4 x 4 January 2023

4x4

NEWS • VIEWS • KIT • EXPEDITIONS • MODIFIED VEHICLES • GREEN LANING PLUS Porsche creates a shock new 911-based off-road supercar

THE UK’S ONLY 4X4 AND PICK-UP MAGAZINE

BRING ON THE FUTURE

Made in Scotland, ready for the world: Munro Vehicles’ all-new MK_1 goes on sale promising next-level off-road ability – from an all-electric package that will cost less than a Defender and stay with you as long as you live

Modern Land Cruiser prepped to take on the desert

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Sensational green lane roadbook in the Lake District

JAN 2023

Exploring Australia in a twice written-off Mitsubishi Pajero 4x4 Cover Jan 23.indd 1

15/12/2022 12:52

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January 2023

CONTENTS

52

‘At the end of the day, it’s a rusty old farm truck. With falls off stays off!’

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36 BIG SAVINGS WHEN YOU SUBSCRIBE! Get 13 issues of 4x4 for just £22 – that’s less than £1.70 each. And we’ll send you a FREE Ring RRL660 inspection lamp into the bargain!

4x4 Scene: News, Products and More…

6 10 12 13 13 14 18 20 22 22 23

Munro MK_1 Extraordinary UK-built all-terrain EV unveiled and on sale now Ford Ranger Full line-up revealed, complete with new luxury range-topper Cumbria Green Lane Association working to preserve rights of way East Riding 4x4 Club Taking up tools to show the trails some TLC Pindale Major initiative to electrify Kenya’s ageing Land Cruisers Nightmare Challenge Punch-hunting in the dark. Ideal for beginners…

Ruskin Design Trim specialist launches new self-fit kits for Defender 90 Safety Devices Expedition rack now available through Britpart Euro 4x4 Parts Need a new winch remote?

Machine Mart New models join Clarke air compressor range ARB Aussie giant brings ‘best driving lights ever’ to the UK

Every Month 4 35 64 80

Alan Kidd Naming the best 4x4 of all time might be trickier than you think Subscribe Get your year’s 4x4s, plus a Ring LED inspection lamp, for just £22 Roadbook A landscape without compare on the lanes of the Lake District Next Month An off-road expedition you definitely won’t be expecting

Features 24 32 38 48 52

Porsche 911 Dakar A factory-built off-road 911… and you can buy one Rally Cruiser A Land Cruiser built to do a job in the Sahara The Dirty Dozen The best-ever 4x4? Here’s 12 top contenders for the crown Hardcore P38 A Mk2 Range Rover built for playdays but still near-standard Farmer’s classic Living the (other) Californian lifestyle in a rusty F250

Travel 56

Aussie Homecoming Taking the long way home aboard an ancient Pajero

64 Lakeland Roadbook are sharp rock Caution – there as you climb the steps to negotiate hillside

Step

Step 40: Turn left off the main embankment track, dropping then plunging down the straight into a water trough (right)

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13

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Abbey Strata Florida

8.75

track to the left Take the rocky track the main Cat A

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of

More rock steps, water trough

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followed by a long

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There’s a couple of huge water troughs after the junction

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It’s a steep, sharp climb up and over a bigger track – you can’t see ahead over your bonnet to start with

Caution over a steps as you short set of rocky drop down the hill

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10.9

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Look out for you cross the the waymarker as ford

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Join the Cat A

track

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You may find yourself driving a river bed along for a while…

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track Drop off the main the gate and immediately before trough water into yet another

14.7 Step

to clear these axleneed a bit of momentum right is much bigger to the Step 37: You might warned, the drop-off twisters – but be than it looks here

4x4

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a kick – but whatever

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4x4 Tel: 01283 553243 Email: enquiries@assignment-media.co.uk

Alan Kidd Editor

W

Maybe the best ever 4x4 is one that hasn’t happened yet…

hat’s the best-ever 4x4?

It’s a subject that keeps on coming up, or rather that never goes away, and of course there’s no correct answer – just everybody’s opinion. Still, it’s a fun one to debate and since this month’s issue includes a sort-of guide to a dozen different trucks that all want to lay claim to the title, I can hardly help but start musing to myself about those of them I’ve owned.

My first 4x4 was the one I still come over all wistful about today. I’ve droned on about it often enough so I won’t start again, but it was a 300Tdi Defender 90 van which I had from new as a company car and grew to love and depend on like a limb, a family pet and a favourite jumper all rolled into one.

Since the I’ve had a Range Rover that turned out to be a bucket of rust; two Jeep Cherokees (one modestly prepped and brilliant, the other a self-propelled cautionary tale about how to modify a vehicle to the point of unusability); a Nissan Patrol that proved what a good idea leaving it standard can be; a Discovery 2 that was actually not too unreliable, though mainly you could rely on its V8 engine to leave scorch marks up the side of your credit card; a Land Cruiser Colorado which illustrated that even the most reliable vehicles in the world will bite back at you if you don’t look after them right; another Defender 90 that’s turned into one of those eternal projects; and now an Isuzu D-Max which, after all these years, feels a bit like coming full circle.

I didn’t quite have it from new, see, but I had it straight from Isuzu and they did all the prep work on it before it come to us.

So it’s a bit like my old 90 in that respect, though it’s been modded with a plan whereas I had no idea what I was doing back then and however much a loved that Landy, in my heart of hearts I know it was always a bit of a lash-up.

So anyway, that means I’ve had just over half of the Dirty Dozen in our feature, in some shape or form. And I’m not including the Suzuki Jimny I had for a while, because all it did was sit on my driveway before going off to a new home while I was otherwise occupied with nappies, nappies and more nappies.

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And which of them was best? Honestly, considering this mag thrives on modified vehicles, it pains me a little to say I’m struggling to see past the Patrol. Only thing was that it did need to have been modified, as it turns out, though only in the way of armour, because a life on the lanes didn’t half take its toll on the truck’s bodywork.

Maybe my idea of the best ever 4x4 is also clouded by the ones I’ve never had.

An 80-Series Land Cruiser has always felt like the gold standard. That and a Wrangler.

And here’s another bit of heartache from the past. Do you remember Ruby 3, a TJ which Jeep UK built up to use on events like the Croisiere Blanche and so on? Well, when it was two or three years old and the JK was on the way, it was time to get rid so they offered it to me for £4500. And I didn’t buy it. Talk about a missed opportunity…

If there’s one thing I would have done differently in my off-roading life, it would have been buying Ruby 3. Or keeping my 90 when I had to sell it to raise the deposit for my first flat. Or putting an 8” lift on the Cherokee when 3” was already working perfectly. Or not having steel bumpers on my Patrol before taking it up Hollinsclough and Stanage Edge. And so on…

If there’s one bit of advice I always give people and have mainly ignored, it’s to start with the best vehicle you can possibly afford. That’s what I did with the Patrol and the D-Max, and the latter in particular has repaid the investment many times over.

If you can afford to start with a new Wrangler or Land Cruiser, or the pick-up of your choice, you won’t regret it. And that will also be the case when the Ineos Grenadier comes out, which it will very soon.

And what’s this on the front cover? The Munro MK_1 was unexpected, to say the least – but if it does everything it promises, it will be an absolute game-changer.

So it’s an exciting time in the off-road market. When you talk about the best-ever 4x4, inevitably you’re looking into the past.

But something’s up that we were never expecting. Maybe, as it turns out, the best ever 4x4s is one that hasn’t happened yet…

Web: www.totaloffroad.co.uk www.4x4i.com Online Shop: www.toronline.co.uk Facebook: www.facebook.com/totaloffroad www.facebook.com/4x4Mag Editor Alan Kidd Art Editor Samantha D’Souza Contributors Graham Scott, Olly Sack, Gary Noskill, Dan Fenn, Paul Looe, Tom Alderney, James Watts, Richard and Sophie Morgan Photographers Tomasz Jarecki, Harry Hamm, Steve Taylor, Richard Hair, Vic Peel Group Advertising Manager Ian Argent Tel: 01283 553242 Advertising Manager Colin Ashworth Tel: 01283 553244 Advertising Production Sarah Moss Tel: 01283 553242 Subscriptions Sarah Moss Tel: 01283 553242 Publisher and Head of Marketing Sarah Moss Email: sarah.moss@assignment-media.co.uk To subscribe to 4x4, or renew a subscription, call 01283 553242. Prices for 12 issues: UK £42 (24 issues £76); Europe Airmail/ROW Surface £54; ROW Airmail £78 Distributed by Marketforce; www.marketforce.co.uk Every effort is made to ensure the contents of 4x4 are accurate, but Assignment Media accepts no responsibility for errors or omissions nor the consequences of actions made as a result of these.

When responding to any advert in 4x4, you should make appropriate enquiries before sending money or entering into a contract. The publishers take reasonable care to ensure advertisers’ probity, but will not be liable for loss or damage incurred from responding to adverts Where a photo credit includes the note ‘CC BY 2.0’ or similar, the image is made available under that Creative Commons licence: details at www.creativecommons.org 4x4 is published by Assignment Media Ltd, Repton House 1.08, Bretby Business Park, Ashby Road, Bretby, Derbyshire DE15 0YZ

© Assignment Media Ltd, 2022

4x4 15/12/2022 13:54

Defender Carpet Kits ⊳ DA4910 Defender up to and including 200Tdi LT77 gearbox Excludes V8 Front carpet set in black

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NEWS

Scottish EV start-up Munro Vehicles off-road market with introduction of Ladder chassis, beam axles • Two-speed transfer case, all lockable

B

ritain has a new car maker – and it’s building hardcore off-roaders. Munro Vehicles is based in East Kilbride, near Glasgow, and it has just unveiled the MK_1, an all-terrain vehicle designed for use by sectors such as mining, construction, utilities, agriculture and defence.

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Despite its apparent similarities to the Ineos Grenadier, which went on sale at almost exactly the same time, the MK_1 is a very different beast. Like the Grenadier, it has the familiar ladder chassis and beam axles of a traditional off-roader. But the Munro is made in Britain – and it’s electric.

With so much opposition continuing to be felt towards EVs from within the off-road world, some will see this as a reason not to consider it. But Munro directors Russell Peterson and Ross Anderson, who founded the company in 2019, see it as a reason why the MK_1 will be a truck for life.

The idea for the vehicle came to Peterson and Anderson during a trip to the Scottish Highlands. ‘We had already taken measures to reduce our own environmental footprint and had a lot of experience driving our own EV, and got quite used to the instant torque delivery,’ says Peterson.

‘But the off-roader we were driving

4x4 15/12/2022 22:18

NEWS

gets set to shake up extreme revolutionary all-electric MK_1 diffs • Purpose-built factory near Glasgow • Pricing from £49,950

through the Highlands was combustion-engined, and it was really struggling on the steep climbs. So we were musing how much better it would be with an electric motor.

‘On the return journey, we stopped at a café in Braemar, where a bank of 50kW rapid chargers were sitting empty and unused. Parked up

4x4 5pp Scene News Jan 23.indd 7

nearby was a large group of combustion-engined safari adventure 4x4s of a type that are no longer manufactured and will have to be replaced eventually.

‘It dawned on us that there was a gap in the market for an electric-powered, four-wheel-drive, utilitarian workhorse. We envisioned

a vehicle with ultimate, go-anywhere off-road ability, unrestricted by road-derived underpinnings that limit the all-terrain ability of vehicles such as the 4x4 pick-up trucks that have come to dominate the market.’

Thus the vehicle introduced in December, a utility wagon designed to carry a crew of five and all their

equipment, is the result of a project instigated little more than three years ago. That’s a remarkably short development time – yet another difference between the MK_1 and the Grenadier is that whereas Ineos is using suppliers for major components, Munro is using its own chassis and axles.

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NEWS The former is made from 5mm thick steel and comes galvanised as standard. Munro says it was developed to provide ‘the ultimate combination of strength, robustness and ease of repairability.’

‘The engineering is unashamedly agricultural in nature,’ says Peterson, who comes from a farming background. ‘Some people see the term “agricultural” as potentially derogatory, but at Munro we certainly don’t.

‘Agricultural vehicles feature some of the most sophisticated technology you can imagine. But above all, they are engineered to do the job, no matter how much punishment they soak up, and to keep doing it year after year. The Munro has been built to the most robust standards possible and to be fully operational in 30, 40, 50 years’ time.’

The company is, however, buying in certain components from offroad specialists. These include suspension linkages (the vehicle is coil-sprung all-round), radius arms and steering bar, all of which were developed by UK-based 4x4 competition specialists.

The vehicle’s power comes from a single motor, which the company sees as the right approach for a 4x4 designed to be used properly.

‘The best way to drive off-road is to ensure that the same amount of torque is delivered to each wheel, and that all the wheels spin at the same speed,’ says Peterson. ‘That’s one of the reasons we decided to fit

one big electric motor in the middle and power all the wheels using a mechanical driveline.’ Robustness and ease of maintenance factor high here, too.

The motor itself is an axial flux unit, chosen for its compact size and low weight compared to the radial flux design more commonly seen in automotive applications. As well as being around 40kg lighter, the motor’s proportions allow it to be located between the two front-seat occupants and in front of

the vehicle’s bulkhead – meaning a near-perfect 50/50 front-to-rear weight distribution, something that’s highly desirable for its handling off-road.

With a high degree of hand-assembly required, using an axial flux motor does add to the vehicle’s price. But Anderson believes it’s worth the extra money: ‘an axial flux electric motor provides the perfect solution for our application.’

In addition to its compact size and light weight, the motor in the

MK_1 spins at 5000-8000rpm – around half the speed of most automotive units. This means there’s no need for a reduction drive, removing yet more weight (not to mention complexity) as the motor’s output goes directly to the transfer case.

The MK_1 has a two-speed transmission, allowing the motor to run efficiently at low speeds; additionally, regenerative braking is much more pronounced in low range, allowing true one-pedal operation as well as providing a particularly effective form of ‘compression’ braking on steep descents.

The other kind of braking is by heavy-duty mechanically operated discs all-round. These are solid rather than ventilated, so as to avoid the risk of performance dropping off due to mud clogging the vents.

The cabin is utilitarian in a way that might be reminiscent of the old Land Rover Defender – though the dashboard does house a media screen running Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Switchgear is waterproof and easy to replace if you damage it, though Munro says its agricultural background means it’s almost impossible to do so. The whole interior is designed to be hosed out below the waistline

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NEWS MK_1’s slab-sided bodywork is very much a case of form following function. Munro originally contracted out the panels’ manufacture but has since brought it in-house – where they’re made alongside the vehicle’s ladder chassis and beam axles. The company was only founded in 2019, after Russell Peterson and Ross Anderson noticed a convoy of conventionally engined off-road vehicles parked up next to a line of unusued EV charging points The transfer case, meanwhile, is equipped with a locking centre diff as standard, and both axles can be specified with lockers as an option.

