Dear Editor,
Mike Koch related his ordeal resulting from a dead slave cylinder. As he’s now undoubtedly aware (since he works at Rovers North and gets input from his co-workers), driving without a clutch is distressing, but entirely possible. One starts the vehicle in first or second gear and then shifts by synchronizing the engine rpm with the propshaft rpm at a given speed. It becomes easy to shift up or down in this fashion. When stopping the vehicle, one places the transmission in neutral, shuts down the engine, and restarts in first or second gear. I have done this with innumerable standard shift vehicles over the past 50 years, for short and long trips.
Using radial tires, different shocks, and parabolic springs will dramatically alter the handling of his MOD 109”, as it did mine, prior to its destruction by a huge oak tree during a storm. Perhaps one day I’ll own another. I’ve had three Series Land Rovers and loved every one of them. (…)

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