400 cars and around six weeks behind Bilberry on the production line, leaving the factory in late February but beating her sister onto the road, being first registered in April compared to Bilberry’s May.