All these features hang on a basic design which gives the MK_1 a ground clearance of 480mm and a wading depth of 800mm. Approach and departure angles are 84° and 51°· respectively, and a 148° breakover angle completes a set of figures which promise strong all-round ability in the most challenging terrain.

Talking of figures, the vehicle will be available with a choice of 295bhp and 375bhp motors and 61kWh and 82kWh battery packs, as well as 7kW and 22kW AC charging options.

It also comes with a CCS cable for DC charging, allowing the battery to be replenished in just over 30 minutes. Munro quotes a 16-hour offroad duty cycle on a single charge.

The batteries are guaranteed to deliver 80% of their original energy capacity for at least eight years and 100,000 miles, and their location under the floor is designed for ease of replacement – an unusual feature in an EV but one which is particularly relevant in this one. ‘With your average electric vehicle, the battery is designed to last the life of the car,’ says Anderson. ‘But because the Munro is engineered to last several decades, we will either recondition or replace the battery pack for customers when the time comes.

‘This has the benefit of guaranteeing the future value of our customers’ vehicles. We will partner with companies specialising in reuse and recycling to recoup the residual value of the battery pack, enabling us to fit the latest battery technology at a reasonable cost.’

Despite the motors’ hefty power outputs, top speed is limited by gearing to 80mph. ‘Every Munro is geared for torque,’ the company points out, with a peak of 516lbf.ft available all the way up to 50mph.

While this means sportscar-like responses on the road, not to mention a 4.9-second 0-62 time, what matters more is that hauling a load

4x4 5pp Scene News Jan 23.indd 9

of 1000kg or pulling a 3500kg trailer is something it will take in its stride.

In addition to being able to do either of these things, the MK_1 is capable of accommodating a Euro pallet in its load area. It’s been designed to take more than that, too. ‘Our customers should be able to throw things in the back without feeling bad,’ says Peterson.

‘We’ve used thick plywood for the lining of the cargo area. It gives a nice definition between the steel and aluminium material but, more importantly, it’s tough and extremely hardwearing. To ensure the cargo stays secured, we’ve used aluminium tracks and fastenings, each of which is strong enough to hold 400kg of weight in place.’

Up front, too, the vehicle makes full use of its long 130” wheelbase to allow plenty of legroom for front and second-row occupants alike. ‘If you push the driver’s seat all the way back, you can easily get a laptop on your knees without touching the steering wheel,’ says Head of Design Ross Compton. ‘And even with the driver’s seat right back, there’s still lots of spare knee room for the person sitting directly behind. Not only can the Munro accommodate five adults, but it gives them enough space to check their emails if it’s blowing a gale outside.’

While it’s common to see oldshape Land Rover Defenders fitted with roll cages for commercial and utility use, the MK_1 won’t need that as its body already provides full Roll Over Protection (ROP). Optional roof strengthening is also available for Falling Object Protection (FOP). The vehicle’s body panels are another item to be made in-house, where they are laser-cut, formed and folded before being moved a few metres to the paint shop.

Elsewhere in the cabin, a simple flat dashboard is equipped with a choice of infotainment units running Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, or a UHF two-way radio in lieu.

Switchgear is taken directly from the agricultural sector and is fully water-

proof, as well as being suitable for use while wearing gloves. The whole cabin is designed for power-washing from the waist down, and a pair of side lockers provide ‘saddle bag’ stowage for items such as large tools and wet weather clothing.

Another outstanding touch is the provision of two 3-pin domestic sockets in the cabin. Unlike the sort of inverters you tend to get in petrol stations for the price of a sandwich, these are capable of supporting decent loads – allowing you to run a kettle and microwave as far as you want from home. In-car illumination is by ceiling-mounted LED strips, and the vehicle comes pre-wired for flashing beacons.

Munro is starting small, with plans to hand-build 50 ‘Founders’ Edition’ examples of the MK_1 during 2023. Priced from £49,995 plus VAT, these will be registered under IVA rules; the company says several orders have already been taken from as far afield as Switzerland, St Lucia and Dubai. The following year, the company intends to move into a purpose-built facility in central Scotland, creating 300 new jobs as it moves towards its strategic goal of producing 2500 units per year. These will be registered under

Medium Series Type Approval in the UK and Small Series Type Approval in the EU, and specific variants will also be available in the USA. In the midst of all this, Munro says that further models are already in the pipeline – with the first of these set to be unveiled early in the new year. Anderson promises that it will look different to the MK_1, but that ‘it will set new standards for emission-free off-road mobility and it will conquer the most challenging terrain, master the toughest tasks and deliver a lifetime of service.’

Beyond that, Munro will add ‘a wide range of variants to meet our customers’ diverse needs.’

Those customers will be supported by a 60-month, 100,000-mile warranty. And ‘supported’ is the word; Munro says ‘we recognise and respect our customers’ right to repair and maintain their vehicle, and doing so will not invalidate their warranty.’ With this approach, and a hardcore off-road product at a price which compares well with the rest of the off-road market, Scotland’s first volume car manufacturer in decades could be the one to show some of diesel’s staunchest allies that electric vehicles may have something to offer them after all.

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NEWS

Full Ranger line-up now available for ordering as Ford released work-spec models – as well as a luxurious new range-topper

CUSTOMER DELIVERIES OF THE ALL-NEW FORD RANGER HAVE NOW BEGUN, with the keys to the first Raptor models being handed over to their owners. And you won’t have to wait long for regular versions of the much-vaunted one-tonner, either, as Ford has revealed a full line-up to go with the high-speccers first released for ordering.

The big news among these is that the Ranger is now going even higher-spec than ever, with the introduction of a new Platinum model. This is powered exclusively by Ford’s 3.0-litre V6 diesel, whose 240bhp and 443lbf.ft go out through a 10-speed auto box mated to a new permanent four-wheel drive system.

Positioned above the previously range-topping Wildtrak, the Platinum Double-Cab has its own unique grille and matrix LED headlamps containing signature DRLs. Its appearance is complemented by a silk chrome finish for its trim items and 20” machined-face alloys with high-gloss ebony detailing, while roof rails and privacy glass add both to its looks and its practicality. A soft-close tailgate is another useful touch, and a worthwhile safety item too.

Inside, the driver and front passenger get premium perforated and quilted leather seats with

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contrasting stitch work, 10-way power adjustment and heating and cooling functions. These are complemented by open-grained dark maple wood textures and ambient lighting.

There’s no end of high-tech toys to keep you entertained, too. At the heart of the dash display is a pair of 12” screens; a full digital cluster in place of the traditional gauges and, next to it, a vertically aligned touchscreen running Ford’s latest SYNC 4A infotainment system. This also controls an eight-speaker B&O audio system, and the Platinum comes with wireless device charging as standard.

The devices in question can be connected using a standard FordPass Connect modem.

Further high-tech equipment comes in the shape of a comprehensive suite of safety aids including trailer assist functions. The Ranger Platinum also gets Active Park Assist with Park Out Assist and a 360-degree surround-view camera as standard equipment.

‘The Ford Ranger has set the standard for performance, versatility and capability in the pickup segment, and now it’s setting the standard for luxury,’ says Ford Pro’s General Manager Hans Schep. ‘The stunning new Platinum will suit customers who appreciate the level of comfort

and technology from high-end road cars, but who rely on the toughness and all-round productivity that consistently make Ranger Europe’s pickup sales leader.’

Orders for the Ranger Platinum are open now, with deliveries expected to commence in late spring. Prices start at £44,400 plus VAT. • At the business end of the Ranger line-up, Ford has also now opened the order book on the work-spec XL and XLT. These models are powered by a 2.0-litre turbo-diesel in 170bhp form, with a 6-speed manual gearbox as standard. The XL is available in Chassis-Cab, Single-Cab and Double-Cab form, with prices ranging from £27,550 to £29,800 plus VAT, while the XLT is Double-Cab only and costs from £31,150, again excluding VAT.

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RIGHTS OF WAY

Now you see them… now you don’t!

I

f you use green lanes, chances are you’ve spotted evidence of the massive effort the Green Lane Association, its members and other affiliated organisations put into keeping them open. Chances are also that you might never have noticed it.

Sometimes, the Association’s volunteers are very visible in what they do. On other occasions, it’s what you don’t see that demonstrates the effort they put in. This can mean fallen trees, litter, damaged ground, illegal blockages or, indeed, official closure notices.

A good example comes from the Association’s efforts in Cumbria over the last year. This is always one of the busiest parts of the country, as the lanes here continue to be so very popular.

Tilberthwaite Lane is one of the most popular of them all, even after the crass ‘repair’ work a few years ago which saw a beautifully rocky trail smashed down into a smooth ribbon of stone. Even after that,

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of course, maintenance remains an issue – and if you follow the Roadbook in this magazine, you’ll be blissfully unaware of the work GLASS has put in with the local authority to ensure the drains here are clear. Much as we liked the surface the way it used to be, the simple fact of it remaining undamaged by run-off is evidence enough that the Association has been busy behind the scenes.

GLASS has also been liaising with the local authority over repair work on Breasthigh Road, which is currently closed with a likely reopening date in the spring or summer.

‘Some of the more damaged areas, such as the deeply scarred uphill corner from the western end, are being re-profiled to allow water run-off to drain away without causing further damage to the track,’ reports GLASS’ Cumbria reps team.

‘Drainage of surface water is a major issue on our steep lanes and this is being addressed well here.

Some of the culverts have also shown to be in need of repair or replacement.’

It’s not unreasonable to speculate that without GLASS’ involvement, Cumbria County Council might well have seen the damage as an opportunity to close the lane for good. Other, less

democratic authorities certainly would, and opposing the bigoted anti-vehicle activity of rogue government is one of the areas in which the Association’s much more visible presence helps keep laning alive.

So too is the sort of public-facing exercise the reps were involved with recently at an Open Day at the Lakeland Motor Museum, which pulled in visitors from as far afield as Scotland. A welcome opportunity to wave the flag, and also to check out the Association’s new gazebo and exhibition materials, and the guy from north of the border went home with a special prize of an ‘I love GLASS’ CD (better known as Heart of Glass by Blondie) presented by the reps.

Even more visibly, GLASS continues to be involved with the local authority in marshalling open days on Gatescarth Pass. This is open once a month during the summer, by permit only and to vehicles with a maximum 100” wheelbase.

Permit days for 4x4s in 2023 are: • Sunday 2 April • Saturday 13 May • Friday 9 June • Sunday 9 July • Saturday 5 August • Friday 1 September • Sunday 1 October ‘The route is not suitable for beginners as it’s steep, narrow, rocky and twisty,’ cautions GLASS.

But it’s also a sensationally exciting and fabulously scenic drive, so if your vehicle fits the guidelines for suitability and you feel confident in your abilities, you can apply for a permit via the Lake District National Park’s website.

Best of all, when you’re up there you’ll see GLASS’ marshals keeping an eye on the route to ensure it’s used safely and responsibly. And the actual process by which you apply for your permit in the first place has recently been streamlined by the local authority in consultation with… GLASS. A perfect example in one paragraph of how the Association is looking after our green lanes, sometimes very visibly and sometimes behind the scenes.

4x4 15/12/2022 22:17

RIGHTS OF WAY

East Riding 4x4 Club takes up the tools to aid Green Lane Association’s Volunteer Lengthsman Scheme EAST RIDING 4X4 CLUB is an active group of enthusiasts based in East Yorkshire. It was formed in 2004 and has been growing ever since, becoming a member of the Green Lane Association and the Association of Northern Car Clubs as well as being recognised by Motorsport UK. The club has around 200 Facebook followers and 60 active members who throughout the year attend events including green lane runs, overland camping weekends, 4x4 shows and trials.

On top of all this, during the last year the club has become involved with lane maintenance as part of its association with GLASS. ‘East Riding 4x4 was looking for a way in which we could give a little back into our laning community which would allow us to carry out some light duties on our lanes,’ explains the club’s Rob Forbes. ‘The Volunteer Lengthman Scheme (VLS) was perfect. This would allow ER4x4 to adopt a few of our local lanes.’

Rob contacted GLASS for more information, as well as contacting the Association’s local rep Roger Abbott.

An information pack duly arrived in the post, along with a VLS vehicle sticker as recognition.

‘Then it was time to plan a route and check out one of our adopted lanes,’ continues Rob. ‘So earlier in 2022, we met up with Roger at one of our adopted lanes to carry out some maintenance work.

‘Everyone was made aware that only hand tools could be used for the task ahead. Hand saws, secateurs, loppers and shears were used to trim back mainly overhanging branches, briers and so on. We also carried out litter picking on the lane – and surprisingly filled a couple of bin bags.’

The lane, near the village of Wetwang, needed enough work for the team to go back for a second day on the tools, and since then they’ve been back to finish the job.

‘The VLS was perfect for us,’ says Rob. ‘And it could well be for you too, so do think about signing up to the scheme and helping to keep our lanes open.’

Pindale back under threat from renewed off-piste driving THE PEAK DISTRICT NATIONAL PARK AUTHORITY has shown many times in the past that it needs no excuse to close precious green lanes.

So, while it’s only a tiny minority, it beggars belief that some 4x4 drivers continue to give them a reason by going off-piste to ‘play’ on land next to the rights of way.

Pindale Road, a byway in a valley near Castleton, has long been a problem area for this. The track runs next to a disused quarry – where, recently, 4x4s have yet again been seen off-roading.

Pindale Road is legal to drive. But the row of rocks along its borders tells a story. Leaving the right of way is trespass at best – and with an SSSI to either side of the trail, it’s a criminal offence

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On the surface, it would be easy to think that there’s no great harm in this. It’s an abandoned quarry, after all. However aside from the simple fact that without permission, this is still trespass, the land on either side of Pindale Road is an SSSI – meaning it’s a criminal offence to drive on it.

The rock formations close to the road are extremely rare, as are the wildflowers which thrive around the old lead mines. Hence the SSSI protection afforded to the area. There’s no shortage of signposting around the lane to warn recreational drivers against leaving the right of way, so no-one has an excuse – and there’s certainly none for the fly tipping which has also been happening recently.

‘Pindale Road was saved from a bridleway order by vehicle user group reps and a hard fought public inquiry a few years ago,’ says GLASS Derbyshire Rep Chris Mitchell. ‘A great deal of effort has been made by GLASS and the TRF to prove and protect the motoring rights on this lane, but recently it has been subject to antisocial driving and fly tipping.’

If you see this kind of activity taking place on Pindale Road, or indeed any green lane, you should report it to the police. The action you take might just make the difference between the lane staying open or being closed.

‘Don’t challenge illegal drivers or fly tippers yourself,’ warns Chris.

‘Record registration numbers, date, time etc and take photos if it’s safe to do so.’

