Toyota Land Cruiser - Gaining traction as an overlander's vehicle

The Toyota Land Cruiser - reliable, comfortable, sound proof and above all, available on the 2nd hand market at an attractive price point to modify into an expedition vehicle.

Land Rover might have truly opened Africa, but currently Toyota are the preferred vehicle of choice.

Here's a quick overview of the various Toyota model's that have crossed Africa, Asia and South America).  Similiar to the Land Rover article, the criteria is an overland expedition and website detailing the trip.

An alternative overlander... the Demountable Camper

In my quest to find an alternative overland vehicle, I have looked at the standard Mazda Bongo campervan, alternative overland vehicles and now the Demountable Camper.

I don't want to talk about the requirements for an overland vehicle, as our needs vary considerably.  However, I do want to consider alternative options rather than your standard Land Rover Defender or Toyota Land Cruiser for an overland vehicle that offers interior living space.

The Demountable Camper 
Wikipedia describes the Truck Camper as follows:

Truck campers are usually considered the most versatile form of recreational vehicle. They are capable of going virtually anywhere a pickup truck can go. The truck camper has been around since the early 1950s, and has gone through an evolution in development that places it on par with many larger and more expensive RV types in terms of amenities.

The benefit of this type of camper is clearly the ability to de-mount the camper and utilise your vehicle on a daily basis.  Normal holiday breaks would also allow you to claim your camping spot whilst doing a day drive.
The big question is whether a demountable would stand up to the rigours of a year long overland trip.  I have more questions than I have answers for - here are a few that I have thought of:

1. Flexing - would rough roads flex the camper and cause damage?
2. Wind resistance - in strong winds (like Patagonia & Mauritania), what effects does this have on the vehicle
3. Space - how much living space does this give you over and above a camper?

Please feel free to post comments on your thoughts.

Photos & Video:
I did a quick search different images of demountable campers.  The following images were taken from the Ebay UK website:

The interior of an Apollo demountable.  This unit support 3 person configuration and includes a shower.

A very neat Land Rover Defender 130 which came up for sale on the UK Ebay website:

A few more photos from Northstar:

The following video was taken at the Overland Expo 2009 conference and demoed the XP Camper:



Forum resources:
Expedition Portal
http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10126

Additional Sources:
Popup Demountable - Nene Overland
Northstar Campers

Land Rover Discovery - A reliable Overland Vehicle?

Is the Land Rover Discovery a capable trans-continental overland vehicle?

Throughout decades of overland travel the Land Rover Series and Defender have been successfully crossing continents. In this post, I provide examples of the Land Rover Discovery and its role in Trans-Africa overland trips. I focused specifically on independent overland websites which opted to use a Land Rover Discovery as the preferred vehicle.

  Wikipedia describes the vehicle as:

The Land Rover Discovery is a mid-size SUV, with off-road capabilities, from the British car maker Land Rover; a subsidiary of Tata Motors. There have been three generations of the vehicle, which was first introduced in 1989.

Key Points
In my opinion, gone are the days where the dominant 4x4 vehicle was the Land Rover Series or Defender model, as a result there are a number of key points on why the Discovery is becoming more popular with the independent overlander.   The Discovery offers the following:

• Superior comfort compared to the Land Rover Defender.  Majority of Discovery's include sunroofs and air conditioning.
• Similar size to the Defender (physically less rear load space but extra width is beneficial)
• A raft of overland equipment - roofracks, fuel tanks, bullbars and every other possible modification available
• In the UK, the Discovery is very affordable compared to the Defender. 

In each of the examples below, the Overlanders have opted for various modifications -  from the standard roofrack and tent, to a fully plumbed in fresh water tanks and long range fuel tanks.  

Land Rover Discovery 200tdi

First introduced in 1989, the Land Rover Discovery launched in a market that was ready for a medium size 4x4. Similar to the Defender, this vehicle offers excellent offroad capability plus the interior offered comfort and airconditioning.


My first Discovery, as pictured below, was a 200tdi (2.5 Turbo Diesel), five door model.  The vehicle had a five speed gearbox, with a central locking diff in either high or low range.  

