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Written by Editor
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 Following the Radio Awards of Singapore, Nobel Peace Prize, Bookers Award, etc, we thought that we'd do our little award too - purely paperplay of course. No real SUV / 4x4 are hurt in the process.
Land Rover Series / Defender (circa 1947 - today)
What started as a farmer's vehicle, turns to become a hardy military accessory. England's equivalent to America's Jeep, and the first prototype was actually a loosely modified version of the Jeep, the Land Rover defined most of benchmark of a reliable 4x4 machine.
Eerily unchanged for the past 5 decades, the Defender soldiers on in civilian and military service. In the light of the pressures of time and tide, the 2003 Defender looks set to feature power windows (gulp!) but off-road performance continues with the 2.5L direct-injection turbo diesel TD5. Although some may find the TD5 a little stingy on torque, it serves its purpose well as a low maintenance vehicle for the recreational off-roader and the Landie fan.
Land Cruiser (circa 1951 - today)
Built in an attempt to win the bid to serve in the Police Patrol Force (later becoming the Self-Defense Force), the BJ was an accomplished vehicle, but it lost the bid in the end to Mitsubishi's entry, a knocked-down version of the Willys Overland Jeep.
But the LC continues its rise to fame and conquered the hearts of many, within Japan and beyond, to become the one vehicle from the Land of the Rising Sun that is at least comparable as an icon as the Jeep and the Land Rover. Whether as a workhorse like the LC40, 60 and 70 series, a mid-sized SUV for the family like the 90, or a luxury limousine like the 80 and later the 100, the LC runs with the big boys of 4x4 and often out does and out sells the competition.
In many of our travels to off-road communities, the brand Toyota, the perceived reliability and what Japanese motors are capable for is often summarized in the Land Cruiser.
Pajero (circa 1982 - today)
Born as a concept car in 1973, based on a customized Jeep J52 (Mitsubishi built the Willys Overland for Japan under license), the Pajero, has always been some sort of an oddball, having features considered ahead of its peers. Innovations include front independent suspension from the onset, a petrol turbo version in 1984, a direct gasoline engine in 1987, all-independent suspension in 1999. While not always the first in innovation, being among the best-selling SUV in its class around the world means that when it introduces innovations, the world stands up and notices. A major force in influencing the winds of change in 4x4 / SUV.
Jeep by Willys Overland (circa 1950)
This is the one vehicle that gave birth to the term we use so loosely today.
Built to fulfill the US Army's vision of a Truck 1/4 Ton 4x4 Jeep and a term which many claims ownership to, Jeep is what many perceive a 4x4 is all about. Going everywhere and ferrying people too. Nevermind whether "Jeep" was a slang for GP (for General Purpose) or named after the comic character, Eugene the Jeep, the 7-slotted grille, simple wedgy lines is the definitive grandfather of the genre.
Disregard all else, this is THE Jeep to behold.
Suzuki Jeep, Jimny LJ series (circa 1970 - now)
While the other big manufacturers fights for a piece of the big 4x4, little Suzuki made good what the 360cc Hopestar started. Good simple and lightweight 4x4 machine.
An icon in every way, the Suzuki series has served as the first 4x4 many would have started with. The lure is how manageable and easily modified the vehicles are. Being light overcomes the problem of small engine displacement (and consequently lack of power). It does this by simply not needing as much power to begin with. While the big bores like the Pajero and Land Cruiser need raw grunt to overcome obstacles, the Jimny simply skirts through, proving that a capable package is not defined by price or horsepower output, but simply brilliant design.
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