ONE of Land Rover's most popular models, the original Freelander, has been designated as an official Heritage vehicle.

Produced between 1997 and 2006, the Land Rover Freelander 1 remains one of the brand's top sellers.

Its Heritage resource specialises in cars, services, parts and experiences for classic Land Rover models - and the Freelander 1 is now the company's eighth Heritage model.

The others are Series I, II and III, Range Rover Classic and P38 Range Rover plus Discovery 1 and 2.

A Heritage model is defined as a product that has been out of production for longer than 10 years.

In the case of the Freelander 1, the model was first produced in 1997 and its production run ended nine years later in 2006 when Freelander 2 replaced it.

Ever since production of Freelander 1 concluded, Land Rover continued to support owners through the supply of spare parts.

Now, owners will be supported by the brand's Heritage experts and ensure owners continue to enjoy their vehicle for years to come.

More than 9,000 individual Land Rover Heritage Part numbers are available for the Freelander 1 and it adds to the brand's comprehensive parts catalogue, which already features over 33,000 items for both Jaguar and Land Rover Heritage vehicles.

Jaguar Land Rover Heritage chief Tim Hannig said: "With the addition of the Freelander 1 as a Heritage model, Land Rover is reaffirming its support and commitment to its loyal customers by providing exceptional cars, services, parts and experiences for models more than 10 years out of production.

"Genuine Land Rover Heritage Parts for Freelander 1 have been engineered and tested in extreme conditions. As such it gives our customers total peace of mind that their vehicles are maintained to the highest possible standards."

When it was launched, the Freelander broke the mould by pioneering the compact premium 4x4 class and at the time had 16 patented features including Hill Descent Control, Immediate Reduction Drive, a viscous-coupling and an innovative ABS system designed specifically for off-road situations.