JANUARY 2023 | 13

15/12/2022 22:17

MOTORSPORT

Viking 4x4 Club takes a shot in the dark with a one-off running of the Nightmare Challenge Words: James Watts Pictures: Tomasz Jarecki

A

s we plunge into the depths of midwinter at the end of another season, most competitors are spending long hours in the workshop getting their trucks ready for the spring. After all, nobody likes off-roading in the dark, do they?

Well, maybe they do…

The Nightmare Challenge has traditionally been run by the Midland Off Road Club. But in 2022, the lingering knock-on effects of lockdown meant they weren’t in a position to do it – so the Viking 4x4 Club approached them and received their blessing to keep this iconic event going.

Why is the Nightmare Challenge so special? The answer is simple: it’s the only winch event in the UK to be held at night.

Weekley Woods, near Kettering, is one of the Viking 4x4 Club’s regular haunts, and that’s where the teams headed for to take part in an event that was sponsored by Fullflex Springs, Damar Webbing Solutions, RA Land Rover and Britpart.

The event took the familiar format, with 50 punches laid out around the site – 15 of them particularly awkward to reach and worth twice as many points as the rest. But of course, what was very unfamiliar was doing it in darkness.

This makes it much, much harder.

The punches are set out on marker boards, which are easy enough to see from a distance by day but at night might as well not be there. So

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to help the teams find the punches, they were marked with blue and red glow sticks.

Putting on an event like this in the middle of summer would mean starting in the middle of the night and finishing, well, also in the middle of the night. But this was early February, so the teams were flagged off at 5pm – by which time, of course, it was already dark. They had until 11pm to get as many punches as possible, with a 100-point penalty per minute of lateness back to the pits ensuring no-one would be tempted to try and burn the midnight oil.

The week leading up to the event had been dry, but on the evening of the event drizzly rain set in that stayed all night. That made it quite slippery and tricky for the teams, but thankfully it wasn’t worse – in years gone by, the Nightmare has had terrible weather and freezing temperatures.

It’s always great to welcome new competitors, and one such at the Nightmare was Jake Joannides. He had managed to bag Tom Wilson to co-drive; Tom is a well known and very experienced winch man, who had won most events he’s taken part in.

Jake, though, was the first person to have issues, just a few minutes in. He was running standard alloy wheels and no beadlocks, so perhaps it’s not a surprise that he took a tyre off its rim. Every event is a learning experience, so no harm

done, and a quick wheel change saw the pair away again.

As with every winch challenge, there was a special section. This has one punch and is done against the clock so it can act as a tie-breaker in the event of scores being even at the end of the day, which is why it’s mandatory for all competitors.

It needs to be done quickly, too, as it closes early in the event – in this case, at 6.45pm. This leaves enough time for everyone to run the section, but many headed straight there and queued up – the reason being that while it’s tempting to bag a few other punches while everyone else is sat around waiting for their

4x4 15/12/2022 22:26

MOTORSPORT turn, if you have an issue that needs a trip back to the pits you risk missing the closing time and suffering a no-score, knocking you out of the event.

The section was a very quick blast up a hill and back to get the punch and across the line. The hill had two lines you could take, however, which made the section very interesting – as well as the darkness, this caught out a few people and lost them time. Even then, to give you an idea of how good these competitors are, the average time was a mere 70 seconds.

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Another new competitor at the Nightmare Challenge was Holly Evans, who had competed at the final round of the previous year’s Odyssey Challenge, co-driving for Duncan Smith. Holly is the most enthusiastic person in the paddock and absolutely loves her racing but she had decided that the driving seat is for her – and arrived with a well established, Defender-based challenge truck which she had recently purchased. She was incredibly nervous but showed no fear has she competed in Class 1 with co-driver Barney Burton. To think

JANUARY 2023 | 15

15/12/2022 22:26

MOTORSPORT

that this was her first ever event as a driver, to choose to do one in the dark aboard a car she had just bought was as brave as it gets.

The teams were pushing on and the rivalry was friendly as ever but fierce nonetheless. Scott Haines and James Watts are no stranger to a winch challenge and have competed for many years, but their truck was not ready to enter the event so Johnny and Tracey Johnson loaned them theirs for the evening, meaning they were running in Class 2.

Even without their own vehicle, they were soon flying through the punches. They were the first team to complete all 50 in the event, indeed, coming back for a second card so they could go back out and do it all again.

Alex Clarke entered in Class 3 with his Defender-based truck. This was also his first time competing in his own vehicle, with co-driver

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Luke Wakelen showing him how it’s done. The pair were keen to push on, maybe a little too much as they suffered an impressive three broken CV joints. It’s not uncommon for axles to break in the harsh conditions, especially with a tuned engine and very aggressive tyres putting them under yet more stress, but even so Alex and Luke showed admirable resilience and stamina to keep going.

There was no award for the team to complete the special section in the fastest time, but Hugh Gascoigne and co-driver Jack Watson deserve a mention for being the quickest. They were running in a Class 2 truck with open diffs, putting them at a distinct disadvantage compared to Class 3 trucks which are allowed lockers.

In Class 1, Holly Evans finished in second place with a strong score of 2793 points. A very impressive, nay incredible achievement from

a competitor whose name we’ll be hearing more of in the future. Ahead of her, though, Will Baker and Mikey Archer won Class 1 with a score of 4948 points.

In Class 2, third place went to Tim and Matt Wyborn on 1194 points.

They blew up their winch motors early on in the event, which halted their progress. Second were Hugh Gascoigne and Jack Watson with 5072 points, while first place went to Scott Haines and James Watts.

Their score of 9040 points was impressive and also placed them second overall, beating all but one of the Class 3 trucks.

As it was, Class 3 was pretty evenly matched, with a lot of good teams and some very close scoring throughout the field. Third place went to Zac Dambrauskas and Paddy Burman; Zac’s brand-new bespoke buggy, which he built by himself, was still having a few teething problems, but they managed to get past this to end the evening on 6830 points. Second place went to Jake Joannides and Tom Wilson, on 7013 points, but the star of the show was Henry Papworth – who, along with co-driver Ben Tinkler, showed great skill to amass a winning total of 9543.

4x4 15/12/2022 22:26

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17/01/2022 19:51:47

PRODUCTS

Ruskin Design introduces fit-at-home premium seat sets for Defender 90

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uskin Design is a well known name in Land Rover circles. The company has a decade-long record of creating top-quality handcrafted interiors, but until now these have always been bespoked to individual vehicles and fitted on site.

Until now. Because Ruskin has just announced its new range of self-installation seat sets for the Defender 90.

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These comprise two fully trimmed front seats, a rear seat set or Ruskin’s own locally fabricated bench seats (depending on model) and a matching signature cubby box. As the name suggests, they are designed simply to be bolted in at home. Because they are supplied already fitted to brand new hardware, they are immediately ready to replace the vehicle’s existing seat sets and cubby box.

Called the Ruskin Original Trim Set, the new range was developed in response to requests from Defender owners and dealers for whom travelling to Ruskin’s Leicester headquarters was too much of an ask.

Instead, now those same owners and dealers can order one of four designs, allowing them to enhance their 90 with the sort of hand-crafted interior for which the company has become known.

These four options are: • The Classic: Designed to be simple, sleek and elegant • The Brunel: Inspired by Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s iconic bridges and featuring Ruskin’s signature quilting • The Boudicca: Embroidered, perforated and embossed with ancient Iceni designs • The Attenborough: Created using sustainably sourced materials to reinforce Ruskin’s commitment to the environment In addition, Ruskin says there are a further three

designs in the pipeline which will be available later this year.

‘We’ve been working on the concept of “bolt in at home” seat sets for a number of years now,’ says Ruskin Design boss Stephen

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PRODUCTS

Castledine. ’So we’re extremely excited to finally introduce the Ruskin Original Trim Sets to the Land Rover Defender market.

‘We’ve listened and responded to what customers want from Ruskin Design and, spurred on by hitting our tenth anniversary milestone, we have expanded our offering to satisfy our growing global audience.

‘The Ruskin team has created the Ruskin Original Trim Sets for Defender 90 owners who want the luxury of a Ruskin interior and a Great British brand, but location or logistics are a barrier to ordering.

Alternatively, they just want the satisfaction of fitting a new trim themselves.

‘While the sets differ from our trademark Ruskin Inside, which is a truly bespoke interior, individually designed to reflect our client’s personality, they are similarly handcraft-

ed with our marque of excellence and have been pre-designed by our in-house design team.

‘There are currently four designs to choose from, but we will be adding a further three self-fit designs to the Defender 90 range later this year. We’re also planning to roll out ranges for the Defender 110 in 2023 – so watch this space!’

To support the trim sets, the Ruskin Design team are producing a detailed information pack and a selffit reel (available via the company’s website, social media and YouTube channel). In addition, it will be providing a fitting tool and technical support helpline to aid fitting.

Each Ruskin Original Trim Set will be crafted to order and, Ruskin says, will stay true to the company’s marque of quality. You can purchase them directly via the Ruskin website at ruskindesign.co.uk.

Ruskin’s Brunel seat set (above left) features the company’s signature quilting and a design inspired by the bridges of Isambard Kingdom Brunel. The Boudicca (above right) uses perforated leather embossed with ancient Iceni designs, while the Attenborough (below) is made entirely from sustainably sourced materials

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JANUARY 2023 | 19

16/12/2022 00:08

PRODUCTS

Safety Devices’ G4 Expedition roof rack for Defender 90 now available through Britpart network Price: Ca £1500 Available from: Britpart dealers SAFETY DEVICES’ G4 EXPEDITION ROOF RACK for the Defender 90 is an all-in-one design with no detachable parts. The first thing to say about it, if what you’re planning is a certain kind of expedition, is that it’s not compatible with a roof tent – but the second is that this is because of the wrap-around luggage rail which completely surrounds the rack itself.

Made for the Defender 90 Hard-Top and Station Wagon, the rack’s base is stepped to follow the profile of the vehicle’s roof. Thus it has two ‘floor’ levels, the front one of which looks pretty much perfectly sized to take a bank of jerry cans.

Given the price of diesel, ‘bank’ is pretty much the word, too.

The rack mounts via ten clamps which fix it to the Defender’s roof gutters. For this reason, it’s not usable along with an external roll cage – this in turn makes it ideal on vehicles that are going to be fitted with a snorkel. Features include four spotlight brackets at the front and one at the rear.

Made from heavy-duty steel tube which is grit blasted, zinc-primed and finished in black powder coat, the rack weighs 30kg and has a usable loading area of 1.9 x 1.2 metres. Accessories available separately include a twin-height floor in 10mm marine ply and an access ladder which mounts to the rear crossmember and the rack itself.

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4x4 15/12/2022 22:38

RUSKIN DESIGN® A BESPOKE DESIGN HOUSE FOR YOUR VEHICLE INTERIOR Marked and cut by hand.

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15/12/2022 23:05

PRODUCTS

WIDE RANGE OF WINCH REMOTE OPTIONS AT EURO 4X4 PARTS Price: €36-€50 From: www.euro4x4parts.com

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WIRELESS WINCH CONTROLS are not exactly the latest thing, but you don’t have to go a million miles to find someone whose sparkly new set-up isn’t so sparkly and new any more. And believe it or not, there are still those of us relying on ye olde wanderlead method.

Either way, the people at Euro 4x4 Parts would be delighted to help put things right. Because they sell stuff, and that’s how it works. Among this stuff are the following options for getting your winch to do what you want: • Universal wireless remote control (12V) – €45 • Universal wireless remote control (24V) – €45 • Equip’addict wired remote control – €36 • Equip’addict wireless remote control – €48 • Kingone wired remote control (round socket) – €36 • Kingone wired remote control – €50

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MACHINE MART HAS ADDED two new models to its Clarke range of air compressors. Compatible with a wide range of air tools, these two are designed to be ideal for spraying, nailing, stapling, polishing and sanding, and their portability makes them suitable for workshop, DIY, garage and site use.

First up, the Ranger 7/260 has a 2.0hp motor, 7.8 cfm air displacement and a 24-litre capacity air tank. Mounted on wheels for portability, it has twin outlets and gauges and comes fitted with automatic on/off control and a safety valve and pressure regulator.

The Ranger 7/550 is similar to the smaller model but has a much bigger 50-litre air tank capacity, making it the one to use for longer jobs. That apart, it has the same features as the 7/260, including wheel mounting and a handle to make it fully portable.

4x4 15/12/2022 22:38

PRODUCTS

ARB brings ‘the best driving lights ever’ to the UK Price: £1713.22 Available from: www.truckman.co.uk

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ARB HAS LAUNCHED what it calls ‘the most advanced driving lights ever.’

Called the Intensity IQ, these combine four beam patterns (Super Spot, Spot, Flood and Midrange) with a spectacular array of high-tech operating features.

These include an in-cab control switch as well as Bluetooth connectivity via a dedicated app. Compatible with both Android and Apple operating systems, this allows you to adjust the two lamps’ beam patterns independently so that, for example, one can run as a spot light and one as a flood.

‘In addition to helping light up dark rural roads,’ says ARB, ‘these options can help engineers and agricultural workers, as well as outdoor enthusiasts, work in dark off-road locations.’

Time is money, after all. And on the subject of money, ARB’s UK subsidiary Truckman is currently taking pre-orders on the Intensity IQ for delivery early in the new year.

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JANUARY 2023 | 23

15/12/2022 22:38

PORSCHE’S DAKAR HERO LIVES Limited to 2500 examples worldwide, the 911 Dakar promises genuine all-round ability Words: Olly Sack Pictures: Porsche

T

here are SUVs. There are SSUVs. And now there’s the Porsche 911 Dakar.

Described as an ‘off-road sports car with the genes of a winner,’ this is a version of the existing 911 with all-wheel drive, raised ground clearance and Pirelli all-terrain tyres. It’s available with an optional roof basket, complete with auxiliary lights and off-road accessories, as well as a Rallye Design Package which echoes the look of the 911 which won the 1984 Paris-Dakar Rally.

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4x4 15/12/2022 22:11

AGAIN AS A CAR YOU CAN BUY off-road and comes with the rally-bred image of René Metge’s 1984 Dakar-winning 953

Nothing like a 38th anniversary to get the juices flowing, after all.

Unveiled at the recent Los Angeles Auto Show, the 911 Dakar is a limited-edition production vehicle of which 2500 examples will be sold worldwide. Its resting ground clearance is 50mm higher than the standard Carrera S on which it’s based, then on top of this its suspension can be raised by an additional 30mm. Porsche says that this gives it ‘ground clearance and ramp angles which rival those of more conventional

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off-road vehicles,’ and that the lift hardware ‘is not designed merely for driving over obstacles at low speeds, but is an integral part of the re-tuned suspension.’ As if to prove the point, the vehicle can be driven in high-level mode at speeds of up to 106mph.