Here are a few overland prepared examples:

Scott and Renee

In April 1999, Scott and Renee headed South from Spain en route to South Africa.  The Discovery chosen for the trip was the 200tdi, 3-door edition.  

The additional benefit over the LR Defender was the wide rear door which enabled easy access to rear of the vehicle as seen in this photo.

Andrew & Jacqui

Prepared to the n'th degree, Andrew and Jacqui spent plenty of time and effort in kitting the perfect vehicle.  The Discovery had access to the rooftop tent (via the front sunroof).  The rear seats were removed and cupboards fitted to contain all the travel equipment.  A long range fuel tank, and two water tanks were fitted.

Additional photos from an afternoon spent at the UK Land Rover Billing show:

Land Rover Discovery 300tdi

Launched in 1994, this Discovery had the new 300tdi engine (2.5L TD), facelift headlights and interior.  Additional changes included a new gearbox and a few extra chassis modifications.

A few examples of trips...

CaTs Itchy Feet

Taniya and Clive are currently heading South from the UK and have a good website with excellent photos and videos.  

A short YouTube video clip shows the vehicle:

Camel World

Peter Strong bought a fully kitted Camel Trophy Discovery and headed South and eventually North again.
Peter journals:

The Camel. 300TDi Discovery (P244 KAC) that was factory built for the Mongolia Camel Trophy Competition in 1997. I found the Camel in the care of Simon Pitchford in Gibraltar. Simon was gutted to lose one of his favourite toys - I was delighted to find a vehicle that was capable of taking the journey on.

Driving Home

Colin and team headed South from the UK in a Discovery.

SA Overland

Wayne and Tracy write the following about their Discovery 300tdi:

We decided on a Land Rover for our trip and bought a 1998 Land Rover Discovery 300TDi in early 2008.  The Landy was partly modified from a previous trip but we felt that it was not adequately prepared for our needs and still needed a lot of work and TLC to get it ready for our trip.

Land Rover Discovery II -  TD5

Launched in 1998, the Discovery II was the first vehicle to use the new 5-cylinder diesel engine (TD5) plus the new 'fly-by-wire' electronics which controlled fuel injection, traction control, and Active Cornering Enhancement (ACE) which prevented body roll. 

Disco Everywhere

Paul and Jacinda headed North in their TD5 - their website offers an excellent vehicle prep page, including updates on equipment used.  

Quote from the website:

The most important accessory in my opinion for a diesel 4wd is a snorkel. Get water in a diesel and given the high compression ratio you can say goodbye to your engine. Apart from keeping water out they do a reasonable job of keeping the dust out and suck cooler air to boot. Combined with a K&N air filter, Truckasaurus breathes at its best.

Land Rover Discovery 3

This Discovery launched with a totally new design, including the innovative Terrain Response system and 6-speed gearbox.


The World Off Road
Akis and Vula have a superbly modified Discovery 3.  They are yet to reach Africa (Nov 09) however as they are currently travelling, I will include them.  As stated above, the criteria to be included is an independent website detailing their Trans-Africa overland trip.

Big Adventure
Jen & Noam are heading around the world in their overland prepared Discovery 3 (2.7 diesel)

Land Rover Discovery 4
Launched in September 2009, this Discovery introduced a new 3.0l twin turbo diesel engine, smoother body lines and new interior trim levels (to match the Range Rover).  This Discovery is still relatively new and attracts a price point that most independent overlanders tend to avoid.

In summary, the first Discovery offers a fantastic overland vehicle - engine reliability, ability to easily modify and the 'Good Look' feel about it.  The benefit this vehicle has is the 2nd hand price point, the expedition kit availability and the lack of electronics.
Moving to the TD5 version introduces the electronics - however, with the right computer, diagnostics will be a breeze.  Additional spares will also need to be carried in advance of any breakdowns as remote areas will probably not have the latest diagnostic equipment.

As time moves on and we look back in ten years, I expect to see more electronics in vehicles and easier diagnostics which should make the newer Disco 3 & 4 available as an overlander.

Additional Reading:

10 Reasons why the Discovery makes a good overlander

Lois on the Loose

Just met Lois Pryce - inspirational lady. Check out 'Lois on the Loose' - http://bit.ly/45H3hL

Solar Panel - requirement or luxury?

