Battle-Scarred '97 Land Rover Defender Ambulance Now Moonlights as Monty, a Family RV

With the recent but not unexpected boom in interest for mobile homes, both permanent residences and vacation or exploration solutions, we've seen more than a fair share of conversions, many of them notable in their own right. Everyone, from regular people with no background in this kind of work but a good connection to the Internet and many YouTube subscriptions to established shops, has been doing conversions for a living.

You only need a couple of minutes online to fall down the conversion rabbit hole. Van or bus conversions, DIY (do it yourself) projects or professional builds, budget units or super-luxurious ones, you name it, and you will find it online. But even with this impressive list to choose from, Monty will stand out – and that's no small feat.

Monty is a war veteran with the battle scars still showing. In a previous life, it was an MOD (UK's Ministry of Defence) vehicle severely damaged by enemy fire in the 2nd Gulf War.

KZ 39 AA, as its official name was, is a 1997 Land Rover Defender 130 300TDi Pulse Ambulance that was retired in 2012 after it took heavy Iraqi fire and then spent the next seven years in limbo, being restored and converted into a family-ready vehicle.

Monty is now offered for sale out of its home country, since the conversion was completed at the beginning of the year. Unlike the bulk of conversions around – many of which we've also covered – it's an RV with incredible personality and an even more incredible story told through the battle scars left visible on its body with clear gel.

The seven-year restoration and conversion was done by Overland Campers, a local specialist shop with plenty of experience. They do most of their Land Rover conversions with the same interior layout, which means Monty shares the same DNA with other builds from the team. But as far as personality goes, it's the only one to tell such a story.

The goal behind the conversion was to create a vehicle that could easily carry the entire family in comfort, even if their idea of a fam vacation meant boondocking. But it had to do so while retaining some of the features of the original vehicle, which was done by maintaining the rugged exterior, the heavy-duty wheels, and the "scars" encased in clear gel.

"Monty is a true warrior and wears his battle scars with pride," the listing for Monty notes.

But Monty is also a perfectly comfortable vacation home on wheels for the entire family, featuring no less than three sleeping areas, a kitchen, a wet bath, and off-grid capabilities. The accumulation of all these is all the more impressive if you consider the compact footprint of the vehicle.

Monty now features a pop-up roof, a retractable side awning, and a side access door. The conversion included the addition of three sleeping berths: a bed on the ground floor, which pops up in the dining area, another bed in the pop-up roof, and another smaller bed in the cabover area. The size of the third berth makes this space ideal for kids.

The seats can legally carry five passengers (three in the front and two more in the second row), while the dining table comfortably seats four people. The interior space is compact, as you'd expect from a Land Rover Defender conversion, but it's highly functional and versatile.

The kitchen is equipped with a 2-burner gas stove, a small fridge with a freezer compartment, a sink with running hot water, and plenty of storage options, including under the benches that will convert into a bed at night. The bathroom is a wet one with a shower with off-grid hot water and a full Thetford toilet.

Features also include an LPG Propex heater and a water heater, a 60-L (16-gallon) steel water tank and a smaller tank for gas that runs the cooker and the heater, and 150W of solar on the roof, hooked up to a pair of 100amp leisure batteries.

Monty is powered by the "the venerable and totally dependable" 300TDi engine paired with an R380 5-speed gearbox and power steering. The Odo shows 214,000 miles (344,399 km), but it's not an accurate reading: the dashboard of the ambulance was destroyed by enemy fire, and the rebuild included the use of a used odometer. The listing notes that the vehicle covered less than 10,000 km (6,214 miles) under MOD ownership.

Monty is asking £34,995, or a hair over $44,300 at the current exchange rate. Whether that's a just price to put on a vehicle with such a rich and tumultuous history is up to you.