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[Mycroft]

Currently for sale on Facebook, this less than original looking '63 diesel with an interesting home made cab conversion. For those who like checker plate or funky paint jobs maybe. A bargain at £4,500...

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/119858454449838/?ref=browse_tab&referral_code=marketplace_top_picks&referral_story_type=top_picks

[GHOBHW]

looks very...interesting

I am sure 557 EXU is an old GPO reg

[Mycroft]

Ah I wonder. I've know lots of BLE and UXVs were GPO. Apparently it starts and stops, but not so much that the seller was willing to risk moving it to take any pictures that got the full truck in - the one above is the only one that gets close. I always find this sort of thing fascinating, where so much effort has been put in, but the overall effect ends up being somewhere on the strange/tragic axis.

[Alan Drover]

It's currently taxed and last V5C issued April 2023.;No MOT history though.

[Mycroft]

What's the chassis, I wonder? Longer than 88", but I can't see if it's quite the full 109".

[GHOBHW]

can confirm the reg is ex GPO, its meant to be a 109, as the 557 EXU belonged to a 109 with a simon elevating platform

be pretty hard to put back to what it was and I'm not too sure it can be even used as it is now for work etc

pic is from the same batch, 29 of them altogether

[Peter Holden]

Throwing it out there, does that reg really belong to the breakdown wagon?  It has military front wings and bonnet, I wonder what other nuggets some decent photos might throw up.

Of course whoever bought the GPO version could have sold the registration and whoever owned the breakdown truck could have bought a private reg

Peter

[Mycroft]

Great knowledge and pic GHOBHW - wow that looks an impressive bit of kit.

As you say Peter, it has military bits and pieces like the side light position and bumperettes. On top of which it has late 2 interior bits, like the dash, steering wheel, 3 bolt bonnet hinges, handbrake, then sIII door hinges and 2 wiper motors - a proper bitsa!

[GHOBHW]

appears to be a bit of a mix, harder to justify making them back to 'normal' these days though, as parts get harder to find for them.
even more so for 109s, as much as I love them, most people, including me don't have space for them, so they take a back seat to 88"

so I think you'd have to be very interested/brave to even attempt it. if it even is the original vehicle as Peter says though, could just be the reg tacked on at some point, not exactly uncommon

not that it matters much all these years later, but the elevating platform land rovers usually had a hard life and got sold at auction for not much money.
I remember a picture of one with a roof that looked like a banana from people/machines being on it}

another EXU image with the elevating platform

[Mycroft]

Another great pic. Are these from GPO records/books or just your own personal collection?

[GHOBHW]

Another great pic. Are these from GPO records/books or just your own personal collection?

most of the black and white ones can be found in the BT archives, the others you can find on flickr usually, from old photographers taking pictures of GPO/PO vehicles
if you want to go look, Mike Street, who took the colour image further up, he has quite a few good ones on flickr

the b&w ones are usually of vehicles in their prime, near brand new. they used them for training/manuals

theres still lots that haven't been digitalized as of yet. so I bet there are still thousands out there only a few have seen

[Peter Holden]

DVLA think it is green, is is SORNED and last V5 was issued in 2010

Peter

[2286]

Unless it has belonged to a garage, I suspect it may have been used to recover stricken vehicles from track racing.

Do we think it was originally fitted with an access platform as per vehicles of similar reg photographed?

[Mycroft]

Unless it has belonged to a garage, I suspect it may have been used to recover stricken vehicles from track racing.

Seems probable 

[Mycroft]

can confirm the reg is ex GPO, its meant to be a 109, as the 557 EXU belonged to a 109 with a simon elevating platform

pic is from the same batch, 29 of them altogether

That yellow one in your picture is still going - changed ownership earlier this year. I wonder where that photo was taken. Looks like they maintained their fleet very well, that truck being at least 10 years old at that point. The location reminded me of the old GPO back lot in Bridgend, but maybe they all looked like that.