The 911 Dakar is equipped with a 3.0-litre flat six, with twin turbos wringing out 480bhp and 420lbf.ft for a 0-62 time of 3.5 seconds. The vehicle’s top speed is limited to 149mph – because of those tyres, which are of the Pirelli

Scorpion All-Terrain Plus variety and measure 245/45R19 at the front and 295/40R20 at the back. These have a 9mm tread depth when new and their sidewalls’ two-ply construction helps protect them from off-road damage.

Between the engine and the tyres is an eightspeed sequential box, which of course drives all four wheels. Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control is part of the standard spec list, as are rear-axle steering and dynamic engine mounts – as well as two extra settings in the drive mode menu. These

JANUARY 2023 | 25

15/12/2022 22:11

Bucket seats are the biggest giveaway that this isn’t the cabin of your average 911. From the outside, on the other hand, there’s definitely something going on. You don’t have to have it with the two-tone paint, rally stripes, comp number and roof rack, but if you’re going to spring £173,00 on the car why would you not spend a bit extra on getting the image to go with its ability? are Rallye mode, for fast driving on loose, uneven surfaces, and Offroad mode, for high-clearance driving. Both of these feature Rallye Launch Control, which can handle loose surfaces and wheel slippage of up to 20%.

The result of all this is, in Porsche’s own words, that the 911 Dakar is ‘just as capable on sand and gravel as it is on the Nordschleife.’ So will people buy it more for tracks or trails?

The answer of course is that mainly, they’ll buy it for putting in a climate controlled stowage facility and selling on at a huge profit in ten years’ time. But some of them might actually take their Porsches out to play, and for both sets of owners you’d think the main appeal will be the opportunity to dress it up like a real one from the Dakar.

That’s where the Rallye Design Package comes in. Specify this and you get two-tone blue and white paint, red and gold stripes, a ‘Roughroads’

3pp Porsche 911 Dakar.indd 26

door logo and the opportunity to choose your starting number for the doors. Anything from 1 to 999, says Porsche, though with 2500 vehicles being made that means the danger does exist of bumping into another one with the same number as yours. Especially if, let’s just say, you support Swindon Town and want a two-digit number to commemorate the year you beat Arsenal in the league cup final…

If you’re going the whole hog, up top you’ll also choose the optional roof rack. This is ideal for things like jerry cans, shovels and sand ladders; Porsche says you can also get a roof tent for the vehicle, though the rack’s capacity is only 42kg so presumably this doesn’t mount on it, at least not if anyone wants to actually sleep in the thing.

If you’re really going for it, you can even spec the 911 Dakar with a Rallye Sport Package including a roll bar, six-point seat belts and a fire extin-

guisher. This comes on top of further standard kit such as a lightweight fixed rear spoiler, aluminium recovery points front and back, widened wheel wells and sills, grilles protecting the air intakes and and stainless steel bash plates beneath the front, rear and sills. The vehicle uses lightweight glass, too, as well as a lightweight battery, keeping the weight down to just 10kg more than the equivalent 911 Carrera 4 GTS with PDK. Something that doesn’t appear to have been kept down in any shape or form is the price for the 911 Dakar. You can place your order now by summoning £173,000 from one of your wealth repositories; Porsche says this includes VAT, which is sporting of them, though if you want the Rallye Design Package (or to put it another way, because you want the Rallye Design Package) there’s an extra £18,434 to find. Do it now and your new toy will be delivered in the spring.

15/12/2022 22:11

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27/05/2022 16:35

WALKING, TALKING, HAWKING Jeep’s new Grand Cherokee Trailhawk talks the talk and walks the walk. All without using

T

he Lion’s Back, Moab, Utah. If you’ve ever been there, you know. It is, without any doubt, the single most scary thing I’ve ever attempted in a 4x4.

Scarier than being navigator on a comp safari, flying into a massive body of water and stopping dead; we were both slightly concussed but could clearly hear the vehicle behind powering towards us, knowing that it would get airborne and land on top of us at speed.

Scarier than being navigator to Colin McRae on a national rally, watching helplessly as we slid sideways at 70mph towards a big pile of timber which was neatly lined up to impact my door.

The first of those didn’t happen – thank you to the marshals; the second one did – thank you to Prodrive for making such a strong cabin. But like I say, Lion’s Back was considerably scarier.

You had to crawl up this monstrous rock which at times was near vertical, get to the tiny top, then turn round in a space little wider than the length of the vehicle, hundreds of feet in the air, and then drive back down.

I was in a modified Wrangler and you could feel the rear wheels starting to roll over the weather-worn edge at the summit, so there was just enough room to get turned round. A five-point turn seemed to last days and I can still remember a slight shake in my clutch leg as we finally began the perilous descent. Slight whimpering may have been involved.

Why am I sharing this with you?

Because Moab is exactly the sort of place Jeep has in mind for the Grand Cherokee Trailhawk.

So much so that the company chose the annual Easter Safari, which is held there, to show it to the world in concept form.

Now, this is going to be confusing, so listen carefully. The new Grand Cherokee hasn’t been launched in the UK yet; it’s due during the first part of 2023. You can already configure it online, and the Trailhawk model is on there at £73,900.

But for some reason, in America it was available as a 2022 model but for 2023 it has disappeared.

Perhaps this has something to do with 2022 models being powered by a choice of 3.6-litre V6 or 5.7-litre V8 petrol engines, while the one we’ll get here is exclusively plug-in powered. Which brings us back to the Trailhawk in these pictures.

It’s the aforementioned concept, which rather oddly came out after the production model was already on sale. But then you see its full name and it makes sense: Jeep calls it the Grand Cherokee Trailhawk PHEV Concept, meaning it’s an attempt to sell American customers the idea of a hardcore hybrid.

Now, obviously, seasoned hands (who probably have seasoned bodies to go with them) will scoff gently at this point. After all, we’ve all seen apparently tough 4x4s that make all kinds of macho claims. But fancy badges and a plastic bash plate don’t make them ready for the rocks.

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Well, it’s true the Trailhawk does have some extra badging and highlights, and its exposed towing points are a suitably rugged bit of bling.

But when you look at it overall, one of the things that might strike you is how clean the lines are, a purity that is so often lacking in models that are pumped-up versions of more modest vehicles.

Ground clearance is clearly good, helped by some

of the standard body panels being replaced with leaner versions.

Jeep’s Quadra-Lift air suspension does no harm, either.

At its full height, the Trailhawk’s approach angle is an impressive 35.7 degrees. And when even this isn’t enough to keep it clear of the rocks you’re scaling, there are discreet Mopar rock rails

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a drop of fossil fuel, as demonstrated by the Moab-bred PHEV Concept that heralded it Words: Graham Scott Pictures: Jeep

to keep the sills from taking one for the team.

There isn’t a side-step option.

But at the same time, the exterior hints rather than shouts about what it can do. There’s an absence of external roll cage, jerry cans and high-lift jacks, and an absence of anywhere to put them on the sleek lines. It’s a bit of a street sleeper, but it’s a rock-crawling sleeper too.

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It’s not any kind of sleeper inside, where a set of custom saddle-colour upholstered seats comes complete with houndstooth inserts, 4xe Trailhawk badges (ah, badges) and contrasting blue stitching. Your eyes may struggle to rest.

Safe to say that’s not what you’ll get on production ones – think black vinyl and suede and you’ll be, well, right.

It might not be as lavishly eyeball-scorching in production form but you will get Jeep’s Uconnect 8.4” touchscreen system featuring the Off-Road Pages that mark a true Trailhawk from a mere Jeep. Rather than being your favourite newspaper, this is where you get a wealth of data that will be useful if you really are nearer to Moab than Morrisons.

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The Trailhawk PHEV Concept features custom seats trimmed in saddle tan leather with houndstooth inserts and contrasting blue stitching.

What do you get on the production version? Black On the screen are all kinds of insights into everything from wheel articulation to suspension height and drive modes. This shows you what the Quadra Drive II 4x4 system is doing, whether it’s in High or Low range and what’s locked or unlocked.

The Trailhawk, unlike other models, gets the Active Drive Lock as standard, so you can electronically lock the rear diff when things get cheeky.

In another nod to Moab, there’s a Rock Mode for the traction management system which allows you to better crawl over those smooth and immense boulders. To our disappointment, that mode doesn’t automatically add a soundtrack from AC/DC or Five Finger Death Punch but perhaps that’s available as an upgrade.

Or maybe the music should come from Radiohead or Jack Johnson. Because this is a Trailhawk for an era that’s become aware of its carbon footprint. Adios, big petrol engines: welcome aboard, 4xe.

This plug-in powertrain features two electric motors, a 400-volt battery pack, a 2.0-litre turbocharged, four-pot engine and a TorqueFlite eight-speed automatic gearbox. It’s able to run in fully electric mode – so much so that prior to ap-

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pearing at Moab, Jeep used the concept vehicle to conquer the benchmark Rubicon Trail without ever firing up the petrol engine.

On the Trailhawk Concept, the 4xe system turns a set of 295/55R20 BFGoodrich Mud-Terrains.

Sounds to us like too much wheel and not enough sidewall for rock-crawling, but Jeep knows about this stuff so we’ll keep it shut and merely mention that as these bad boys stand at 33” tall, you needn’t expect them to be appearing in a dealership any time soon. No, not even on a Trailhawk.

The air suspension allows the vehicle to sit high enough for these monsters to look at home with its proportions. You can have more than 11” of ground clearance, and Jeep has previously quoted a wading depth of two feet for production-spec Trailhawks.

While you might not want to bury 33 inches of knobbly rubber too far up into its wheelarch, Jeep also promises that its system has the articulation to go with its sheer height. In this, it’s aided by a front anti-roll bar which can be disconnected from inside the cabin, freeing up yet more articulation and even more ability to keep those wheels in contact with whatever is beneath them.

Best of all (well, maybe not actually the best thing of all, but a good one), Jeep says the vehicle will return 56mpg and has a range of 25 miles in EV mode. So while we’d all sooner be doing it with that 5.7-litre V8 throbbing away, to put it bluntly at least this way we can still be doing it at all.

This particular Trailhawk may just be a concept, but as we’ve already mentioned it heralds a showroom model that will be an integral part of the four-strong Grand Cherokee line-up when the vehicles finally make it to UK dealerships.

At which point you’ll be able to climb aboard a true rock-crawling hero – which is also a pleasingly superior way of getting to work the day after your adventures on the trails.

Those trails won’t include the Lion’s Back, though. Apart from the small matter of Moab being about 6500 miles distant and there being an Atlantic Ocean in the way, since those heady and terrifying days when I inched my way up and down that mad piece of rock it has been closed to all vehicles. Now, that really is scary.

Still, the rest of Moab is as open as ever, and the Grand Cherokee Trailhawk is ready for it.

Are you? I’m not.

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T: 01789 595 200 E: sales@gearmate.co.uk

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SUPPORT ACT

You might well see a modified Toyota Land Cruiser as more of a headliner. But this one was created to support a desert rally team – though now that job is done, it’s about to embark on some long-range action in its own right Words: Graham Scott Pictures: Richard Hair

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T

he Toyota Land Cruiser: surely one of those 4x4s with a reputation that is so well-earned it becomes a simple truth.

Nobody knows that better than Emil and Liliana Schmid, who at the last sighting had been travelling continuously in theirs since 1984.

They’ve racked up around 500,000 miles in that time, driving through 186 countries (or so).

I’ve travelled through the Sahara (Morocco, Egypt and Sudan), the Simpson (Australia), the Gobi (Outer Mongolia) and several of the outer areas of the Empty Quarter behind the Emirates, and everywhere apart from the Gobi the most common 4x4 you’d see was a Toyota, usually a Land Cruiser of some sort. At least, they would

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be the ones moving. The abandoned ones, the broken down ones, usually bore a different badge.

I forget which now.

One of the most mesmerising experiences of my life was sitting next to Jackie Ickx, the famous Belgian racing driver, driving us through an ‘impenetrable’ range of big dunes in the southern Sahara. We were in the latest Land Cruiser, air-con on, and he was chatting, driving with just one hand on the wheel as we churned through terrain that would have stopped a tank. His lines through the dunes looked strange but that was because he was at a level normal humans don’t attain, and that Land Cruiser made it through without hesitation. Even he was impressed. I remember being

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Underneath the vehicle, everything that can be protected is protected. James Ford, who specced the vehicle as support for his endeavours in the 2019 Morocco Desert Challenge, largely threw the Ironman catalogue at it; in addition to the stuff you can see most of, something you can only see a little of is the Aussie company’s suspension which holds the Land Cruiser that little bit further away from the ground

rendered literally speechless by the performance of man and machine.

So, well, sorry, I like Land Cruisers and have relied on them in some faintly hairy situations. And here’s another one. The real deal. You know how you see 4x4s out and about sometimes, absolutely rammed with all the kit and tech you could possibly imagine, outside, inside and strapped on with expensive straps. Possibly a bit of designer mud. And you just know they’ve never tackled anything more dangerous than a muddy track or a grassy strip at the polo match.

This isn’t one of those.

For a start, it was bought by a proper rally driver. James Ford has had a significant number of rallies given he’s in his 30s, with many victories and placements. His family, in Wales, is clearly invested in the world of rallying. And he went out

and bought a 2018 2.8 D-4D model with some nice extras.

Why did he do that, given he normally rallies Escorts, Imprezas and similar? Because he was going to take on a desert rally and he needed a support truck. Support, desert, yes, it has to be a Toyota Land Cruiser.

We only know about this truck because it recently changed hands. It came up at Richard Edmonds Auctions, led in this case by Ross Parker, who is the ‘Post 1960s car consiger’. Who grew up knowing that was a thing?

The vehicle certainly had some money thrown at it, but in a way that really stuck. This wasn’t for show, this was for working hard in a hard environment. People often think of deserts as big expanses of sand, but actually most of most deserts is made up of rocks, of varying sizes,

interspersed with sand and bits of vegetation. If you’ve ever been in a rally car then you’ll know that sound, the constant scouring and banging on the underside of the car as rocks and stones hammer into it like a continuous meteor strike.

Multiply that by many very long days and you have the effect of driving in the desert.

So there’s Ironman lifted suspension, and a full under-guard kit including protective plates on the axles and diff housings. Braid rally wheels with BFGoodrich Mud-Terrains help keep it moving and, when they all fail, there’s an Ironman front bumper and winch. And in the unlikely event of a river crossing, or the likely to the point of inevitability event of hammering through other people’s flying dust, there’s a substantial snorkel. Twin batteries with split charge, massive roof rack with space for all the essential kit and extra lighting

‘You’ll know that sound, the constant scouring and banging on the underside of the car as rocks and stones hammer into it like a continuous meteor strike’

No-one’s going to object to a nice set of Recaros, but the interior of a Land Cruiser is never a bad place to be. Not even when it’s the back of a vehicle that was built to carry things, keep a rally team supplied and generally get used, which is what happened to it before it came home and was stripped back to the rather sparse looking van compartment you see here. At least, if you see sparseness, you’re looking at the wrong vehicle: if you see a prize-winning expedition fit-out which just happens not to have been installed yet, you’re on the money

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all help make any situation survivable. Inside it’s rather better than survivable.

