We purchased the truck from Faz in Oxford about a year ago. He has been a tremendous help with getting inspections done and properly registering the truck in the United Kingdom. We are grateful for his help and his friendship.

http://www.4x4xfaz.co.uk

I have many updates that I need to detail over the next few weeks. This post is just a synopsis of those updates. After crossing the desert in Morocco we spent 1 month in El Jadida learning from our friend, Nordinne who is an amazing professor of religion. Upon our departure from Morocco, our experiment with expired customs plates replaced with fake plates failed nearly landing us in Spanish prison. We raced across Europe to visit family in Ireland. Faz of 4x4xFaz was able to help us get the truck registered properly (now a UK truck). After leaving Ireland we headed back to Germany to research our options as Northern Africa has become impassable. We met a nice couple in Morocco (Ben and Alex) who traveled down the West Coast of Africa and were denied entry into the Democratic Republic of Congo. They decided to ship their vehicle back and within 30 miles of the port were t-boned by a taxi, totaling there truck. It turned out to be a blessing as the police totaled the car, the country waved them import fees, the Carnet was cleared, and they were able to sell it and break even. The point for us is that we can’t get through DRC. We were planning on the Eastern route any ways, but found out the ferry from Turkey is shut down. It’s a shame as we have a contact in Egypt we were hoping to meet and spend time with. We’ll meet up with him later in our trip. Being from the U.s. puts further limitations on options as there are a few countries that bar U.S. citizens entry. So we have made arrangements with a clearing agent in South Africa (Duncan) and are shipping the truck to Cape Town September 12th. We’ll meet her again when she sails in on October 7th. Our route remains the same it will just be backwards and we will go South to North and then back. We got our Carnet de Passage and it covers all of the Southern and Eastern countries so we are clear for takeoff.

While there are arguments as to whether a vehicle needs a bulbar for an overland trip down the East coast of Africa I need to remind everyone (as well as when considering a winch) that we have future purposes for the truck. Having a bullbar adds weight, but also strength. Having used spare tires tied to the front of our trucks when in Iraq to protect the front end in case ramming or nudging was needed I just like the idea of having that option. Why not have a giant steal bumper with steel bars running across the front as your go-to tool for pushing or smashing things out of your way? In addition to giving us more front end strength our new ARB (80-Series) bullbar gave us an additional two tow/attachment points, a solid anchor for our winch, and in combination with the raised coils, a higher angle of incidence for inclines when taking them straight on. The ARB bulbar also adds a solid jacking point for the Hilift and, let’s face it, it looks cool. So I am able to go back to the old saying “it doesn’t matter what you are doing, only that you look cool doing it.” Seriously though, we may not need it running from North to South though the African continent, but when we reach Southern Africa and begin cruising out into game reserves it can be helpful when breaking through bush, pushing things out of the way, or protecting the front end from say, a rhino. If you think I’m kidding or that it is unlikely then here is a story for you. I rented a car in South Africa so that I could go visit Celine at the lodge she was working at. She warned me that there was a rhino that liked to hang out in the road and advised me to approach with caution while revving the engine. I thought, this place is huge and I am unlikely to see this guy. As I crested my third or forth hill there stood, larger than both me and my rental car, a huge rhino. He did not appear to be impressed with me and took a stance that said he was ready for a standoff. I approached slowly and revved the tiny engine in an attempt to intimidate him. Low and behold, it worked! I sped by with no issue. This happened a couple of times until one evening he was being visited by a few female rhinos. This approach would be a bit more challenging, but I figured the same attic would be effective. As I revved and approached he slowly and begrudgingly moved a few feet off the road, but this time, instead of speeding passed ,y tires began to dig into the sand. I’m no expert, but my few bush walks with Massimo taught me that to back out now would appear like a victory to the big guy. I had no choice, though. I backed up quickly to get another running start, but he had seen what he perceived to be fear. As I tried to slip by he came at us. Celine was sitting in the passengers seat on the same side as this huge rhino. I could see his huge eye right outside her window as he ran alongside of us. All he did was turn his head slightly, right into the side of the car. I thought for sure we would flip over, but we actually barely felt it. As I kept speeding down the road Celine pressed me not to slow down and I checked the rearview to see him charging behind us. When we arrived at the lodge I hoped the damage was minimal, but my hope sank as Celine attempted to open her door. I got out to check and found the entire front left quarter panel was smashed in, his horn had gone through it, through the light and surfaced between the quarter panel and the hood, ensuring that it was also damaged. Needless to say at this point, if the car had been outfit with a nice ARB steel bullbar, the damage would have been far less, if any.

As far as the rear bumper of the truck is concerned the decision was easy. We opted for the matching ARB rear steel bumper with the wheel carrier. We needed the wheel carrier so that we could remove the full size spare from under the rear end where we mounted a 177l Longranger auxiliary fuel tank. We were going to get the dual spare carrier, but there were none in stock, so we had the fuel carrier mounted instead. It has come in handy for carrying a 20l water jug with a tap on it.

The UK build of the 80-series Land Cruiser comes with dual batteries to create a 24v system for starting in cold environments. Basically the starter system ties the two batteries together to run the 24v starter solenoid, then it separates the two and runs the accessories off of one battery at 12v. We decided to keep the 24v starting system and to add an additional 12v battery. We chose the Optima yellow top batteries as they allow for deep cycle application (which means that they can be discharged and recharged many times) as well as a high output of cold cranking amps (needed to start the vehicle). These batteries are also sealed gel so they can be mounted in any configuration and won’t spill. They are also shock and vibration resistant, and can be discharged to a lower voltage than other batteries and still be recharged without performance issues. We replaced the two original batteries with the Optima and then added a third yellow top which was mounted behind the right rear passenger seat. This third battery is tied into the vehicles charging system through a fuse panel and the IBS dual battery systems 200A relay. The IBS dual battery monitor allows me to see the charge level and voltage of the auxiliary battery. This system, basically, works by monitoring the voltage of the starter batteries (under the hood). Once it determines they are fully charged it connects the third battery through the relay which begins it in its charge cycle. When I am starting the vehicle the third battery is disconnected from the system unless, in the case of a dead starter battery, I need it and press the override switch which connects all three batteries for 30 minutes. The LED lights from ELS, the ARB Fridge/Freezer, and the winch are connected to the third battery.