I turned Land Rover Defender into a tiny home for £1.5k – people told us there was ‘no way’…but we even have an office
A COUPLE converted an old Land Rover Defender into a luxury tiny home without breaking the bank.
Matt and Jess, based in Yorkshire, documented how they bought the iconic 36-year-old car and undertook its major conversion.
The videos of their project for the 1988 Land Rover Defender 110 went viral for the uniqueness of vehicle choice.
The car itself set the pair back £4,500 when they found the worse for wear vehicle for sale on Facebook Marketplace.
After purchasing it, the two of them set about refurbishing parts of the vehicle in order to get it road worthy, which cost around £800 and took many months.
Timber, insulation, and other material for the classy interior came out to £430, along with an extra £390 on accessories.
The couple worked tirelessly on the 4×4 themselves to create the final product.
All in all, the additional costs for improving the car’s components and then converting it into a tiny home cost roughly £3,500, of which £1,500 was spent on the latter.
In videos on their TikTok, the couple can be seen camping in fields with a stylish pop out awning at the rear of the car for their near 200 thousand followers.
When one viewer asked how difficult it was to live with the low ceiling, the couple said: “We had to get used to the small space [but] the awning makes it feel a lot bigger.”
Other viewers expressed their love for the conversion in other ways.
One said: “My dream!”
While another commented: “Never been so jealous in all my life.”
Countless others commented on their own conversion projects or how they may be inspired to undertake a Land Rover refurbishment after watching their videos.
Their most popular video on the conversion has amassed over three million views and 110 thousand likes.
The recent boom in mobile homes and the ever-popular downsizing trend have shined the spotlight on many incredible examples of alternative living.
Van or bus conversions, tiny homes, RVs repurposed for permanent residency, travel trailers, and pop-up homes are good examples of the way in which many people are trying to travel more, live on the road, or simply reduce their carbon footprint.
Rules on living in a car
CAR LIVING is on the up as people struggle to deal with the cost of living crisis, and others are seeking a nomadic existence.
Here’s all we know about the rules on car life in the UK.
In the UK, you are legally allowed to live in your car— just so long as you follow a few rules.
The only requirement is that your car has passed its MOT and is entirely road-legal.
If legally parked, there aren’t rules against sleeping or living in a car.
The trend of car or van living has taken off in the United States, where some have been forced to leave rented accommodation after landlords put up the rent.
Others have opted to live in their vehicle in pursuit of a free, nomadic lifestyle, where they can travel all over the country.
There are certain circumstances in which it’s not legal to sleep in a car in the UK.
Firstly, you must be in a safe parking spot, not in violation of any parking restrictions.
Certain car parks, lay-bys, and national parks and forests have restrictions on overnight parking, which means you can’t sleep there in a vehicle.
If restrictions are broken, you could be fined or even have your vehicle towed.
Secondly, you must not be above the legal drink-drive limit or under the influence of any drugs, if you intend to sleep in your car.
If over the limit, you could be charged with being drunk in charge of a motor vehicle in a public place, even if you’re not driving.
The ban on sleeping in your car when you’re drunk comes under the Road Traffic Act 1988.
The rule says you can be found guilty of an offence if in charge of a vehicle on a road or public place “after consuming so much alcohol that the proportion of it in his breath, blood or urine exceeds the prescribed limit.”