The fine leather Recaro seats will help you stay alert over a long day behind the wheel and, anyway, it’s a Land Cruiser cabin, it’s a fine place to be. Behind the front seats though, it’s a different story. There was a racking system and also a slide-out frame for a fridge amid some not very pretty but very effective modifications.

When we saw it, the rear looked like it had been modified to carry wolves and, frankly, the wolves had won. The thick metal mesh barrier behind the driver and front passenger looked like it had done its job, but the rear was completely stripped out and looked it had been seriously used, mostly by things with claws.

Of course, this is simply the rig doing its job.

It wasn’t there to look good, it was there to carry spare transmissions and wheels and so on for the main rally vehicle, plus it had to carry spares and equipment for itself and for the hot squishy things that sat in it.

By 2019, the Land Cruiser was ready to back up its looks. It was entered as one of the support vehicles in the 2019 Morocco Desert Challenge.

Very creditably, James Ford and his team came ninth, in a Bowler, and it was supported all the

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way by the Land Cruiser. It did its job, supported, survived and got back to the UK. After that it had a much easier life, towing rally cars and generally not being worked too hard.

But, really, this is such a monumentally capable off-roader, it would take something really rather extreme to make it even break into a sweat.

It certainly looks the part and would have looked fairly epic in the local Sainsbury’s car park, but this is a vehicle for exploring the world, not the M25. When it came up for auction it had less than 50,000 miles on it, although it was obvious that some of those thousands had been at a pretty extreme level.

Given all that, would you buy it? And what would you do with it? It had an estimate of £20,000-£25,000, which sounds to us like a great deal of car for your money, though it actually went for somewhere in the middle of that. It was offered as perhaps the ‘ultimate private estate runabout’ but fortunately that didn’t happen. Instead, and happily, the Toyota went to a couple who we know are going to use it and will cherish it.

How do we know that ? Because they already own four Toyota Land Cruisers, that’s how. Not only that but they also have a solid history of heading off for overland expeditions. So this rig

almost certainly isn’t going to get put out to grass, it’s going to be heading off for new horizons and new adventures.

After all, that’s what it was designed, built and then modified to do. At 50,000 miles, it has some time before it gets to 500,000 but don’t bet against a Toyota Land Cruiser.

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THE DIRTY DOZEN What’s the best 4x4 to go for if you want to build an off-road project that’ll also be your daily drive? Ask a hundred people and you’ll get a hundred different answers. There might not be a right answer, though, but there are definitely some wrong ones – so here are 12 of the best to think about before you put your money where your mouth is

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Land Rover Defender The Defender is still many people’s only choice for off-roading – though despite the dominant presence it continues to hold in the UK scene, the sort of money you can get for one if you don’t smash it up means more and more people are thinking twice before using them they way they once would have.

Values skyrocketed when production ended at the start of 2016, and most owners looking to modify their truck now think about alloy wheels and leather seats rather than the winch, snorkel and haggard suspension that seem like such a natural fit for them. When you consider that a Defender’s identity alone is worth several thousand pounds, you can hardly blame them.

Even so, if you want to build a proper Defender there’s a vast aftermarket in place to help you maintain, rebuild, restore, customise or modify it into whatever sort of machine you want it to be. Even a reliable one… though one problem with them is that by now, the vast majority have been worked hard, abused, neglected, modified and/or hit with spanners by persons unknown. Buying a proper shed and using its identity to build yourself what is basically a new vehicle from scratch is a common approach, though even this will mean shelling out strong money on the donor vehicle – and if you want to use good quality parts, the same again with knobs on to make it right.

Prior to its demise, Land Rover liked to say the Defender had been in continuous production since 1948. Taking it at its word, that means we need to include the old leaf-sprung Series models here; they’re completely different in character and these days fall squarely into the classic car category, though they’re incredibly willing off-road whether in standard or modded form.

For day-to-day use, though, it’s got to be a Defender. Many people go for the later ones from 2007 onwards, with the 2.4 or 2.2-litre Puma engine, but many others would sooner chew their own arm off. If DIY maintenance is your thing, the 200 or 300Tdi will suit you best, but the Td5 from 1998-2007 is very popular – even if paying the road tax on later ones basically means getting burgled by the government. Whichever Defender you own, you need to expect it to require regular work, but the good news is that when you come to sell it, you’ll probably get your money back – and, if you’ve tidied it up, even turn a profit. This fact alone means the Defender has potentially the lowest whole-life costs of anything in the entire used car market.

Toyota Hilux It’s been around since 1968, and in that time the Hilux has sold coming on for 20 million units, carving itself a rock-solid reputation for indestructibility on the way.

Early ones were leaf-sprung front and rear, which did nothing for their ride quality, but since 1997 they’ve gained an independent front end which transformed their refinement on the road without wrecking their abilities in the rough.

The most modern Hilux was designed to be more SUV-like inside, but it’s still a hard-working truck with enormous potential as an expedition motor. And the previous model was probably the best off-road one-tonner of its generation. In each case, there’s plenty of kit available for modifying a Hilux into something really special – but it says a great deal that when you go looking to buy one, there’s a notable dearth of cheap examples around.

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Jeep Cherokee There have been four generations of the Cherokee, but for serious off-roading there might as well only ever have been the first. The XJ model, which came here from 1993 to 2002, was amazingly capable even in standard form. It only took a small lift and slightly bigger tyres to turn it into a proper boss off-roader, but with the colossal American aftermarket behind you there’s almost no limit to what can be done to one if you want to go the extra mile. Finding a Cherokee from this era will be your biggest challenge now – they sold in huge numbers back in the nineties, but most of those vehicles have long since breathed their last – and of the ones that are still running, the majority have already been modified into off-road weapons.

Suzuki Jimny Replacing the brilliant and vastly popular SJ wasn’t going to be easy, but somehow the Jimny managed it. Small but strong, agile but affordable, it retained all the virtues that have made Suzuki into one of the world’s favourite 4x4 makers. It wants a bit for ground clearance in standard form, but the breadth and depth of accessories and modifications available mean that whatever you want to do to one, from mild to wild, the only limits are your imagination and, of course, wallet.

Following the logic we applied to the Land Rover Defender on the previous page, we should include the old SJ and Samurai here, as they were part of the Jimny dynasty. If you can find one that hasn’t already been modified and/or off-roaded into a ball of scrap, buy it – but it’s probably worth keeping nice now, as they’re such a rarity. So too is the latest-generation, whose cute retro looks made it an absolute smash hit – but whose emissions meant Suzuki was only ever able to import it in the sort of numbers you can count on your fingers.

Which brings us back to the vehicle most people think of when you say ‘Jimny.’ It was made for two whole decades and there are still plenty left going around – and for a seriously good off-road project that won’t ride roughshod over your budget, good luck finding anything else that comes close.

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Land Rover Discovery The Discovery’s reputation has been tarnished a little in the recent past, as it’s the vehicle you’re most likely to see in MOT-failure form being battered to death at a certain kind of playday (or, far worse, destroying the land next to a green lane). But that’s not fair on a vehicle which, done properly, is still an outstanding machine.

The Disco has long since replaced the Range Rover as the thing you turn to if you want a Land Rover but can’t afford, or abide, a 110. The original model, which was the purest in the traditional 4x4 sense, was basically a 100” Defender with some posher kit and a smarter set of clothes, and it was fantastically capable off-road.

It was also hilariously unreliable, but parts and know-how are in plentiful supply and neither costs too much so long as you shop around. There’s almost no end to what you can do with them in the workshop if you want to build a modified off-road machine, too.

The Discovery 2, which came along in 1999, is bigger and more complex than the D1, and it’s hilariously unreliable too. One difference is that while the original was infamous for body rust, particularly in the boot, floors, sills and footwells, the Disco 2 is more likely to suffer from a rotten back chassis.

In each case, the diesel engine is the one to go for. The Tdi in the D1 is best for DIY maintenance, while the Td5 in the D2 is one of the most reliable things Land Rover has ever made. Elsewhere, common sources of irritation on the Disco 2 include the rear air suspension, ‘active’ anti-roll bars and leaky sunroofs (a vehicle without them is worth more if you can find one), while with the D1 your biggest problem will simply be finding one worth having.

In each case, whether it’s maintenance or full-house modding the aftermarket has come up with an answer to every question the Discovery asks. That’s the case with the later Discovery 3 and 4, too – though while this was a great leap forward as an all-rounder, its monumental complexity means it’s a risky one to take on. And it’s nothing like as naturally capable off-road, far less as easy to modify, as the earlier models.

Nissan Patrol It’s not quite as famous as the Toyota Land Cruiser, but the Patrol has a similar history of popping up wherever there’s a war to be fought, a desert to be crossed or a natural disaster to be mopped up. It’s a rarity in Britain, which can make for some fairly excruciating parts prices, but if you want a truck that was built to last you can’t do much better.

As with the Land Cruiser, you can modify a Patrol – and while the kit for doing so is rare and therefore expensive in the UK, it tends only to come from the best parts of the aftermarket. Anyway, the Patrol is already so stout and capable that it’ll do all you ever want from it in completely standard form. Still, it remained beam-axled all-round throughout the whole of its time in the UK, so if you do want to lift its suspension you’ll find it easy to work with.

The Patrol didn’t hold its money like the Land Cruiser, so they’re more affordable.

But finding one is a challenge. It was never a high-seller here, and used examples are routinely bought up and shipped abroad.

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Toyota Land Cruiser Where do you even start with the Land Cruiser? It’s an entire family of different vehicles with many major differences – but with strength, mighty build quality and serious off-road skills common to all of them.

The Land Cruiser range can be divided roughly in two. Up top, there are the big ones – as exemplified by the 80-Series from back in the 1990s, which many people will tell you is the best car ever made. It had proper beam axles at both ends, each of them with a locking diff, as well as long-travel suspension that made it stunningly agile, and its built-in strength was such that you still see them for sale today with a quarter of a million miles or more under their belts – and still commanding startling prices.

The later 100 and 200-Series Cruisers are less popular with off-roaders due to their greater complexity and independent front ends, but both are still massively capable both on and off-road. There’s a rare 105-Series model, too, which wasn’t made for the UK but whose no-nonsense spec and front beam axle made it ideal for real work, and also in the realms of the grey import you might be tempted by the hefty 70-Series trucks which, again, don’t come here officially.

Smaller Land Cruisers, which have been sold under the Prado name elsewhere around the world, offer a more manageably sized option whose offroad abilities are scarcely less epic. The 90-Series Colorado is now quite rare, and anything from before that is almost extinct, but the 120-Series from 2002-on is a fantastic vehicle – and the current 150-Series has the extraordinary distinction of being the cheapest real off-roader you can buy in the UK, despite having a global pedigree nothing else can match.

If you’re up for going back in time, the older 40-Series Land Cruiser is one of the most charismatic classic 4x4s there is. They do command strong money, though – having never been brought here as official imports, the only ones you see in Britain tend to have come in as collectors’ cars, which means the sort of prices that put you off getting them dirty.

As with all Japanese vehicles, the supply of parts for modding Land Cruisers is limited – but normally very good quality. And the best specialists are exceptionally good, too. Anyway, even in completely standard form, any of these off-road masterpieces will tackle most terrain at a stroll.

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Isuzu D-Max The D-Max has risen quietly through the ranks of the pick-up market since its launch in 2012, and the all-new model that came along a couple of years ago already has two overall Pick-Up of the Year awards to its name. This latest D-Max has a locking rear diff as standard on most models, which rights the only real wrong of the previous one – but if you’re not looking to buy new, a good example of its predecessor will be an awesome off-road ally when beefed up with some well chosen kit from the aftermarket.

The 2012 D-Max was equipped with a 2.5-litre diesel engine, though this gave way to a 1.9-litre unit midway through the vehicle’s life. The latter may be small but it’s very willing, with plenty of low-down grunt to heave the truck around off-road. Isuzu dreamt up a steady stream of special editions to go with its everyday range, including the XTR – a look-at-me off-roader which, behind its showy looks, had just enough in the way of extra suspension and tyre size to be the best of the bunch in the rough. You’ll also find the celebrated AT35, with its huge tyres and flared arches – this model costs a packet when new and is likely to do the same used, but while its road presence is overwhelming its width is actually a drawback off-road. Far better to start with a suitably equipped standard model and make it your own using the excellent accessories available both through the aftermarket and, to a surprisingly hardcore level, Isuzu itself.

Ford Ranger Once a bit of an also-ran in the pick-up market, let alone the 4x4 market overall, the Ranger turned that on its head when the T6 model arrived in 2012.

Big, imposing and roomy inside, this also proved extremely capable both on and off-road – and that’s before you start talking about the 3.2-litre diesel engine that could be tuned for well in excess of its standard 200bhp.

All this and an attractive purchase price helped the Ranger muscle its way to the top of the one-tonne market. But its time truly came when Land Rover stopped making the Defender. Suddenly, well heeled vehicle builders needed something else to invest in – and with very limited supplies of the Jeep Wrangler being available in the UK, they turned en masse to the Ranger.

Now, there’s a wealth of equipment available for them, and more and more specialists are turning them into street machines, off-roaders and everything else in between. The same will quickly become the case with the all-new model that’s just coming on sale now, because Ford has worked with the aftermarket to ensure there’s a strong supply of equipment ready to bolt to it from day one.

The new Ranger is significantly more expensive than the old one, however. And early examples of the T6 are not without their issues, particularly on examples with the smaller 2.2-litre engine. Still, a low-cost Ranger is still worth some thought if you’re on a tighter budget, as they’re plentiful and a lot better than they tend to be given credit for. As always, though, starting your project by going for the best base vehicle you can possibly afford is something you will never regret doing.

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Mitsubishi Shogun The Shogun was once derided as a glam wagon – in fact, it still is by some.

But while it was once at the soft end of the spectrum, it stayed true to its roots throughout its life and by the end of its time in production it had become one of the most truck-like 4x4s on the market.

For off-roading, the Mk2 model from the 1990s is the one to go for as it still had a live rear axle and proper chassis, and the 2.8 TD engine is as strong as an ox, but they’re all very capable in rough terrain – and in long-wheelbase form they’re brilliant tow barges.

The Shogun is much more moddable than you’d expect, too, even if the amount of stuff available for them is limited. And because they last well but don’t often tend to get used and abused off-road, there’s still plenty around to choose from. This includes grey imports badged as Pajeros, though there’s no need at all to be afraid of these if they’ve been looked after.

Range Rover The original Range Rover was the truck that launched a thousand jokes about panel gaps that were visible from space.

It’s incredible off-road, though, and there’s no end of ways in which people have modified them – including taking the body off and replacing it with something else altogether.

