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VK4EA |
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The mission ->
Getting a 15 year old vehicle ready for remote area touring. Previously owned a Land Rover Discovery Td5, went a lot of places in that vehicle, comfortable and good fuel economy. However, as it got older it started to get very expensive to keep on the road. A bit of thinking went into what we needed. My work situation changed where I lived quite close to work, which meant I didn't need a car to commute, so I didn't need to compromise on ability, size and camping functionality.
I always thought a trayback with a canopy would suit our needs, but wasn't ready to give up the back seat. A dual cab ute almost always compromised ride and comfort, plus the load carrying capacities never seemed quite enough. I then stumbled onto Creative Conversions, light bulb moment. Here's a way to keep the wagon amenity, while also having a full size tray. I didn't need a vehicle for work, meant leasing a new vehicle was out of the equation.
Budget - Vehicle - $25,000, Conversion - $15,000, Canopy - $8000
So, I started to hunt for a donor vehicle for the conversion, with the plan to have a canopy built to suit. Finding something with live axles and mechanical fuel injection, in good condition and under $40k proved impossible. I wanted live axles for durability, it HAD to have a full chassis and I did not want a modern electronically controlled injection system. I wanted to have a decent chance of fixing any problems myself. And most important the vehicle could not be a source of HF noise.
So that limited my choices to a 105 series LandCruiser, or 4.2l Patrol. Hard to find these vehicles in good nick for the target price.
I nearly gave up, last choice was to look for a converted vehicle. There not being many of this type on the road severely limted the number on the second hand market. I persisted with carsales.com.au and eventually narrowed it down to a vehicle in Griffith and Cleveland. It was a little more convenient to inspect the one at Cleveland, the specs ticked all of the boxes, second battery, bullbar, steel tray, canopy, reasonable kilometres on a reconditioned engine, big exhaust, snorkel, HD suspension, airbags and an aftermarket turbo. The clear coat was buggered, the owner had bodgied up a silcone patch on the roof where some rust was coming through, and the tray had rust issues and the heater had been bypassed. However it drove well, didn't leak oil, no black or blue smoke. The price was about right, after thinking about it for a week he rang me as he was keen to sell, so $3k was knocked off and I organised the money.
| October 2012 | 1999 Toyota Landcruiser GXL wagon, extended chassis and trayback modification by Creative Conversions purchased. Shakedown camp to Nindigully proved this will work! |
| November 2012 | Heater core and air conditioning condensor replaced - 3 days labour |
| October 2013 | camp trip to Moreton Is, the monster truck handles the sand very well |
| December 2013 | canopy and under tray drawer installed |
| January 2014 | tray fixed - rusty steel chequer plate removed, aluminium sheet installed heat exchanger installed, compressor/tank installed, fuel turned down, guages installed |
| February 2014 | Canopy modified with shelves and dividers, battery installed, DC distribution panel done, water tank and pump in and functional |
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March to July 2014 - lots, see list below
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Still to do
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Codan NGT ARv - antenna 9350 - radio is on and scanning when outside of the CBD
Kenwood TM-D710A - 2m/70cm APRS - teamed with a AVMAP G6 GPS - track
Icom IC-F6063 - UHF CB and SES
Codan 8525A - heavily modified for HF APRS - tapped whip on bullbar - track
Heat exchanger installed
For years we struggled with gas powered hot water shower systems. Initially the Primus system served us OK when we did the long stints on Moreton Is. However for the remote trips we simply did without a wash.
With the purchase of the Landcruiser (monster truck) I decided to do it properly and installed a Bushranger heat exchanger and pressure pump under the bonnet. While at the time of writing it has not been used the bush, we are looking forward to having a ready supply of hot water after the days drive.
The install was not as difficult as expected. Once the location of the heat exchanger was decided the brackets were easy to modify to suit the location. The heater hose was purchased from the local Supercheap to plumb in the engine side. I used garden hose for the fresh water supply from the pump (supplied) through the exchanger. All clamps were provided, and some neat coil things to facilitate the bending of the heater hose without kinking it.
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After many, many trips into the bush we finally worked out what was the "ideal" setup. I had admired roof top tents, hard floor camper trailers, but, until I saw a trayback canopy at a camping show it finally hit me what suited our needs.
Basically we do two types of camping
1. moving every day
2. big static camp for 10 days
For the moving everyday, we need a setup that is quick erect, and even quicker to breakdown and pack. So we settled on a Oztent RV3 and Foxwing awning. We've got the setup down to 10 mins, and breakdown/packup down to 15mins.
For the static camp, the canopy is the kitchen/fridge/pantry, where it is taken off the vehicle allowing us to utilise the vehicle for the long stay. No point taking a tinny to Moreton if you can launch and retrieve it, and more importantly how are you supposed to get the prawns and oysters from Kooringal if the car is tied to the camp?
So how do we do it? The vehicle is a dual cab ute, that is, a converted Landcruiser wagon made into a dual cab ute, 750mm longer than the factory supplied vehicle. It's the best of both worlds, a ute, with a full size cabin and leg room for the rear passengers.
The canopy I wanted, well we couldn't really afford it, was supposed to come from Concept Canopies. However by the time I finished specifying the accessories it came to $15k+. So I settled on a tradie version from MW Toolboxes, and got it setup with jackoff legs, roof bars and two spare wheel carriers. And while that was made they installed a 1700mm long drawer under the tray.
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To do
move gas struts - new holes
install portable solar panel connector
buy folding solar panels - 160w
packers for kitchen unit
reweld tie down mounts
done
- new aluminium canopy, custom shelving and dividers
- msa drop fridge slide
- 150Ah battery - fixed in
- 60l water tank, filler/breather, tap and pressure pump
- meanwell 3 stage charger
- Redarc solar/alternator 3 stage charger
- install new solar regulator
- rigrunner based 12v distribution (PP30 Anderson powerpoles)
- 160w 12v solar panel
- tent mount
- Foxwing awning
- external Merit sockets for lights
As part of the preparation for the 2014 Cape Trip, decided to fit a winch. We've never owned a winch before, could never justify it. An eagle eye was kept on a few options via eBay, the Chinese manufactured units are now very cheap. My thinking was, even it gives up after one use, it's $350 well spent. At that price I can buy two, and keep a spare on the shelf. Still heaps cheaper than the name brand.
The vehicle came with a factory aluminium bullbar, so that needed replacing as well. Found a steel bar for $500, including shipped. The 4WD accessory market has changed forever.
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Winch works well enough, we appreciate the weight saving of the Dynema rope rather than wire. It saved us once when crossing when crossing the Pascoe River, Frenchmans Track, Cape York.
Finished off the job by fitting side steps, didn't quite line up, needed some alterations with cuts and welds.
