You Can Now Buy A Himalaya Land Rover Restomod From A Canadian Dealership

Summary

• Restomods are popular and lucrative; options like Singer, Alfaholics, and Frontline Cars capitalize on automotive nostalgia.
• Himalaya is now available through Grand Touring Automobiles in Canada, offering custom Land Rover Defenders and Series 88/109s.
• Prices for custom Himalaya builds start at $175,000 CAD, with models like Project Griff, Seaside, and Mariner in stock.

Restomods, the art of restoring a classic car all while upgrading some of its mechanical and, at times, styling features, has become a highly lucrative business. There’s now a lot of choice out there for someone with money to spare and a taste for something unique. Companies like Singer, Alfaholics, Frontline Cars, Speedkore, and Kimera Automobili – and I could go on – all bank hard on automotive nostalgia.

To that list, you can add Himalaya, a niche automotive manufacturer from Charleston, South Carolina that’s built a reputation restomodding and custom-building classic Land Rover Defenders and Series 88/109s. A quick peak at their website reveals a healthy roster of custom builds.

But my gripe with these outlets is that, in the event that I one day manage to acquire one of their cars (very unlikely), I would need to work with a company that’s not in my home city or even my home country. As a Canadian, I often find it frustrating to discover that I can’t just go check out a Singer 911 at a dealership near me.

Well, I’m happy to report that if you’re interested in these Himalaya Land Rovers, there’s a dealership group in Canada that has you covered, allowing you to buy one directly from one of its showrooms.

Redefining The Concept Of Exclusivity

Established in 1974, Grand Touring Automobiles, which serves both the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and the Calgary Metropolitan Region (CMR), is no stranger to exclusivity. It holds under its umbrella a full plethora of well-established ultra high-end luxury brands, such as Land Rover, but also Bentley, Rolls-Royce, Rimac, Lamborghini and even Bugatti, just to name a few.

The dealership group announced last month that it had become the first and only official Canadian distributor for Himalaya trucks, allowing the company, as per its press release, to enforce its reputation as a premier retailer of luxury automobiles.

“Himalaya is redefining what it means to drive a Defender. The premium quality of the builds, coupled with their respect for the iconic heritage of the Land Rover brand, make them the perfect addition to our product offering in Canada. Our customers demand the best in luxury and performance, and we’re excited to bring them a unique and collectible choice from the Himalaya.” – Grand Touring Automobiles’ CEO Paul Cummings

Thanks to this agreement, you can order your Himalaya the same way you would your new Aston Martin, by sitting down with a sales representative in a physical showroom.

All Himalayas are custom-built orders, with pricing varying depending on the build itself. According to Chad Eusepi, Senior JLR Specialist at Grand Touring Automobiles, the starting price for one of these bad boys is technically $175,000 CAD (or about $130,000 USD), but he specifies that the price can take you as high as your dreams will take you.

“We initiate the process, but once interest is confirmed an initial deposit is collected, customers are connected directly with the factory and we all work together to get the build going. There are no limits to what’s possible.” – Chad Eusepi, Grand Touring Automobiles

Grand Touring Automobiles prides itself on having three of the company’s most iconic models in stock; Project Griff, Project Seaside, and Project Mariner. Here’s the full rundown for each model.

Project Griff

Based on a five-door Defender 110, Project Griff is dressed in a matte tan paintwork, complimented by black accents. There’s a custom front bumper with an integrated winch, custom rock sliders with power folding boards, added fender flares, and a front-runner roof rack. The rig was then fitted with a custom coilover suspension setup, Dynatrac Axles with limited slip front and rear differentials, as well as Brembo disc brakes.

Project Griff is powered by a R2.8 Cummins turbo diesel engine and an automatic transmission. The truck comes out of the shop with seating for five, but Himalaya offers the option of adding four matching inward-facing jump seats in the cargo area. The entire interior was upgraded and modernized to appear more premium and on par with today’s standards.

Project Seaside

Project Seaside is based on a Series 88 body, finished in Aga Blue, which is actually a vintage Porsche color. Its drivetrain was upgraded to a Land Rover 200tdi engine, paired to a five-speed manual transmission. To improve its driving dynamics, Himalaya fitted the truck with power steering, disc brakes and upgraded Land Rover Defender axles.

While rugged on the outside, the Seaside’s interior is all about classic form follows function design, with a minimalist approch, vintage mechanical gauges, and a wooden steering wheel. A suede-like texture covers the front seats and center console, while the floor of the rear cargo area is made out of wood.

Project Mariner

Last but not least, Project Mariner, a model that’s also based on the Series 88, but finished in Marine blue. It also packs a much more potent GM LS3 V8 engine under the hood, paired with a five-speed manual transmission. It, too, gets power steering, disc brakes and upgraded Land Rover Defender axles, as well as a custom coil sprung chassis.

The Mariner also has a much fancier interior than the Seaside, finished in chestnut leather and wood accents throughout. The custom center console apparently hides an audio package and Bluetooth connectivity. All of Himalaya’s builds come with a modern air conditioning and heater package.

Capitalizing On Nostalgia

Grand Touring Automobiles offering its customers the option of custom-ordering a restomoded Land Rover comes at a time when the entire auto industry is capitalizing hard on nostalgia. For a dealer, it’s also a fantastic way to express the heritage behind the Land Rover brand.

We’ve seen retro comebacks from a variety of different carmakers in recent years, everything from the Lamborghini Countach to the Acura Integra. Mercedes-Benz is banking more than ever on its classic collection these days, and BMW wants everyone to remember that it supports its classic models through a parts’ replication service.

In the premium, high-dollar automotive space, this thirst for nostalgia and exclusivity seems to be even stronger. After all, it allows the customer to truly leave the showroom with something unique, a vehicle nobody else will show up in at the next VIP event. What better way to express your originality than pulling up in a beautifully restored Series 88 vintage Land Rover?