The only problem is that there aren’t ever so many Rangeys still around now, and those that are still in one piece have normally either already been modded or restored.

Buying someone else’s old project is a massive leap of faith, but if you enjoy your workshop time it can yield a huge amount of truck for your money. Find an original one, on the other hand, and you’re far better treating it as a classic car.

Even the second-generation P38 model is lurching into classic territory now – though between its infamously shocking build quality and a degree of complexity that more or less guarantees pain for people who own one in later life, you’ll soon come to understand why they cost so little to buy. Those prices are starting to climb, though, as even the last of them are now more than two decades old. For this reason, the P38 has never caught on among off-roaders, and nor have subsequent models – whose luxury levels, and running costs, have continued to climb almost exponentially.

Use one of these later Rangeys as a daily driver or towcar, and it will be supreme. But for a vehicle with soul, whether or not you’re going to off-road it, only the Classic will do.

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Jeep Wrangler Is this a case of saving the best to last? Possibly. The Wrangler tends to be a bit of a bought-not-built off-roader in this country, which might put off a certain kind of person, but Jeep’s know-how in the off-road game is second to none – and while some manufacturers have abandoned their roots to chase bigmargin SUV sales instead, the original off-road brand remains as dedicated as ever to keeping it real.

Not that the Wrangler is a cheap vehicle, especially these days. The current JL model starts at something like three times as much as the JK it replaced – though even this has appreciated since coming off sale, in part because with right-hand drive markets being such a detail for the factory, demand has always outstripped supply here.

The rarest of all the Wranglers is the original YJ, with its unpopular square headlights, which only came to Britain in small numbers. Even these are not cheap now – but its combination of leaf springs and a cheerfully boorish 4.0-litre straight six engine make it pretty hilarious to drive.

It was in 1998, though, that Jeep hit the off-roading mainstream in the UK with the arrival of the coil-sprung TJ. This sold in much higher numbers, and plenty of people modified them – usually to a high standard, too. The good thing about all Wranglers is that with the combined output of America’s aftermarket on your side, there’s almost no limit to what an imaginative (and rich) owner can do with one.

Another advantage the Wrangler has over the Land Rover Defender is that it commonly comes with kit like cruise, leather and air-con, and in some cases you can hear the stereo. But the real step forward came with the introduction of the JK model in 2007. As well as being far more refined than the TJ it replaced, this was the first Wrangler available in either diesel or five-door form, and as a result it out-sold all previous models several times over.

The JK was also available in Rubicon form, with a set of off-road enhancements making it probably the best factory-standard off-roader in the world. You could only get this with a petrol engine; the new JL model put that right, but only very briefly before diesel turned into the devil overnight. A plug-in hybrid is on the way very soon, and before long it’s likely to be the only new Wrangler you can get.

Every Wrangler has been cool, and people like them for that alone, but more than that there’s no other 4x4 that’s so well set-up for modifying. Their values remain as strong as ever, but the number of them you see being used off-road has spiralled upwards in recent years – whether you’re looking to buy new, old or really old, the Wrangler is a very good bet indeed.

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loud and proud The second-generation Range Rover is not what you'd call a common sight at playdays. When it was new, people said it was too complicated to modify… and for about two decades since it came off sale, they've been saying it's too unreliable to touch. But this one proves that with a bit of well thought out tinkering, you can turn one into an off-road weapon to reckon with… and get a bit of a street machine into the bargain Words: Gary Martin Pictures: Alan Kidd

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emember when the P38 Range Rover was new and people said they were so complicated that no-one would ever modify one for off-roading? If the answer is no, well done for being so young. But for the rest of us, the move away from the simple old engineering of the Range Rover Classic seemed to have signalled an end to any possibility of future fun and games.

Then came the L322, and then the L405, and whatever the new one is called, and now it’s the P38 that looks like a simple old truck. A simple old truck with fearsomely complicated and infamously temperamental electronics all over it, of course, but the basic engineering is still as traditional as they come.

It has axles. It has a chassis. It has a transfer case. Those electronics might hate you, but the good mechanical stuff is all there too.

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Despite this, you don’t see many people modifying P38s. Even the similarlyish old Discovery 2, itself hardly common in the off-road world, gets more love than the second-gen Range Rover. The TD5 engine may of course have something to do with that, though, because the BMW unit in the Rangey screams and runs away at the first sign of a rice pudding with a skin on it.

Now that these are old trucks and you’re more likely to use them as occasional playthings than everyday mile munchers, however, perhaps it’s the V8 options that are more relevant. Especially with the price gap between the two fuels growing faster than your weekly shopping bill.

The Discovery 2 had the 4.0-litre V8, as did the Range Rover, and it was a fairly underwhelming old lump in both. But up at the top of the Rangey line-up, the prehistoric Rover V8 had been pushed to 4.6 litres.

This is where things started getting interesting. In factory form, the first-generation ‘GEMS’ version of the 4.6 put out 221bhp and 280lbf.ft and consumed an average of about 17mpg. Not exactly a world-beating amount of power per pint, then. It was plenty smooth and refined, though, just like the rest of the vehicle.

It was quiet, too. Which is where Steve Smale’s P38 comes in. This is less modified than it might look at first glance. But quiet, it’s not.

Incredibly, the exhaust is still quite standard. It follows the same two-into-one-into-two pattern as the original. But let’s just say there are less baffles than there once was. It’s still entirely legal – a clean bill of health from several MOT tests down the years attests to that – but it’s also entirely lovely. There’s a wonderful deep-throated rumble when he fires it up, rising to a purposeful bellow as the revs climb under load. If the average car

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nut were to hear it before they see it, they’d most likely expect the noise to be coming from either a latter-day muscle car or a hot rod.

And that’s just when you’re following him around on the road. When he’s booting it up a near-vertical hill at Devil’s Pit, which just happens to be a few miles away from him… well, you can just imagine how all hell breaks loose.

As we said, though, this is not a heavily modified vehicle. It’s still on air suspension, believe it or not. It’s riding on 265/75R16 Malatese Kobras – a sensible mud-terrain remould, and hardly overly huge, albeit plenty taller than the vehicle was built to take. He says it rubs a little on its lowest height setting, the answer being… to not use it on its lowest height setting. Duh. And on full height, it works a treat.

He admits to having popped a suspension air bag once when a full-on assault on a very uneven

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hill resulted in a wheel coming back down to earth with a heftier than normal crash.

And the old-school traction control means a set of brake pads is doing well to last half a dozen playdays. On that subject, the heavy clay mud of Devil’s Pit means the vehicle is currently enjoying life with a brand new radiator. But ultimately, Steve says, it does its thing very well and more reliably than you might think.

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A pair of heavy-duty bumpers is pretty much as far as the mods go, which just shows how little you need to do to turn a posh old gin palace into a playday animal with a mouth like Johnny Rotten. The one at the back took three blokes to lift it into place, and it's not the heavy one…

Going back to the mods, there are heavy-duty bumpers at both ends and a similarly solid steering guard underneath. And, er, that’s it. Well, the air-con has been removed, because it had given up the ghost and he wasn’t going to keep anything that wasn’t working for its living. But as we said, this is a surprisingly standard vehicle.

Those bumpers, though. When we say ‘heavy-duty’, we’re not joking. Steve tells us that it took three blokes to lift the back on into place.

And it’s not the one with the winch tray…

He doesn’t know where they came from (he bought the vehicle more or less as it is) but it looks like a fabricator’s special rather than something from a production line as the tray doesn’t have any mounting holes or even a slot for a

fairlead. It’s a case of doing your own marking and cutting to suit the winch in question, which wouldn’t be a five minute job. As it is, Steve’s never bothered with a winch for the simple reason that you don’t need one for playdays.

And anyway, he’s normally the one pulling other people out. Normally, though not always. He mentions that someone in a Trooper tried to rescue him on one occasion and ended up killing his own vehicle in the process. The P38 was never less than a heavy old lump, and bolting several hundred pounds of steel to each end is only ever going to take that one way.

Not that getting stuck has ever been a common occurrence for this vehicle. Nor has breaking down, despite the P38’s fearsome reputation

– it throws the occasional code, and of course a steady diet of off-roading is always going to mean an enhanced maintenance schedule (especially when it’s done in a village called Barton-le-Clay…), but mainly if there’s a pain point in the story it involves the amount of fuel it takes to keep the V8 happy. Steve talks of a trip he made once to Tixover for an off-road day, and how much it cost…

But you know what, even at something like a pound per mile we just know he came back with a smile on his face. How could you not, after all, in a big old barge like this that's the very definition of growing old disgracefully?

Take some tyres, add some heavy steel and a rude exhaust, pour in a load of petrol and be happy. And they said the P38 was complicated.

WWW. TIMFRYLANDROVERS .CO.UK parts@timfrylandrovers.co.uk | service@timfrylandrovers.co.uk | sales@timfrylandrovers.co.uk | salvage@timfrylandrovers.co.uk

TIM FRY LANDROVERS KING ALFRED WAY | BATTLEDOWN CHELTENHAM | GL52 6QP

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These days, there are 1.0-litre engines that make more power than the biggest version of the Rover V8 used to. Safe to say the 4.6 HSE was better at drinking petrol than it was at turning it into forward motion. It was plenty smooth, though – and as it turns out, when you fetch all the baffles out of the exhaust it makes an absolutely lovely noise

Steve's Range Rover has been modified a lot less than you might think to look at it. And in the cabin, it actually looks as if it's ageing quite elegantly. You'd never believe that this was the inside of a 4x4 that's been hammered around Tixover and Devil's Pit

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FARMER’S ARMOUR

Agriculture and pick-up trucks go together like a horse and carriage. Even so, an artfully decorated 1972 Ford F-250 is not what you expect to see working for its living down on the farm in the sleepy surroundings of East Staffordshire…

Words and pictures: Dan Fenn

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P

ick-up trucks belong on farms. Building sites too, of course, as well as all sorts of other working environments, but mainly they belong on farms.

There’s a chance that this might come as news to some people. These days, you’re as likely to see a truck on the school run as anything else.

And in the world of hot rods and ‘kustoms with a K,’ old ones have become an increasingly popular alternative to prewar Fords.

But they still belong on farms.

Rich Bratby’s Ford F-250 is just about old enough to count as a custom, or a kustom, being into the second decade of its life. But he hasn’t blown it, or bagged it, or done it up in half an inch of paint with a metal flake glory coat and 30 layers of lacquer. And he doesn’t polish it. In fact, when bits fall off it he says he doesn’t put them back on again.

Yes this old farm hack is, in its own way, a show truck. And it’s definitely a daily workhorse.

And if you thought the way to make an impression in a pick-up was to go out and blow two years’ wages on a Raptor, think again.

The F-250 was built in 1972 and for the first five years of its life, it worked on a farm in California. We don’t know where in California, or what the farm produced, but let’s picture it rolling down dirt tracks amid endless fields of rye shimmering in the evening sun as some good ol’ boy rumbles into town with his dog on the seat next to him and a fresh-faced young farm hand riding in the back on the way to court his best girl at the barn dance.

Or you can picture it getting peppered by wet salt as freezing sleet blasts in from the North Atlantic and huge men called Hamish and Lachlan bellow in Gaelic to make themselves heard above the sound of the ever-present gale. Either way, it’s all been in a day’s work for an F-250 which nowadays resides in the altogether less trying environment of East Staffordshire.

That’s where Rich Bratby is to be found. He’s had the truck for about a year and a half and in that time he’s turned it into a cool, quirky daily driver done with a knowingly artistic nod to its own heritage.

‘The Ford was first registered in the UK in 1977,’ Rich tells us. ‘It had been used mainly as a ranch truck. I wanted to keep it that way – I didn’t want it to be a garage queen but a tough, usable truck.’

But how did it get from California to the north of Scotland?

‘The guy who owned it several years ago has a trawling business,’ says Rich. Not just trawling,

People who take these things too seriously might cry in their real ale if you were to call Rich’s truck a rat. But there’s plenty of rust presented as patina here, plenty of decor and plenty of artful accessories – and, like a true rat rod, it was built to be a daily driver.

Rich is particularly proud of the fact that according to the grille, it’s an ‘ORD’ – the ‘F’ fell off and when something does that, he says, it stays off. So that makes it an F-off big truck, then…

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Ford’s 390ci FE engine is original to the truck but not original in the other sense. In the year and a half since he’s owned it, Rich has given it a new big end, new top end, new pistons, new con rods, new springs and new camshafts, as well as new Scott Drake ‘Powered by Ford’ valve covers. Still, the biggest improvement came from replacing the fuel pump with one that was actually working

actually – the company actually fabricates the things, which sounds like the sort of welding you don’t give to your apprentice to mark the successful completion of his first week on the job.

‘It was on a farm next to the coast,’ he continues. You can almost feel your teeth rusting.

But they make ‘em tough down Dearborn way (actually, the fifth-gen F-Series was built in no less than eleven different factories across the US of A alone, as well as in seven other countries), and when he picked it up Rich’s main concern was that it was decorated with a shark-based jaws design on the door.

A shark? Surely if you’re going to compare an F-250 to any animal, it ought to be a bear.

Which brings us back to Californy. Home of big bears, big trees, big mountains and big trucks. On big farms.

‘With the truck being from California,’ explains Rich, ‘which is a big agricultural centre, I decided it was time to give it a makeover and return it back to its original farm truck theme.’ You can see for yourself how it turned out – which is to say

you can see for yourself how cool it is. Done to make an impression, but absolutely 100% not a garage queen.

A little decor, indeed, is just the finish on top. ’It has had quite a bit of work done over the years to keep it a very strong, durable truck,’ says Rich.

And then some, indeed. The 390ci V8 engine has been built – not for full-on performance (he’s had plenty of that kind of vehicle, including some seriously fast stuff) but as he puts it, ‘it’ll lay down lines if that’s what you want to do.’

It also laid down its big end, which is what happened before the part about having quite a bit of work done. Not much before it, though.

The problem may have been provoked by an LPG system, which someone thought was a good idea but Rich definitely didn’t, at least not for long.

Still, if life throws you lemons and all that. The LPG may had chucked a spanner in the works but that was just a good excuse for a rebuild. New big end, new top end, new pistons, con rods, springs and camshafts, new Scott Drake ‘Powered by Ford’ valve covers. A whole lot of new stuff, then,

all of it designed not just to bring the engine back to life but to bring it back as a thing transformed.

And with all this good gear in it, the big V8 fired up and ran… ‘a bit rough’. Oh.

Mexican blanket, Stars and Stripes headliner, floor mats, stickers… this is one of those interiors that’s gained another ornament every time you see it

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‘We found out the fuel pump wasn’t working,’ explains Rich, which would definitely do the trick.

‘After fitting the pump, my mate John Massey at Birch Trees Dubs stripped the carb, rebuilt it and cleaned all the fuel lines. I uprated the ignition coil, distributor and leads, and fitted a Hilborn style carb scoop.’

