Bringing Classic Defenders Back to Life
Full Service Workshops Located In: England, United States, Spain, and South Africa
About Bishop+Rook
We are team of Land Rover enthusiasts divided by geography, but united by our love and passion for giving new life to these unique and timeless classics.
Free Consultation
If you’re considering adopting or building a vintage Land Rover, we would love to spend a little time with you answering questions and helping you go down the right path. There’s no obligation, just a friendly phone call with folks that want to help.
Education + Resources
There’s a lot of information we wish we knew when we got our first Defender. We dedicate a lot of time to helping others like you work through the process.
Who We Are
The Bishop+Rook Team
We are group of Defender enthusiasts that have dedicated our careers to preserving and building vintage Land Rover Defenders. We have three fully operational workshops located in Minneapolis/Renville, Minnesota and Salisbury, England where we source, refresh, restore, and build some of the most timeless vehicles on the planet.
What We Believe
A Defender for Everyone
We believe in providing high-quality, reasonably-priced, Land Rover Defenders that can go anywhere and do everything. Whether you’re looking for a unique low-mileage Defender survivor or a complete nut-and-bolt bespoke restoration, we want to be the team that provides you with your dream vehicle.
Why It Matters
Sharing Our Experience
We believe not only in transparency in pricing, but also the restoration and build process. We provide a unique” behind the scenes” look into the methods, time, and process it takes to build a truly remarkable Defender – showing both the good and the bad. We’re also eager to share helpful advice and tips for those just beginning the research process.
Who Builds Your Defender Should Matter
There are a lot of dressed up budget Defenders on the market for those looking to get a good deal and also a lot of dressed up Defenders that are simply overpriced. Our Midwest values and English sensibilities refuse to let us put anything on the market we’re not 100% proud to say we built it ourselves at a price we feel is fair.
Our Dedication to Our Craft
You have a lot of choices when it comes to buying or building a custom Land Rover Defender. Several custom and bespoke Defender builders are simply middle men brokers, passing off the completed projects as their own work, even when the vehicle was completely built by someone else, somewhere else. We think this is wrong.
We build our own Defenders (and just Defenders) – from start to finish. We work in messy workshops with real tools, not in tweed jackets on polished concrete. We’re here to build honest daily driving Defenders that will last forever.
Building a Custom Land Rover Defender
We are a custom Land Rover Defender builder. We supply full-service sourcing and restoration services for those looking to acquire a vintage Land Rover Defender. We offer everything from driving restorations to complete nut-and-bolt builds.
The process is fairly straightforward. We start with a simple conversation about what you’re ultimately looking for – Defender 90, 110, 130, or something else. From there we discuss options for right-hand drive or left-hand drive, hard-top or soft-top, engine package, and finishing touches.
We’re always eager to share our knowledge and help folks get the Defender they’ve always dreamed. of.
Built Not Bought: Getting The Ultimate Land Rover Defender
We don’t sell used Defenders. We build Defenders. Explaining the difference between building a custom Defender and buying one that’s already complete is a struggle for us sometimes.
Let Us Guide You Through The Process
You have a lot of choices when it comes to acquiring and owning a vintage Land Rover Defender. Who you trust to source, build, or refresh your Defender matters. We, of course, hope you chose Bishop+Rook.
+01 612.424.1642 (Mobile/Text) / +01 612.424.1642 (WhatsApp) / +44 7868 791544 – Salisbury, UK
Overview
We’ve never really liked the idea of “Buying a Defender,” which is why we refer to it as an adoption process. Becoming a caretaker of one of these unique vehicles means accepting responsibility for their maintenance, use, and general well being. We feel there is a general duty to preserve the history and story of each of the vehicles we build. When you adopt a Defender from Bishop+Rook you become part of a larger community of aficionados and adventurers.
Don’t settle for a Defender that lacks a personality and history.
The Bishop+Rook Offering
Bishop+Rook started out of a passion for giving new life to vintage Land Rovers. Today, we build unique and custom Defenders for those who appreciate having a relationship with their vehicle and want to invest in the accompanying lifestyle.
Timeless Defender Builds
The core of our business is designing and building custom Land Rover Defenders. We source donor vehicles from around the world – United Kingdom, Spain, France, Italy, and other far reaches along the dusty trails of the wild. These vehicles become the base for everything from a sympathetic driving preservation to complete nut-and-bolt restoration.
