Setting up for off-roading with your 4x4 | Page 6 of 7

You may have the best 4x4 in the world, but without some extra gear you won’t get far. Here's what you need to know to go offroading with your 4x4. THE BAD NEWS is that every 4x4 will need some sort of accessory for anything other than the most basic trips. The good news is that you absolutely don’t need to drop thousands of dollars on aftermarket gear. What you do need to do is get the basics right; the gear you’d need for safety on any off-road trip, and then work out where and how you want to travel - the level of preparation required for a dirt road day trip is quite different to that of a multi-week desert expedition, and a trip with lots of water crossings has different demands to a day in difficult sand dunes. One tip - if you’re buying a vehicle ensure you set aside money for accessories, equipment and extra servicing. So if your budget is $60k, think about $45-50,000 for the car and $10-$15,000 for accessories. Sounds like a lot, but suspension, tyres, storage systems and the like will add up quickly. What you need for any off-road trip First aid kit and fire extinguisher – because you’ll be a long way from help; Tyres – light-truck construction tyres which handle loads better and resist puncture, perhaps with an all-terrain tread for better off-road grip; Suspension – heavier-duty suspension for better load carrying, perhaps with a slight lift. Your stock 4WD’s suspension is designed to carry a light load occasionally over normal roads. The average touring 4WD has 200-500kg of extra gear on it, all the time, and the suspension is simply not designed for that load or rough terrain; Vehicle weak points – just about every vehicle has its weak points, for example the rear door spare mount in Defenders. Fix those first. Your specialist 4WD mechanic or club will know what to do; Strong boxes – to store gear. Tie it down firmly, usually there are tie-down points in the back of the wagon; Mudmats and liners – strong rubber mats to protect the car; UHF CB (Citizen’s Band) radio – even if you buy a handheld you can communicate with other vehicles, trucks and sometimes outback stations. An in-car 5 watt unit plus a pair of handhelds is invaluable for safety and convenience. No license required, but that also means everyone will be listening in! and Navigation system – Google Maps may well not save you once off the beaten path, but a decent topographic map of the area will work even when your phone doesn’t. A light-truck (LT) construction tyre is what you want for offroad touring. This doesn’t mean to say an aggressive mud-terrain with wide gaps between tread blocks, but it does mean a strong construction tyre. Even utes need upgraded suspension to handle the touring demands of heavy loads over rough terrain, and their long wheelbase means they need a better ramp angle. The basic options are shelves you load boxes into, or drawers. Here’s a complex but functional drawer system on the back of a Nissan Patrol. A UHF Citizens Band radio can be operated without a license, and is almost essential for talking in convoy, to truckies and to outback stations. Popular off-road accessories Air compressor – to reinflate tyres and perhaps put them back on the rim! Snorkel – this doesn’t turn your vehicle into a submarine, but it will help protect the engine in the event of a deep water crossing and you never know when water will be deeper than planned. Cheap insurance, given the cost of engines these days; Driving lights – around the ‘burbs there’s streetlights and cat’s eyes in the roads. Out in the bush you have neither, which is where a set of quality driving lamps come into their own, often supplemented these days with LED spread lights for shorter-range lighting; and Tools – get the basics; spanners, screwdrivers, Leatherman, cable ties, duct tape, WD-40, electrical basics, glue, rags, tarp, pliers, hammer, safety glasses. A snorkel is useful insurance given the cost of modern engine replacements. Bullbars offer protection against errant wildlife, and are also a good mounting point for accessories such as driving lights, sand flags and winches. Here we see HID spotlights supplemented by LED sidelights, arranged in symmetrical pairs. Air compressors are essential for reinflating tyres. This one is mounted behind the seats so it doesn’t take up space in the cargo area. If you can, fit them under the bonnet. Also visible are jump-leads and a few other essentials – use every bit of storage space. A paper map is a must, but a handy supplement is a basic Android or Apple smart device running the digital equivalent as a moving map. Tough mounts like this RAM X-Grip are a must (review here). Weekenders - For a weekend away you need to carry a little more. Consider these: Cargo system – offroading involves a lot of carrying gear, so you need some sort of storage system. This could be anything from a homemade shelf system to a custom drawer system. Consider adding a cargo barrier for wagons; Roofrack – very useful for carrying bulky, light gear and even if you can fit everything inside it is handy as a photography platform, emergency storage and firewood carrier. Roofracks can also be used to fit awnings, traction ramps, spades and other gear you’d rather keep outside than in; Dual battery – touring 4WDs have many electrical demands from gadgets to radios to extra lighting, and especially fridges. A second battery helps with the load. Create a separate wiring system to the factory electrics to keep things simple; Window tinting – makes the vehicle a lot cooler and easier to get into when you return in the heat of the sun! and Fridge – you’ll need to take food, and some say a fridge is not necessary. They are people that have never used one. An example of a cargo system. Everything to hand, everything protected. A roofrack is very useful for light, bulky items. This one has several small items secured in a strong canvas roof bag. This is a 40L fridge; you’ll use all the space you have, but bigger fridges take up more room, weigh more and draw more power. Some people run two small fridges instead. The Big Lap - If you’re into the big trips then