Solihull Birdcage Winch Cable Truck
'The Birdcage', FXC 863L: a 1972 Series III 88 pick-up shown at the Motor Show with a dual-colour wheel scheme, then converted into a Solihull works vehicle for installing winch cables on 101 Forward Controls — a tall mesh cage on the bare chassis holding a PTO-driven hydraulic winch that tensioned the cable as it was wound onto the 101's drum, with the hydraulic fluid tank on the front bumper. Now in the Dunsfold Collection.
History
FXC 863L was built in 1972 as a Motor Show vehicle, which is why it still carries a dual colour scheme on its wheels. After the show it was modified at Solihull for use installing winch cables on 101-inch Forward Control vehicles: the rear body was removed and a large mesh cage fitted over the chassis, inside which a hydraulic winch, driven from the centre power take-off, tensioned the winch cable while it was being wound onto the drum of the 101 being built. The large tank on the front bumper holds the hydraulic fluid. Known at the factory as 'The Birdcage', it covered a very low mileage, spending most of its life parked in a corner of a yard at Solihull, and it is preserved by the Dunsfold Collection.
The registry's model keeps the Series III 88 cab and front with the bonnet spare, strips the rear body back to the chassis rails, and adds the tube-framed mesh cage, the winch and its cable reel (which can be released as cargo), the bumper tank, blue-centred wheels and the plate.
Imagery
Registry record
- Manufacturer
- Rover Company / British Leyland (Series III 88 pick-up, 1972)
- Manufactured
- 1972 Motor Show vehicle, converted for works use
- Modifier / coachbuilder
- Land Rover, Solihull (works winch-cable installation conversion)
- Engine type
- Rover 2.25 L four-cylinder petrol
- Production run
- 1
- Country of origin
- United Kingdom
- Operated in
- United Kingdom
- Status
- preserved
Catalogue data
- Record kind
- Named model
- Model line
- Series III
- Wheels
- 4
- Nominal wheelbase
- 88″
Catalogue fields describe the vehicle's structure and body as this registry records it. They are not certified factory measurements, and no performance figures are published here.
Sources & citations
Researched sources
- 1972 Series III winch cable installation vehicle 'The Birdcage' — The Dunsfold Collection ↗ — The Dunsfold Collection (accessed 2026-09-11)
Catalogue references
- https://dunsfoldcollection.co.uk/collection/series-iii-winch-cable/ https://dunsfoldcollection.co.uk/collection/series-iii-winch-cable/ ↗
Registry record updated 2026-09-11T11:26:07.380Z · status: researched