Are Solar Panels worth fitting to an overland vehicle?  
Does one require the additional power it generates or can a 2nd battery manage.  In this blog, I provide an overview of the benefits and disadvantages of adding a solar power system to your overland vehicle.

A quick story - BigSky Adventures, Mali, 2005

A quick story about why solar power has a benefit to play. March 2005 we were camping in Mali, on the banks of the Chutes de Gouina falls.

The mid March temperatures were reaching 45deg c. Extremely hot dry heat. We opted to stay for a few days chilling out in the water and exploring the falls. Our Defender was equipped with a dual battery config. The deep cycle secondary battery powered all auxiliaries and most importantly our Engel fridge.

The fridge was mounted at the rear of the Defender with easy access to the rear door.

The heat was excessive so the interior of the Landy crept up to high 40s. Even with the fridge turned to its lowest setting, the heat was causing it to constantly attempt to cool. This resulted in the auxiliary battery draining in 8 hours. If we had a solar panel, the battery drain would have been neutralized. Now, that would have been beneficial! 

A quick overview of Solar Power:
Wikipedia describes as follows: Solar Panels use light energy (photons) from the sun to generate electricity through photovoltaic effect (this is the photo-electric effect). The majority of modules use wafer-based crystalline silicon cells or a thin-film cell based on cadmium telluride or silicon. Crystalline silicon, which is commonly used in the wafer form in photovoltaic (PV) modules, is derived from silicon, a commonly used semi-conductor.

Adding a Solar Panel to your Overland Vehicle:
The quick answer to this question is as follows:

• Mount the panel on the roofrack - ideally with removable mounts so that you can position the panel in the sun once parked in the shade.
• Connect the wires to the Solar Charge Controller
• Connect the Solar Charge Controller to your 2nd battery.

That's as easy as I think it gets.  Perhaps an expert might be needed to neaten up the wiring loom :-)


The Clear Benefits
The benefits include:

• Additional battery capacity when remote camping
• Vehicle Alternator not needing to fully charge the remote battery
• Freedom of mind - i.e. being relaxed and knowing that your battery will be fully charged

The Disadvantages
Whilst reviewing the advantages for Solar power during the preparation for our BigSky Adventures overland trip, I opted a single reason why I would not fit one - The Expense.
This is still the number one reason why all overlanders don't have this handy feature fitted to the vehicle.

Purchasing a Solar Panel:


In the UK, I would recommend Sunshine Solar.  The products you need are:

1. Solar Charge Controller - 10amp
2. Solar Panel - 80Watt 
3. Solar Panel Fixing Kit

The cost for the kit above is roughly  £460.  Money well worth spent!

In South Africa, the best advice and products are provided by Renzo at BushPower.

Additional Links

• 4x4 Global Challenge
• Africa Wanderer
• African Snail

In summary, Solar Panels are a requirement for overland travel if you intend to remote camp often, and plan on using your fridge daily.

The Lost Routes

Trans-Africa overland routes are constantly evolving ;  unfolding onto a new section of the Michelin map ; always paving a route North, South, East or West.  A route gets blocked, and another opens up...

A quick example from the diary of Graham Jackson and myself:
A year apart we crossed the same remote Gabon / Congo border.  Graham's Land Rover was the first overland vehicle in years, followed by our Land Rover a year later.  Graham journals the following:

Graham got his bolt cutters and cut the lock on the Gabon side of the gate, having decided that was easier than digging up the dead guy to retrieve the key. We drove through 100m of tall grass to reach the Congo side of the border. The officials stamped our passports at the border, then we followed the pickup 10km to Mbinda. The road was very slow and there were many deep mudholes filled with water from last night's rain. Toki got mired once as the dead spot in the steering makes for some tricky driving. A quick tug from the Pinzi got us moving again.
Source:

Our journal a year later related a similar experience.  We eventually crossed the border at 9pm.  I remember patiently waiting to be escorted to the village school where we would be allowed to camp for the night. The relatively short drive along a rough track was slightly harder due to the lights on the Defender failing.
Our route, however, is now a well known route and definitely not part of the Lost Routes.

