All you need to know: If you're a person who revels in learning how something is produced, then you will find the Solihull Experience a worthwhile use of your time
My intimate obsession with Land Rover started off when I was young. As I grew older, I began to understand that Land Rover didn't just produce these luxury land yachts, but also more humble and productive automobiles including the Series 1 Land Rover. I've learned that it was made using aluminium since steel was in short supply and that the early models had green paint simply be it was the only paint available. At this point, I got introduced to Jeremy Clarkson and his audacious co-presenters. I've never personally owned a Land Rover, but I began to understand the magic of ownership of such a well-designed metal contraption. Soon afterwards, I've convinced some loved-ones to buy a Range Rover Evoque, and they did, though for only two days. Never at any point in my life did I feel such a disappointment. This to me was like finding a diabetic pet dog for a family member, then have to witness the precious large-eyed animal go back to the shelter because "reliability was an issue". This was a debilitating experience for me, but I recovered by taking a trip to Solihull, England. I'm from the United States, so England was a "bit different" to say the least. The roads are much narrower, you drive on the left side, the driver's seat is on the right side, there are roundabouts instead of stop signs or traffic signals, and everyone in the left, sorry, right lanes flew by me in my rented Vauxhall Insignia at a meager 93 miles per hour. Mercifully, all the people that I encountered were of the utmost character. (I'll elaborate more on that later.) My journey from the hotel in Birmingham was anxiety-written, to say the least. I got up late and forgot where the rental car was parked. When I started the short commute towards the Land Rover Experience, my handy GPS told me that I was going to arrive exactly five minutes before the experience started. However, my GPS took me to roughly where the Land Rover factory was, not directly to it. Confusion and tension escalated quickly, and joy of joys, the Insignia hit the curb and deflated the front left tyre. By the time I stopped by a picturesque neighborhood to assess the gravity of the situation, it was five minutes AFTER the start time of the experience. It was bleak, with the onboard telemetry telling me that there was "0 psi" in the deflated tyre, but the passengers and I decided that I was close enough to the production facility to drive there on a flat, and after following a Land Rover Discovery 4 probably on their way to work, I arrived at the secure entrance, with barricading equipment that looks as if it had come straight from the White House. As I went past the very welcoming security, I got a glimpse of the size of the manufacturing colossus. Simply put, it was epic. Finding the facility was quite easy, as there were signs directing me towards my end destination. The Land Rover Experience centre looked quite small, located what seemed to be the middle of a wood. By the time I arrived, I was 15 minutes behind schedule, but the hospitable and benevolent employees brought me to the group in a "borrowed" Range Rover Sport. The tour itself was brilliant. I've learned more about aluminium, bonding, just in time manufacturing and fining the supply chain (£15,000 every minute they're late) than in all the years leading up to the tour. Before, I saw manufacturing as an elaborate version of a slaughter house which moved backwards, but what I glimpsed was fundamentally baffling, yet well orchestrated and quiet. I was expecting sparks flying everywhere and the workers to walk out on strike (like in the 70s), but none of that held true. The facilities (excluding the stamping facility) were as quiet as a library. The cleanliness of everything including the floors was on par with what one would expect from a 5-star hotel lobby. I saw the craftsmanship and fluidity of the assembly process in both the £50,000 machines and the workers. After one witnesses the true craftsmanship and energy required to produce a Land Rover or a Jaguar, they would develop this impassioned respect for manufacturing. After the tour, the tour guide brought everyone to the Land Rover Experience hub and offered everyone refreshments and a thank-you letter for taking the tour. At this point, I was supposed to leave, but couldn't because the lack of air inside the tyre of the Insignia. Changing to the spare wheel was difficult since there was no instruction manual, and the tools look as if they had come out of a Star Trek production. They were alien to anything I used before. Graciously, one of the employees for the off-roading portion of the Land Rover Experience center saw my dismay and offered to help with the tire change. If it wasn't for that helpful and generous employee, I would have had to wait 4 hours for a tow truck. read more
