4x4 motor home truck

Hi Hubert.
Great project. Couple of questions.........
New or second hand truck?
Are you building it yourself or having it done?
What do you intend to do with it?
What is your budget (over & above the base vehicle)?

Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 (DIY) Motorhome
Pics & slideshows of trips & conversion here.

G'day Hubert
I have used the larger Iszuz 4x4 for tour work and have found them to be reliable. In general transport I have also used the Iszuzu trucks, again a very good product.
On the NPR 300, they were used for a while in tour work and again I didn't hear to many negative problems.
When choosing this model vehicle there are a number of little things I would check for if buying used and in general.
1. Take it for a run, ensure that it doesnt have 80 k diffs in it.
2. listen for noise from transfer case, if possible check transfer case oil, on highway running t/c oil needs to be changed more often.
3. Make sure you keep the dual wheels on, a lot of people say to run singles on rear, I have found the duals will keep the vehicle more stable, less tyre wall roll.
4. Biggest motor possible, no substitute for power.
5. Fuel consumption, bigger motors depending on how driven can run cheaper.
6. Suspension, up to you, but a modification that has been carried out in the past has been twin shocks and longer springs on the front, done by moving front and rear spring hanger out to the outer hole and redrilling two new holes in each, makes them ride smoother, (thats is one of the reasons that the Oka has a good reputation for ride quality .... further information, Warrior Special Vehicles at Yandina, Qld. Note, in some cases chassis have been plated on front to increase chassis strength.
7. Water trap filter for the fuel, pre filtering fuel before pump.
8. Tyre size, find what standard tyre size is, then check with with tyre dealer as to legal increase in wall height, don't go wider, duals may kiss at lower preasure, trapping stones.
9. When purchasing vehicle, get first service done at Iszuz and ensure that all recall maintanance issues have been done.
10. Make sure that you are able to get parts in the countries you are going to.
Copy and paste the the link below, a good read as per a truck 4x4 build, be aware it is captivating read.

http://www.robgray.com/index_files/index_wot.php

Anyhow thats my 2 bobs worth, but it is up to you.
All the best
Lotzi

We run 5 isuzu trucks at work npr200 and a new 600. We also have a new 250 with the improved 155 motor and 6 speed which goes and rides much better then the old trucks.
We use to run a 240hp UD which often used less fuel then the little trucks as it was loafing along at 2000rpm at 100ks in sixth.
Cheers Pete

Another link to study Hubert.

Susi & Ruedi on tour
I t is another OKA, but that is not why I suggest that it may be usefu to you.
These guys are good friends of ours. They were Swiss, but now are naturalised Ozzies and live in Oz on he road. They selected an OKA (new), and had the motorhome section built in Germany to their own design.
I reccon our MH is more liveable than theirs, but that is not the point. The point is that a WORLD cruising MH needs to be designed DIFFERENTLY from one that is only, or primarily, used in OZ.

Differences include security. Their MH closes up with 3mm aluminium shutters to look like a delivery van on the road. In some places, tourists are considered wealthy and therefore a target.

Fuel. They are solar and diesel only. Gas can be difficult to get in some remote o/s places. Their heating and cooking is all diesel.

Insulation is a much higher standard.
The vehicle has fuel and motor heating for VERY cold places.
Water tanks like wise must be protected from freezing.

Then again, you were not asking about the MH section, just the vehicle, so perhaps I have jumped the gun?
I still have some views on your specific questions, but they would depend on your answers to my early questions, in particular what you want to do with the vehicle - how good do you want the off road capability to be.......

Cheers,
Pete

Go to www.expeditionportal.com great site my canter is on the Mitsu site. Met susie and ruedi in Alice Springs this year good people with a top rig but even after all that $$$$ they still have break downs (like us all). Or you could ring atw in yandina and speak to Paul they are the gurus of 4wd motor home trucks Cheers Tony

We have some experience with an MAN 4x4 tour vehicle "Makin Tracks" having supplied all the power equipment for it an we now have to set up a support vehicle.

The information posted so far in this thread is excellent advice especially the tracking width and tyre maintenance and this has been a major cost consideration with the MAN.

I would say once you start to build whether for Aus travel or world travel your build should allow you access to all components necessary for R&R and maintenace as that can be a pain, time consuming and costly with a first up build not allowing for this.

I questioned the use of the MAN for the job against the more popular Mercedes and was given the reply "I think the MAN is a good choice as everywhere I go I see a lot of the Mercs in workshops" but then that could be just for servicing and would depend on the use and the driver.

The Isuzu choice appears sensible as they are the largest medium trucking supplier in the world and should have accessability to parts and service in most countries.

Good luck on your selection and build.
Ian

G'day, we went down the same path, all be it for different reasons, we wanted a 4wd truck motorhome to take our disabled child around oz, we ended up with a 10 tonne Hino, 4wd truck based bus, the type you see carting tourist's around, we had it converted to suit our needs, things we've learnt, keep it simple so simple people ( no offence ment ) can fix it in out of the way places, & with your clan of kids the extra space provided by a bigger truck will be handy, & remember ya don't have to use a dual cab, it quite safe & legal to have seats in the body of the motorhome with seatbelts.
Good luck with the build up.