Now it’s gone from running a bit rough to not a bit rough. The 6.4-litre FE unit would have put out 201bhp and 376lbf.ft when new (trucks built up to 1971 had 255bhp, but from 1972 the engine’s compression ratio took a dive and power output went with it); Rich’s hasn’t been on the rollers since all the work was done but it makes the right noise, turns rude when asked and doesn’t break any more.

Elsewhere, mechanical mods are few and far between. And while the bodywork has been done, as you can see it’s been ‘done’ with more than a passing nod to the F-250’s heritage as a worker of the land.

‘It’s an original truck with no aligned panels,’ says Rich. ‘A farmer who owned it back in the day had a blowout and damaged the rear quarter panels, so they’ve all been repaired and welded.

Some of the panels were being eaten by rust so

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it’s all been patched in. It has the War Boys logo from Mad Max Fury Road welded in to the bonnet!’

File under ‘places you weren’t expecting that paragraph to go.’

As most of us know, it’s easy to make a car look ratty (as in old and crap). But the true rat look takes a lot of skill and effort to do right. Whether this is a rat-looker is another matter… people can get very put out in these circles if you don’t play by their rules, so instead we’ll take the fifth and say it’s a fantastically unique pick-up whose owner has ploughed his own furrow to great effect.

‘The interior had no carpet and holes in the bench,’ continues Rich. ‘I recarpeted it and fitted a Mexican blanket, and I had some Ford mats delivered. Then to stick to its heritage, I took the original headliner off and retrimmed it with a polyester American flag from the States.’ There’s a school of thought that says there’s a right and a wrong way to do this, apparently – it needs to face top side forward as if it’s a standard being carried into battle.

There’s another school of thought that says whatever.

Anyway, the coup de grace was definitely the paintwork on the outside. ‘I took the truck to

a friend who is brilliant at signwriting and pin striping. He drew up some designs and did an amazing job, giving it a real farm truck vibe.’

Which is absolutely what it’s got, even if it’s nothing like anything you’d ever see doing a job of work down on t’farm on this side of the Pond.

Or is it? Look carefully, and you’ll see on the grille that this is actually an ORD, not a Ford. Which takes us back to what we were saying about keeping it real.

‘At the end of the day,’ says Rich, ‘it’s a rusty old farm truck. With a kick – but whatever falls off stays off!’ Good luck finding a Raptor owner that cool…

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YOU ONLY LIVE THRICE When it’s time to go home after living the expat dream in Australia, you could do the for the expedition of a lifetime. You only live once, after all… unless you’re the truck in Words and pictures: Richard and Sophie Morgan

A

bit more than a decade ago, we realised a dream by getting jobs in Australia. For a thirty-something British couple, it was our chance to enjoy a fantastic lifestyle of year-round sunshine,

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beaches and partying with newfound friends.

The life we lived Down Under was all about making the most of every day. And for that, what we needed was a big, cheap truck we could pack our friends, beers and surf-

boards into and head to the beach for the weekend!

After a bit of looking, a few dollars bought us Kylie – an old knockabout Mitsubishi Pajero from 1996 with a recently rebuilt V6 engine and 245,000 kilometres on the clock.

Not much on her worked well, or at all, but we set to fixing her up as best we could and in return she took us to some incredible places as we toured our adopted home.

Time passes, though. We started thinking about things like kids and

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sensible thing and hop on a plane… or make an adventure of it and prepare your truck question, a 245,000-km Pajero that had already been written off not once but twice…

mortgages and, much as we loved Australia, we knew that there’s no substitute for family. It was time to go home.

Where did that leave Kylie? In most cases, for sale (possibly even for scrap). But we’d already had so

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many adventures together… and with a journey back home to Britain on the cards, we started having ideas. We wanted to drive around the world – a 25,000-mile journey across first Australia, then Africa and finally Europe.

Most people want to go overlanding first, so they buy a truck to do it in. For us, it was the truck that came first: we already have the means to do it, we thought, so why not?

Well, more than a quarter of a million kilometres’ worth of wear and

tear would be one reason why not.

A decade and a half of ageing might be another. The fact that Kylie is a Mitsubishi, not a Toyota, so parts are less readily available when you need them in the back of beyond.

Oh yes, that engine rebuild was

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Left, above: Even by the average gold-rush standards, Silverton’s boom and bust happened at breakneck speed. Today it only has a few dozen inhabitants – but its role as a location for many cult films, most notably the Mad Max series, has given it a new lease of life as a peculiar kind of tourist attraction Above right: Plane Henge is one of the most distinctive exhibits in Mutonia Sculpture Park, which you pass on the way to Oodndatta. The park was conceived by local artist Robin Cooke, who created a range of weirdly amusing sculptures out of waste Right: This isn’t a joke. Lake Eyre Yacht Club really does go sailing, but the lake needs to have some water in its first. In 2010, the club held its first full regatta here since 1976, but enough floodwater usually reaches the lake for some sailing to happen every couple of years or so required after the previous owner blew it up. And sometime after buying her, we discovered that she’d already been written off not once but twice by insurance companies – first due to what they referred to as ‘malicious damage’ and then because of flooding.

You’d have to be mad, right? Well, maybe. But how many people spend their lives waiting for something and in the end never get to do it? Do you dream from behind a desk, or take the chance when you’re able to grab it with both hands? We’ve already got close friends battling cancer, we thought: life really is too short.

We decided to start with Australia itself. But this wasn’t any travel-lite

dry-run: it would be the first leg of our expedition proper, with the truck fully prepped and packed, and there’d be no going back. We’d zigzag our way across Australia, taking in the places we hadn’t been yet during our time there, before reaching Perth – where we’d put Kylie on a container for Africa and drive her home from there. The Aussie leg would be about learning, but it would be an expedition in itself.

We mentioned prep there, and there was a lot of it. Even if you’re starting with a brand new vehicle, this is a huge undertaking, but we had an old girl to nurse home and she needed a lot of TLC just to bring her up to scratch.

We’ve listed some of the mods we made elsewhere on these pages. A trip like this is not cheap, so wherever possible we saved money by using reconditioned bits, second-hand stuff from eBay and cheap copies of pricier originals.

The electrical system is a crucial part of any modern expedition truck.

But rather than spending a fortune on this, we figured it out for ourselves over lots of weekends after learning how to do it by watching videos on YouTube.

We also made our own storage system, saving thousands of dollars on the cost of a pro fit-out. We stripped out the second and third rows of seats and bought the tools

and materials we’d need to build a set-up including electrics, fridge, large drawer, pull-out table, bag and food storage. We even fully upholstered the whole thing, and we were pretty chuffed with the finished result – having learned how to do that, we figured, we’d be able to cope with anything the road threw at us!

That’s what you need as an overlander – a positive outlook. Richard only took a couple of days to demonstrate this by setting his head on fire while trying to reset a gas bottle on the cooker as we camped in Mungo National Park.

Alarming, you might say, but it’s all good lessons in life: ‘Don’t lean over flammable things when trying

Above left: The Great Walls of China, in Mungo National Park, were formed when a prehistoric lake dried up Above right: St Mary’s Peak stands almost three quarters of a mile above sea level. Hiking to the summit in the heat of the Australian bush is not something you want to undertake lightly – especially if the only exercise you’ve been getting recently is climbing in and out of your expedition truck. Six hours of hard work await… but the view from the top is worth the pain

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Breaking down in the Outback really is something you want to rule out of your life. Any of the companies that specialise in helping people prepare for expeditions will tell you that knowing how to maintain your vehicle is one of the most valuable skills you can take with you.

A towing strap will come in useful too, though – a helping hand showed up in the shape of a cheerful local in a ute here on the Oodndatta Track, but as it turned out the Pajero was being prevented from starting by nothing more complex than a loose connection to the starter to light them’ is one we won’t forget for some time to come…

Another early panic came courtesy of Kyle’s twin petrol tanks, which use a pump-fed auxiliary. Arriving in Tocumwal State Forest on the Murray River, we got out to find that we’d left the pump on – which had eventually built up enough pressure to engage the overflow system.

That’ll be something else we won’t forget in a hurry, then – seeing your precious fuel pouring away is a pretty terrifying experience until you figure out why.

Talking of pumps, our first night of wild camping featured a real eureka moment when we dropped our water hose in the Murray, filled the tank and waited with baited breath to see what would come out of the filter. Pure water – amazing! After all our hard work installing the system, you’ve no idea how sweet it tasted!

Mungo National Park was our first real taste of the remoteness you get in Australia – being so used to city life, it was unsettling to start with. But seeing your first Big Red kangaroos, and watching wild emus running alongside your car, is quite some compensation for that – as are the Great Walls of China, huge rock formations left behind by an

ancient lake system as it dried up 20,000 years ago.

Between here and Broken Hill, the tracks gave us a taste of what lay ahead. Over the endless corrugations, the rule is simple: if it’s not bolted down, it’s coming off. But we made it, and after a day in the famous mining town we pressed on towards the Flinders Ranges.

Here’s a fascinating fact: the ‘broken’ hill itself is gone these days. It’s been mined to nothingness – very much what happens when the news spreads that someone’s discovered silver ore.

A much smaller mining town just outside Broken Hill is Silverton, where we camped for the night. Like

so many places out here, the boom to bust cycle was so fast that by the time the town had started to establish itself, it was already dead.

The Outback is full of ruined settlements that are less than 100 years old, but Silverton has another claim to fame. It’s been the set of dozens of films and TV shows – most notably the Mad Max movies.

For a town of less than 50 residents, it gets a lot of visitors intrigued to find so much crazy memorabilia in such a bizarre setting. It really does feel very ‘wild west’ out here, with roaming camels and emus adding to the feeling of remoteness.

We took the back route into the Flinders Ranges, where Wilpena

Pound is a great base for exploring. We’d been warned that the overlanding lifestyle can take its toll on your fitness, so a six-hour hike to the 1120-metre summit of St Mary’s Peak was a welcome chance to stretch our legs. The utter exhaustion that followed wasn’t so much fun, but at least the views were worth the slog!

Talking of slog, the next section of our route was a 4000-kilometre hike north. There were highlights, of course – Lake Eyre and Oodndatta (Australia’s hottest town), for example, as well as the incomparable sight of Uluru – but one of the most memorable episodes was actually one of the scariest, too.

One of these vehicles has been written off twice in its life. See if you can guess which one…

4x4 7pp Morgan Safari.indd 59

15/12/2022 22:16

After a night at Coward Springs campsite, we jumped aboard Kylie and… click. Nothing.

The starter motor was only three months old but it was getting power, so we figured it must have been killed by the endless corrugations

of the Oodndatta Track. So we fitted our spare and… click.

Nothing.

Uh-oh.

Fortunately, a couple of guys who’d also been camping had come over to help. We say it was fortunate because one of them offered to tow us all the way to Marree – about 125 miles away.

It took three and a half hours on the bone-jarring track, but finally we rolled into town, dusty and pebble-dashed from being roped to their truck.

So, there’s a mechanic in town?

‘Sure, mate. He’s on holiday. Back in a month.’ Wonderful.

Some hours later, with Sophie reading the Haynes manual out loud, the penny dropped. The starter

has two positive connections: one from the ignition and one from the battery. The solenoid was working but the motor wasn’t… and yes, that’s all it was, a wire shaken loose by all those corrugations. The culprit was hidden beneath the connection to the battery terminal, and a quick tighten-up was all it needed. Phew!

You need to like corrugations to drive in the Outback. Pausing for the night north of Alice Springs at Tilmouth Well Roadhouse, we were all ready to hit the notorious Tanami Track the next day. Checking on the road conditions, we had been told that the track was currently in an okay condition, but in the back of our minds we still had a niggling feeling as so many people had told us how rough it could be. Still, this is the most direct route from Alice to the Kimberley – a 1000-kilometre short-cut, in other words – so it was worth a crack.

If you Google the Tanami, you’ll see results with headings like ‘The road to hell’ and ‘The worst road in

the world.’ The year before our trip, a campaign was set up to have it surfaced, with stories of new cars being scrapped at a year old and suggestions that its condition is so bad it’s actually contributing to the cycle of welfare dependency among the area’s Aborigines.

Now we know why. Up at 5am the next day, we set out – and almost as soon as our wheels hit the gravel, the corrugations began. Relentless, bone-shaking corrugations that jar every inch of your body. Regular users don’t just talk of suspension damage, but of panels being shaken off their vehicles. The Pajero has a proud history in the Dakar Rally, but we were genuinely worried for Kylie’s survival. And with it, obviously, ours.

It might have been ‘off-road,’ but this wasn’t off-roading: it was torture.

We knew it before either of us said it. Hundreds of kilometres of this? No way. Before we got any further in, we were baling.

It was frustrating at the time. We had done a 300-kilometre round trip

Lapping up the opportunity to enjoy a hot shower and a comfy bed when your expedition has come to an end doesn’t mean you’ve gone soft. It just means that dust, corrugations and the dunny have become a little too much like everyday reality…

60 | JANUARY 2023

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4x4 15/12/2022 22:16

The Tropic of Capricorn marker is located around 30 miles north of Alice Springs on the Stuart Highway. It was built in 1988 to commemorate the bicentennary of European settlement in Australia

Prepping the Pajero Kylie may have seen a lot of use and abuse before we bought her, but we did a huge amount of prep work to ready her for the journey to come. The following list isn’t comprehensive, but it gives you an idea of what it took to get her this far:

Off-road

• Engine totally rebuilt 40,000km ago • Restored ARB bull bar from eBay • Tough Dog dual recovery points welded into chassis • 2.5” suspension lift using Dobinsons front torsion bars and +250kg rear coils • Raw 4x4 Nitro Max 41mm bore heavy-duty twin-tube shocks • Cheap Safari Snorkel copy from eBay, plus extended diff and tranny breathers • Davis Craig heavy-duty transmission cooler • Refurbished 147-litre Long Ranger fuel tank with 50-litre auxiliary • 265/75R16 Cooper ST tyres

Camping just to get to Tilmouth Well, and on top of that we were adding a further 1500km to go round the top. But we soon found our silver lining – the realisation that missing out on the Tanami meant we could instead do the Gibb River Road.

Better still, there was another shortcut via the Buchanan Highway – another unpaved road, but this time a beautiful drive through Big Sky country featuring a gem of a free camping spot towards the end of the track in Jasper Gorge.

Heading into Kununurra, we stocked up on supplies and prepared the car for the Gibb River Road. We prepared ourselves, too, by staying an extra day, as the pace we’d been moving at was starting to get to us. When you’re planning a trip like this on a map, the theory of driving so many kilometres a day sounds fine, but in reality it’s full-on.

Australia is a BIG place!

