setting up my cruiser from standard

Thanks yeah it's a turbo deisel , i've heard about the D p chips

Thanks Phil I don't see myself doing too much serious 4wd action , i'm towing a conventional jayco swan camper so i will be touring but looking for free camps so obviously going on dirt . I'll probably do day or weekend trips out bush a bit without the pop up . I've got a tinny on the boat racks on the caravan . Yeah i have to get a pump and a recovery kit , first aid kits there , yeah so basically i'm stuck a little bit on the road or not far off it because of the caravan but won't have it on all the time , Thanks then Dave

That makes it easier.

At this late stage I wouldn't worry about the chip and exhaust. The 100 TD is a very good car. We are almost at GVM but we are fully self contained and thus carry it all. Including a long range tank with extra water in it as well. You won't need that range either.

Don't worry about a winch. I doubt that you will go anywhere that is so isolated that someone won't come along and help. But get a set of maxitracks (spelling?) and a snatch strap. Bung a long handled shovel and either/both an axe and/or a bushman saw in the car. Also get a puncture repair kit as well. I don't think you need more than the CB and mobile phone (I hope its 3/4) for comms as well. If all your water is in the Jayco throw in a water container for the "short" drives. Those things should cover you for most of your "off road" drives.

For maps I would grab a paper set of the Hema wire bound maps. Starting with the one that covers all Australia. I suggest the wire bound ones because they sit nicely in the driver and passenger door pockets. Don't go spending heaps of money on a GPS. You won't need anything more than a cheapie and the paper maps. If you want to go one more stage for navigation and have an ipad or laptop get Oziexplorer and as many maps as you can. But it takes time to set up and learn how to drive Oziexplorer. Also Ozi is really not a "turn left in 400 meters" spoken type of GPS. It basically displays a paper map and shows you where you are on it. And it can do more but that's another story.

I could go on. We have been working ours up for years and still find little things to do.

I hope I am not telling you to suck eggs.

Don't forget a good camera with video capability and heaps of storage. A recorder for a spoken log can also be handy for the blog and the grandkids to hear what the bush really sounds like at night.

I bet that you wont do this. We leave the mobile phone at home. We carry a sat phone for emergency and leave it turned off except for timed scheds and an emergency (none so far). "Ain't silence great!!!"

Enjoy

Phil

Gee: That was a rant.

Good one John.

Missed that one - training.

But I think he has left training a bit late.

We have used our winch both to pull others out and also get ourselves out. You two have been lucky mate.

Phil

Luck Phil??? Staying out of trouble isn't luck!! Though you must be careful of Murphy's Law!!

Cheers

John

it's not to late for them to do a 4wd course with a private training company IMHO. if they have limited knowledge of 4wding, then they will be amazed at how much they'll will learn, and the extra confidence and knowledge they will get from doing such a course will be invaluable and can only inhance the trip away i believe.

Thanks very much guys , i've just booked a course with ' follow me 4wd courses ' $ 150 a day , one for basic 4wdind and one for bush mechanics . Cheers and thanks for your time

thanks Alastair d , it's very helpful to hear some good advice from people who have been doing this longer than me . cheers dave

Mark

You reminded me of something when you mentioned the suspension. I would suggest an upgrade to the shocks on at least the car. Don't worry about any other suspension mods. If you break a shock, you can still drive but a lot slower so its not a killer. We did 150Kms on the Starkie Track with the front riight totally broken apart. Or shove at least one spare shock absorber in the spares bin.

Phil

i will add here, van wheel bearings aren't the only ones to watch out for. in the last 2 years we have done 2 major trips away (Simpson Desert and up through The Gulf) in a group of friends for our holidays, wheel bearings were an issue on atleast one vehicle on each of those trips away. speak to any outback mechanic and they will say wheel bearings are the most neglected item they seee when vehicles come in, so make sure your tow vehicle has had them serviced before you go IMHO.

I have always repacked my wheel bearings every 5000 kms,and check the temperature of the hubs each time I stop.
If they are too hot to touch, there is a problem.
I have a prepacked set of bearings vacuum sealed and a seal and split pin in the spares box all the time, just n case.

cheers

Dave

Hi Fatso i take it you have never put a suspension upgrade on a vehicle. The difference is outstanding .

When loaded the handling and ride is far superior and safer.

The original suspension does the job to a point.

For a trip around oz towing, a full suspension upgrade is essential. ( saftety )

I speak from experiance.

Also allows you to travel of road in rough coditions to see more.

Col

Fatso, I don't know how heavy a Jayco Swan is, and on bitumen even loaded up, at 750kg you may be fine without electric trailer brakes.

But put yourself on a dirt road, loaded vehicle and a towing something > 500kg and see how you go when you plant your foot hard. A heart in mouth moment made me reassess the need for brakes with my previous sub 750kg CT.

Mark

I don't want to start one of those "my thingo is better than yours" debates that get going on here, but most of the stuff blokes macho up with & put on their cars is a waste of money.

How do you blokes think Australians survived in this country for the 200 years prior to this BLEEP being available to the common man within the last 20 years.
Think back if you can to your younger days & how you did it. That's if you did & if you didn't, ask someone who did. While your at it, if your asking someone who did it, ask them if they enjoyed it.

Tell you what to do if you think you are too weak to handle life without all the accessories fellas. Take a spoon full of concrete & mix it in your hot coco before you go to bed every night. You gotta toughen up if your gonna go outside.

So Fatso how come your not still using the horse and cart, if that's your argument.

For safety reasons an up grade is essential, and if you think you can load a van and keep it under 750kgs that concrete cocoa is working well.

And most travellers on the road dont take chances with our equipment or lives by disconnecting brakes. They may tow ok, but put it into a severe braking situation, fools like that we dont need on the road.

Col.

I have had a different experience. On my previous 80 series, I went thru 3 lots of springs and couldn't get a setup that could accomodate an unloaded ride (minimal weight in cargo area) and my camping setup with van (heaps of cargo plus van weight). In the end the best setup was a set of medium duty springs and a set of airbags.

Around town with no load, only ~5psi in the airbags and was a good complaint ride. Still had good wheel articulation for 4WDing as the springs wern't overly hard. But when camping with the lot, the airbags went to 35psi and were perfect for a level vehicle and still complaint without being harsh or bouncy.

In my GU patrol, I only went the airbags as the suspension was fine for what i wanted around town. The airbags were then ideal when towing and loaded.

In my current 200, I replaced the springs as they were too soft/low for my liking. Have also added the airbags for when towing and am very happy with my setup for my purposes.

To my way of thinking, a single set of springs cannot do 2 significantly different loads, even when they are progressive (they compress to obtain the higher load rating, hence the vehicle cannot be at the same level loaded vs unloaded). The airbags are adjustable and can compensate for the differeing loads.

Anyway, I am very happy with what I have and find it great for my purposes.

Cheers

Captain

Thanks kimba 10 , yep it's factory turbo and does have twin batteries , i've also got 1 in the caravan and i got a redarc 40 amp charger that goes under bonnet ..

Note that TWIN batteries are different to DUAL batteries, well the way this post means. The standard TWIN batteries in a 100 series are simply two batteries join together to make one large battery. DUAL batteries implies they have been split with generally one battery for starting the vehicle and one for the auxillaries like fridge, lights etc when stopped.

When the batteries are isoplated from each other, the starting battery will still be available to start the vehicle in the morning, even if the aux has gone flat overnight from fridge etc...

My 200 series has the same original battery setup as the 100 with twin batteries. I have split mine with a Redarc isolator and now have one starter and one aux battery, works very well.

Cheers

Captain