there’s a few more items that will come in handy: Long range tank – pretty much essential for long desert drives, but once you have one you’ll appreciate the general ability to fill up when you want to, not when you have to. You’ll also find those offroad tyres and other accessories will increase your fuel consumption quite noticeably; Second spare tyre – it’s a good idea to take two spares for the longer trips, and you’ll need somewhere to store the second one; Carriers – maybe a shovel carrier for the spare wheel, or a dual wheel carrier for the back, or a combined wheel/double jerry holder. Just another way to take more gear; Even more storage space – bigger trips, more gear to take. More water, more food, more everything. So packing becomes more important, as does light, small gear. Perhaps now you need to consider a roofrack or trailer? Tools and spares – these become more important the further you travel. Generic gear like windscreen repair kits, tyre repair kits, socket sets and spanner. A few extra nuts and bolts, wires, fuses and the like are always handy. In times gone by people would take driveshafts, suspension and almost one of everything, but these days cars are more reliable so focus on the car’s weak points (ask your specialist mechanic) and take those spares, don’t weigh the car down with one of the lot; Awning – always handy to have your own shade. Sound wimpy? Try 50 degrees in the Outback, and you’ll see what we mean! Bullbar – in case you meet animals on track, and also a great place to mount a winch, lights, sandflag and radio antennas; Water storage – for daytrips you can take jerrycans here and there, for longer trips you might need 80-90L of water for that you need to get organised with water tanks. The good news is water tanks can go pretty much anywhere and be any shape; and Sand flag – required for desert or dune driving so people can see you coming. Two minutes setup and you have shelter. Optionally add guy-ropes for windy days. An extra fuel tank with another 90L of diesel and a pump to transfer into the original gives worry-free touring range in remote areas, or fill-time convenience on weekend trips. Another option is a larger tank to replace the original. A sand flag is best mounted on your bulbar as near to oncoming traffic as possible, and as high as possible. A rear carrier with a spare wheel, two jerries and a HF (High Frequency) radio antenna. A pull-out kitchen that can fit in a dual-cab ute or a camper trailer. A basic tyre repair kit is always handy. Stuff to Take off - Here’s what you need to remove from your 4WD before you use it as a 4WD: Sidesteps – unless the sidesteps in question are rocksliders built to take the weight of the car then they will get bent. You’re better off with nothing and just being careful; Mudguards – some are fine, some are just waiting to be ripped off and unfortunately, that’s most of them. Aftermarket replacements are available; and Plastic guards – increasing numbers of offroaders are now coming with various cheap plastic guards around the recovery points, or front of the car. If these are removeable, as they are on some Jeeps and Land Rovers, then remove them before a stick does it for you. Recovery gear - Then you’ll need recovery gear. It’ll happen sooner or later. Basic Recovery Gear Take this everywhere: Recovery points – to attach straps to the vehicle; Snatch strap – for pulling out of trouble; Shovel – generally useful! Traction ramps – either to help the tyres grip, or to build up a track for clearance; and Bowsaw, spade, bag for gear, traction ramps, yellow snatch strap, gloves, plate for jacking the car on, tyre repair gear and shackles. Advanced Recovery Gear Select from this depending on where you go. Air jacks are handy in sand, but there’s nowhere to winch so leave that gear home. Winch – and the gear such as an extension strap; Drag chain – helps drag trees out of the way; Bridging ladders – for creating a ramp; and Air jack – lifting the car on soft ground. A Ranger winching a Discovery up a wet, slippery hill. Traction ramps used to help a Discovery through a muddy patch. NEVER hook a strap or chain over a towball. The towball isn’t strong enough and might rip off, creating a lethal projective. One safe method is to hook the strap directly into the towbar and put the pin through it, or better yet, use a specialist recovery hook. How to choose off-road gear For any given vehicle there’s usually a variety of choices of modification. In general, remember that poor people can’t afford to buy cheap – because cheap gear fails. In the case of 4x4s, failure could be dangerous, or destroy your trip. This doesn’t mean to say you should pay top dollar for everything, but it does mean that in general the trust should be with established brands that have plenty of experience. Even something 'simple' like a wheel carrier can end up failing if it’s not designed correctly. So do your research, talking to as many experts as possible, taking advice on forums with a large grain of salt, and perhaps joining a club that specialises in your vehicle. One good way to tell the experts from the rest is that an expert will always be happy to explain “why”, and admit limitations, because there’s no gear out there without a disadvantage. Listen to those people more than the rest. And if you buy quality gear which you later don’t need, then you can resell it, but good luck reselling used, no-name junk on eBay. Modifications and the law There are restrictions on what changes you can make to your vehicle for it to remain roadworthy. These are mostly described your state’s road authority website but that requires some automotive expertise to interpret. The regulations cover aspects of vehicle modification such as increasing tyre size, lifting suspension, fitting driving lights, replacing wheels and much more. You may think that you can rely on your local 4WD shop to know what’s what, but sadly some of them take a fit and forget attitude and either do not understand or don’t care about the regulations. Regardless, the onus is on the vehicle’s owner and drive to comply so ultimately everyone has to do their own research.