From Cas & Grahams Tran-Africa Map

The Lost Routes across Africa overflow with adventure, myth and beauty.
Currently the Lost Routes across Africa are mainly Algeria (exiting the Southern Borders) and the large central African region. The map above, photographed by me in 2004 show the route Cas and Graham did in the early 1990's. Typically, the route entered Cameroon, crossed the border into Central Africa Rep. before turning South through the DRC (then called Zaire) and finally East into Uganda.  Mysterious cities, known to most by name only,  linked all these routes - Bangui, Bangassou and Kisangali.


View Overland Routes in a larger map

In 1991 Derek Tearne (Flickr) crossed Algeria heading South.  His route crossed the Sahara before heading East to Central African Republic, Zaire (DRC) and into Uganda.  This is one of the Lost Routes.
His website reads: "A few kilometres down the road, in Mambas, we meet two tour trucks full of tourists driving from East Africa to Europe. Usually when any travellers met on the road they would stop and talk. Some of these tours last for over six months and the trucks seemed to be very self contained. Often the passengers didn't seem to have the same need to communicate as other travellers. The passengers on these two trucks seemed particularly subdued and uninterested in talking. We found one passenger who didn't mind chatting and discovered that the main road route to Beni was closed due to repairs and they had taken the short cut. This road was particularly narrow and had proved difficult for their large trucks. It had taken them four days to drive from Beni. They were already feeling worn down by Zaire. Little did they know how much more Zaire there was to come."

Following a similar route was Derick Lean.  Heading to Kisangani he journals:

Day 126 Wednesday 17th February 1993 60 Km
Get up and go. Road of similar quality all the way to Kisangani, boring but not fast. Pass one small town, perched on the banks of a Congo tributary, beautiful setting but basically in ruins. Arrive in Kisangani about 09:30. Checkpoint into town is a mere formality.

Central Africa, with her red soil, gigantic jungles, offers snaking roads which zigzag the dozen or more rivers.  The rainy season brings mud, and ruts, whilst the dry season bring broken bridges, red dust and humidity.
Her cities are a maze of ex-colonial development, UN investment and African politics.  Tourism does not exist.

It's been almost two decades since these Lost Routes have been used.  I am certain a few brave overlanders have completed the Central Africa route.

The one trip that I know of, in French, is the following website:

Red Bird Dream - unfortunately his journal is no longer available on his website.

In concluding my thoughts, I long for more information about these routes and the early overland trips.  Perhaps one day the current routes will close and Central Africa will re-open.  When that happens, hopefully I will be there meeting people, finding routes and crossing Africa.

Overlanding with Kids

During our BigSky Adventures trip in 2005 I often wondered what it would be like travelling with a kid.  Our Land Rover Defender catered for the two of us - two front seats only, and a double bed rooftent.  Limited space meant that there was no onboard shower, toilet or even a heater.

As I pondered the idea, I began to research how many people complete a full Trans-Africa journey,or overland journey with children.  A friend of mine told me his story how he and his wife drove from South Africa to Germany in a Land Rover Forward Control.  His son adapted perfectly and helped ease the border process as officials recognised them as a family, and not as travelers.

The current list of travelers with kids are:

• 2 Capes 2 Kids (2007)
• Drive to Oz (2008/2009)
• The Big Adventure (2009)
• RSA2UK (2009)
  
• Overland With Kids (2010)

My thoughts are beginning to evolve, especially now that I have become a dad.  Our daughter is still a little young to go off on a Trans-Africa trip however, I do think that it might be possible when she is four or five years old.

Vehicle Choice: Small 4x4 - Land Rover or Toyota
A Land Rover Defender will seat three people up front, however, the cramped driving conditions will be difficult over a longer driving period.  If I think back to the bad roads in Angola, having a child sitting next to me would be hazardous due to the constant jolting of the Land Rover.

4x4 Truck
This would be my ideal choice.  The front cab area is large enough for three people, plus the rear load area is sufficient for beds, washing facilities and seating area.

The UK second hand market, mainly ex military, offers ex Daf, Bedford and the odd Iveco.  A few trips with trucks are listed on The Africa Overland Network.

Back to travelling with kids... I don't have much more to add as I need to research a little more.

More later...