The Rover-Landers of BC

Well this was under the drivers seat of my dads Series 2a NADA.... What was this original or some type of skunkworks my dad created?

Skunkworks.

My guess is some kind of home made split charging unit? :dontknow:

Definitely not factory installed.

Besides some type of charging setup, another possibility (although these would normally be under the hood, possibly moved here for water avoidance) is a transistor assist electronic ignition built and installed by a previous owner. These use the points as a switch without carrying the current (carried by the added electronics instead) to avoid burning the points with the full current transferring through them.

Thanks TimberPig and AndyD.