Sourcing + Importing
Not all of our projects are complete builds. When we find a unique Defender that has a good story, character, and patina, we set them aside for someone to welcome into their life of adventure. Not all Defenders require full restoration – sometimes the best thing to do is leave them as they are – giving them some mechanical maintenance and love to ensure another life of adventure ahead.
Service + Maintenance
When you adopt a Bishop+Rook Defender you become part of a family of aficionados who aim to keep these classic vehicles on the road as long as possible. We will always be around – locally or remotely – to service and maintain your Defender – no matter where your adventure may take you in the world.
Meet the Bishop+Rook Team:
One of the foundational elements of our company has always been to be a teacher and guide for those looking to get into vintage Defenders. That translates to the workshop. We firmly believe in training ambitious young apprentices the right way to keep these old Landys on the road.
We’ve partnered with several local colleges to take on the task of teaching and training apprentices. It’s our way of passing on the methods and processes we’ve developed over the years and to keep them alive for another generation.
These apprentices team up with senior members of the team to learn the trade, perfect their craft, and ultimately put part of themselves into every one of our Defender projects.
The team behind the scenes are the ones that really matter the most, as they are the ones ensuring we maintain some of the highest standards in the industry.
#defender #landroverdefender #landrover #defender90 #defender110 #defender130 #bishoprook #lifeofadventure #4x4 #defenderrestoration #overland #landroverseries #classiccar
Pearl White Defender 110 - Final Test Drives.
#defender #landroverdefender #landrover #defender90 #defender110 #defender130 #bishoprook #lifeofadventure #4x4 #defenderrestoration #overland #landroverseries #classiccar
While the 300Tdi might be easier and more reliable to maintain over time, the TD5 does sound cool.
#defender #landroverdefender #landrover #defender90 #defender110 #defender130 #bishoprook #lifeofadventure #4x4 #defenderrestoration #overland #boxycar #landroverseries #classiccar #td5
A behind-the-scenes look at a proper chassis restoration of a Land Rover Defender 90. We have an extended video on our YouTube channel where we break down the restoration process of these vintage Land Rover Defenders.
We strip each Bishop+Rook Heritage Land Rover Defender down to a bare chassis before carefully building it back up - nut by nut, bolt by bolt. It`s a tedious process, but
one that ensures each of our builds will last the test of time. It does take a lot of hours, of course. But when investing in a vehicle you plan to keep forever, there`s no room for error, shortcuts, or half-done jobs.
We build Defenders for people who plan to drive and enjoy them. It is an investment, but more of an investment in yourself, the life you want to live, and the adventures you will take.
#defender #landroverdefender #landrover #defender90 #defender110 #defender130 #bishoprook #lifeofadventure #4x4 #defenderrestoration #overland #landroverseries #classiccar
We are working on a variety of behind the scenes videos to help people understand the process that goes into properly restoring a vintage Land Rover Defender.
We have learned a lot about process, efficiency, and the need to have the necessary parts available when you need them.
As we have learned and developed a better process, we’ve decided to share these details with all of you.
This is a Land Rover Defender 90 chassis that came off an Italian military vehicle. It was the first time we never had to weld a chassis. As such, the build up went very smooth. We had all the components stripped, media blasted, seals, and painted. We has had an extensive pile of new parts needed to bring it all back together.
The goal is always to get the chassis rolling again so we can install brake and fuel lines and ultimately put the drivetrain back on a finished chassis.
From that point we will place the painted bulkhead and continue to build up around the heart of the Defender.
#landrover #landroverdefender #defender90 #defenderrestoration #onelifeliveit
Where would you go with a fully outfitted Land Rover Defender?
#defender #defender110 #landroverdefender
We sent Project Knysna out into Kruger National Park with @karolinanoreewild over the weekend for a little South African exploration.
Earlier this year, we opened up a small satellite workshop to not only build adventure ready Defenders, but also to lay the groundwork for future Bishop+Rook Travel and Expedition tours.
Our goal is to allow people to experience Land Rover Defenders in their natural habitat - including camping, overland adventures, nature spotting, and photography tours.
More details coming in the next few months.
#defender #defender110 #landroverdefender #overland #krugernationalpark
Project Knysna is out exploring Kruger National Park in South Africa this weekend with the talented nature photographer @karolinanoreewild and her partner @craig_reid_wildlife. This will be a serve we offer to customers starting in 2024 as we start to roll out some Defender experiences around the world.
Where would you go?
#defender #landroverdefender #landrover #defender90 #defender110 #lifeofadventure #defenderrestoration #overland #overlanding
