Monday, January 21, 2008

Modifying the $X$, sorry, that's 4X4

PC270154
Yes I drive an obnoxious 4X4, get over it.
The 02 95 series Prado 3.4 VX auto sits like a monster in the uni car park beside the students clapped out bugs and mopeds. Closer inspection would reveal the three child seats in the second row and pram the boot making it look more like mum's taxi than a Tarago.
We are planning to modify it a little to make it safer and better equipped to use for camping and touring and perhaps towing a camper trailer.
To date we've got the car fridge (Waco 60) and roll around on All Terrain Tyres (cooper ATR's).

Planned modifications include:
- roof basket to carry more stuff
- cargo barrier so we don't end up with a fridge in the back of the head if we have to jump on the anchors
- Second battery so we can still start the car in the morning after running the fridge all night
- Bull bar because hitting a roo hurts but mostly because you need one to mount a winch and spotlights (so you can see the roos and hop-fully not hit them), To date I've hit a horse, a cow, several roos, several owls, an eagle, a goat and one very cross emu that ended up in the back seat of a ute with minus its legs. Anything I can put between me and the queue of beasts like that which assembled before Noa's Arc on the road ahead of me is money well sepnt.
- Spotlights / driving lights bright enough to be seen from Venus
- Stiffer suspension and rear poly air bags to make the suspension adjustable for towing variable loads.
- Winch to haul our sorry asses out of a hole
- Snorkel because engines don't run too well when they are full of water
- UHF radio

There are a few other odds and ends that will make life a little easier like a better mapping solution than the stand alone GPS and paper maps or extended range fuel tanks to extend our already ridiculous 1000km range but ultimately we drool after one of These
quero mucho
PC260115

7 comments:

Mike Bogle said...

Damn I'm feeling really ghetto right now. We drive a bomby station wagon held together by band-aids and spiderwebs.

Nice car ;)

Anonymous said...

HI, Well Steve I am making a comment great photo of the lodge. I have a photo of you when you were 8 months old taken on the balcony so your history with narraburra goes back a long way, Lots of love Mum.

Leesha said...

Sounds waaay cooler than my golf!

unique_stephen said...

you'd have a ball in that surly?

Laura said...

Leave the roos alone!!
Who makes roof baskets/boxes in Australia? I recommend a box over a basket, holds all kinds of goods nice and securely.

unique_stephen said...

could you fit a spare tyre, large tent, tent poles, tent fly, fuel, water, high lift jack, shovel and some camper chairs in a box?

Laura said...

yes, as well as leather sofas, table settings for 8,assorted family pets, misbehaving children, grandfather clocks, a keg of Hoegaarden, and the roos that your ran over a few miles back.