The Gibb River Road is an old beef route for driving cattle the 700 kilometres between Wyndham and Derby. The seasons are extreme out here, with the dry, arid landscapes quickly becoming impassable during the wet season. This year, the Northern Territories hadn’t had its typical monsoon season so, although we hit the track at the beginning of its open season, the water levels were very low.

In some ways, that was a blessing as it made the drive much easier.

But it was disappointing, too, that we wouldn’t get to experience the real challenge of fording the Pentecost and Durack. Both are legendary

4x4 7pp Morgan Safari.indd 61

for being long, deep, croc-infested river crossings but, as we passed through, the water barely covered Kylie’s wheels.

We stayed at Ellenbrae Station that night, a quirky little place with an amazing outdoor shower, toilet and bathtub! For the first time on the entire trip, the moon wasn’t up, meaning that the stars in the sky were just immense. We spent the whole of the night just staring up at them, and the lack of water in the day’s river crossings soon seemed very insignificant.

It was now more than three weeks since Richard set his head on fire, and his eyebrows were growing back nicely. So it was about time for another near-calamity.

After an afternoon’s swimming in a crystal-clear waterhole, we set a campfire to cook dinner – only for the flames to leap over the rock fireplace and on to the surrounding grass. Instantly, they were spreading, so fast that we couldn’t throw water on them quickly enough.

Our shovel was still bolted to the Pajero’s back door, and the fire was out of control.

Thankfully, the site caretaker and his wife had seen what was happening. They came running, each armed with a spade, and frantically shovelled dirt over the spreading flames. As fast as it had spread, the fire was out again – but not before burning out a huge patch of grass and coming within feet of the car! Aghast at what could have happened, we learned our lesson: always clear the area properly, and

• UHF radio • 1.6-metre Echo roof tent on full-length rack, with 2x2.5-metre awning • Triple battery system with 2 x Ultimate 100Ah batteries for camping lights and fridge • 300W inverter and LED cabin lights • Electric hook-up for camp sites with mains supply • Home-made fridge slide and drawer system with pull-out table and food storage • 80-litre water storage with Doulton carbon ceramic micro filter and 12v pump On top of this, we treated the vehicle to a programme of mechanical refurbishments to bring her back up to scratch. These included a new radiator, alternator, starter motor, timing belt, water pump, wheel bearings, fan and belts, reconditioned auto box, all new suspension bushes, replacement switches for the ‘Super-Select’ 4x4 system and new tie rods and rocker cover seals.

The commonest thing in the world when prepping a vehicle is convincing yourself that this will be the last thing you have to buy. I can’t need anything ELSE, can I…?!

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15/12/2022 22:16

have your shovel to hand before you strike a match.

At Cape Keraudren, we stayed at an amazing campsite managed by a warden and his pet kangaroos. All were rescue cases who he’d nursed back to health, but following their recovery they’d decided life was pretty good with him and that they’d stick around.

Every expedition is replete with stories like this, and they’re what make the experience so magical.

But now we were coming towards the end of our Australian voyage – and, with the trip clicking round to 10,000 kilometres, at long last we arrived at Ningaloo.

The Ningaloo Reef has World Heritage site status for the abun-

dance of its marine life. We had been dreaming of this moment for a long, long time: the snorkelling here turned out to be some of the best we’d ever done, and swimming with whale sharks was full-on bucket-list territory, so our excitement levels were going through the roof.

As if all that wasn’t enough, as we packed up one morning a guy came running over to say he’d got bogged in the sand and could we pull him out. It was like music to Richard’s ears – he just loves a rescue! So off we set to pull out the stricken dad and his three children – it was good to be on the other end of the tow rope for once!

We got another chance to be heroes a few days later in Francois

www.againstmalaria.com/morgansafari The authors chose to support the Against Malaria Foundation as a way of giving something back during their expedition. Malaria is a completely preventable disease, yet more than a million people die from it every year: the charity raises money to buy mosquito nets which are distributed across Africa to where they’re needed most, and Sophie and Richard hope that by spreading the word, they’ll help raise the sort of funds that’ll make a real difference in terms of saving lives. A donation of £2.50 buys one net – if you can spare something, the web address above would be a fine place to put it. And if you want to know more about the trip, you can pay a visit to the authors’ own site at www. morgansafari.com.

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7pp Morgan Safari.indd 62

Peron National Park, having come upon a stuck car and trailer while seeing what Kylie could do in soft sand. That gave us a great confidence boost for the future legs of our journey – as did the chance to use our Maxtrax recovery ladders, which we were keen to do as often as possible to get good value from what are the most expensive pieces of plastic we’ve ever bought!

We had little doubt that Africa was going to hold plenty of opportunities for the Maxtrax, and Kylie herself, to do us proud. But as we rolled in to Perth with just under 12,000 kilometres behind us, it was hard to believe that six weeks had gone by already.

We had learned a lot from the first part of our expedition. Living out of your car certainly takes some getting used to, and never being more than a foot apart from each other can be testing on even the strongest relationships! However, we soon found that we naturally fell

into a new routine, each finding our own role in the day-to-day business of setting up camp, cooking, looking after the car, planning routes and so on.

With Kylie tucked up in a container and two weeks to kill before her arrival in Africa, we finally had some time to relax. Saying goodbye at Fremantle docks was like waving off your first born – but that meant a fortnight of comfy beds, flushing toilets and hot showers! Bliss…

You really do appreciate the simple things in life when you’ve been camping for so long. But the converse is also true: the simple things make you appreciate the joy of being out there, too. Those beds sure were comfy – but already, a big part of us was just itching to get back on board Kylie and get back on to the long trail home.

4x4 15/12/2022 22:17

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4x4

15/12/2022 22:17

ROADBOOK

THE LAKE DISTRICT

Magnificent unsurfaced roads in a mountain landscape like no other USING OUR ROADBOOKS Our roadbooks guide you through the countryside on a mixture of surfaced and unsurfaced roads.

The tracks we use are public rights of way, either Byways Open to All Traffic or Unclassified County Roads, all commonly referred to as green lanes.

NAVIGATION

We’ve deliberately made it as easy as possible to follow the route, using a mixture of instructions, tulip diagrams and grid references. We normally only include junctions at which you have to make a turning or don’t have right of way, so stay on the main road or continue straight ahead unless we tell you otherwise.

You’ll find a guide to using grid references on the legend of any OS map. Our aim is for you to be able to do the route without maps, whether paper or online, but you should certainly take a set with you.

SAFETY

The notes on thee pages advise you of how suitable the route is for your vehicle. These are just guidelines, however. We’ll warn you of any hazards or difficult sections, but the nature of any green lane can change quickly. Wet weather can make a huge difference to the conditions underfoot, and what’s wide open in winter can be tightly enclosed and scratchy in summer.

The responsibility is yours!

Our roadbooks are designed to be safe to drive in a solo vehicle. We do recommend travelling in tandem wherever possible, however. The risk of getting stuck can be greater than it appears – and even the most capable of vehicles can break down miles from anywhere.

RESPONSIBILITY

Irresponsible driving is a big issue on green lanes. In particular, you must always stay on the right of way. Never drive off it to ‘play’ on the verges or surrounding land, even if you can see that someone else has; doing so is illegal and can be tremendously damaging.

This kind of illegal off-roading is a key reason why green lanes get closed. If you see others doing this, they are NOT your friends. They’re criminals, and you are their victim.

If it’s safe to do so, film them in the act and pass it to the police.

Elsewhere, let common sense and courtesy prevail. Keep your speed down, be ready to pull over for others and show the world that we are decent people just like them.

ANTIS

Anti-4x4 bigotry does exist, but it’s less common than you’d think. By and large, it’s limited to organisations who just want to get the countryside all to themselves.

These organisations are beyond being reasoned with, but it’s rare to encounter real hostility even from their rank-and-file members. If you’re friendly towards the people with whom you share the countryside, the vast majority will respond in kind. There are always bad apples, but no more so than anywhere else.

Likewise, most local residents will accept your presence if you’re driving sensibly. What suspicion you do encounter is likely to be from farmers worried that you’re there to steal from them, so be ready to offer a word of reassurance. Once satisfied that you’re not after their quad bikes, their mood will lighten.

DO…

• Keep your speed right down • Pull over to let walkers, bikers and horse riders pass

• Leave gates as you found them • Scrupulously obey all closure and voluntary restraint notices

• Ensure you have a right to be

there. We research the routes on our roadbooks very carefully, but the status of any route can change without notice Be prepared to turn back if the route is blocked, even illegally If you find an illegal obstruction, notify the local authority Stick absolutely scrupulously to the right of way Always remember that you are an ambassador for all 4x4 drivers

• • • •

DON’T…

• Go in large convoys: instead, split into smaller groups

• Drop litter. Why not carry a bin bag pick up other people’s instead?

• Go back to drive the fun bits, such as mud or fords, again

• Cause a noise nuisance, particularly after dark

• Get riled up if someone challenges you. Be firm but polite, stay calm and don’t let them turn it into a fight

Insurance for your 4X4 66 | JUNE 2021 Call 0800 085 5000 or visit adrianflux.co.uk 12pp Roadbook Jan 23.indd 64

4x4

Authorised & regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority

15/12/2022 22:08

ROADBOOK This is a revised version of a roadbook we ran a couple of years ago, which many of you have told us you missed out on because of lockdown. It includes some long road sections, but these link together some of the most spectacular rights of way in Britain. The driving is largely quite simple – the trails here have been somewhat neutralised by resurfacing work over the last few years – but there are precious few other parts of the country that can match the Lake District, and its green lanes, for their sheer majesty

Pictured is our Isuzu D-Max GO2. The vehicle is insured by Adrian Flux Insurance Services, which specialises in cover for modified 4x4s.

Many of our project trucks have been given their five-star service over the years as they are one of very few insurance companies that can cover our 4x4s when we’re off-roading and green laning – and at an affordable price too.

Get a quote by calling them on 0800 085 5000.

4x4 12pp Roadbook Jan 23.indd 65

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15/12/2022 22:08

ROUTE GUIDE

is it suitable?

START FINISH HOW LONG? TERRAIN HAZARDS

TYRES

OS MAPS

Brackenrigg Inn (NY 448 232) Coniston (SD 303 976) 66.45 miles / 7-8 hours Hilly farmland and mountainous moors Isolation; other users; occasional technical sections, mainly rocky Landranger 90 (Penrith & Keswick) Landranger 96 (Barrow & South Lakeland)

Step

1

0.0

NY 448 232

Start at the Brackenrigg Inn, on the A592 on the west side of Ullswater, which would be a perfect place to stay the night before your trip.

Zero your trip as you turn right out of the car park, or with the pub to your right if you’re just passing, and follow the main road for Windrmere

Step

Step

3

4

1.6 66 | JANUARY 2023

12pp Roadbook Jan 23.indd 66

Step

5

1.7

6 Longthwaite Watermillock Church

1

Caution as you pass the entrance to the holiday park – watch out for stray kids and drivers in tourist mode…

1.0 Step

DAMAGE

Step

2

0.4

WEATHER LOW BOX SOFT-ROADERS SCRATCHING DRIVING

Road tyres with low-profile sizes will be susceptible to damage Avoid when foggy or icy Will make it more relaxing Tougher ones should manage it Minimal risk General ground reading skills and sensible conduct required Very occasional potential for rocks to catch your underbody

NY 429 237

1.9 Step

7

2.0 Just before the turning, you’ll pass the entrance to another holiday park. You’ll be running alongside it for ages – once again, keep your wits about you and in particular, keep the noise down Bennethead Dacre

3 4

3

Step

8

2.95 4x4 15/12/2022 22:08

Step

9

3.7

You probably do have the right of way here, but the white lines on the road suggest everyone is to give way to everyone else

Matterdale End Dockray

2 314

Step

14 4.3

Step

Step

3.95

4.5

Step

Step

10

15

Step

12 6.8

A509 Ullswater 234

Turn right at the Royal Hotel in Dockray

High Row 1 Dowthwaite Head 2

4.9 Step

17

NY 380 219

Step

7.8

ZERO TRIP

5.05

4x4 12pp Roadbook Jan 23.indd 67

Follow the sign for St John’s in the Vale (assuming it’s pointing in the right direction, which it wasn’t when we visited). Take great care here – the start of the lane goes through a car park, and you’re certain to encounter walkers on the route

Caution – this is a main road, and it’s blind on the left

5.0

Step

13

Caution – there’s a bit of a step down on the far side of the crossing

16

11 5.55

The descent steepens quite sharply and gets rockier. After this, stay on the proper track through the quarry area – it’s not a playground

18 Keswick

414

JUNE 2021 | 67

15/12/2022 22:08

Step

19 5.3

NY 312 231

St Johns in the Vale Church Diocesan Youth Centre

Step

21 6.3

Step

Step

6.05

6.35

20

There’s a very sharp hairpin as you drop down the hill. You’ll want low range, but it’s so tight and grippy that you could also do with not having diff-lock engaged…

22

Step 21 (left): The hairpin is very tight and pretty steep – in most vehicles, it’ll be a toss-up between staying in low range and going into two-wheel drive to avoid winding up your centre diff Step 27: Watch out for the road ahead to Red Bank as you roll through Grasmere

68 | JANUARY 2023

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4x4 15/12/2022 22:08

Step

Step

6.45

10.0

Step

Step

6.75

12.95

23

28

24 Step

25

29 Extreme caution – it’s very sharp over your shoulder on to a busy main road. Use shunts rather than swinging out on to the wrong side of the road

ZERO TRIP

Step

30

7.25

1.75

Step

Step

26 9.4 Step

27 9.9

4x4 12pp Roadbook Jan 23.indd 69

31 Grasmere Village

Take the road signed for Red Bank

Caution – there’ll be loads of people on foot around here

RED BANK ROAD

ZERO TRIP

Coniston A593

NY 329 022

The turning is hard to spot. It’s the first of any sort on the right after you’ve passed the road on the right for Elterwater and the Langdales.

Look out for the wooden parish notice board on the corner as a landmark, too. Having turned, continue straight ahead at the fork

A home-made sign says no through road. It’s trying to deceive you, but you will go very close to someone’s home so again, it’s time to show maximum respect

2.1 Step

32

Dead slow through the farm, then the road becomes a track as you go through the gate

2.25

MAY 2021 | 69

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Step

33

As you climb, you’ll round a tight left-hander into a set of rock steps.

Don’t follow the tyre tracks going up the hill straight ahead

Step

36

2.4

3.25

Step

Step

2.6

4.15

Step

Step

2.65

6.35

34 35

37 38

SD 312 996

Caution – the turning is sharp enough that you’ll probably need a shunt

Tilberthwaite

Step 39 (left): This picture shows the route out of the farmyard.

Stop short of the first gate and open them all before passing through, rather than sitting in front of the house with your engine running

70 | JANUARY 2023

12pp Roadbook Jan 23.indd 70

4x4 15/12/2022 22:08

Step

39

When you reach the farmyard, stop and open all the gates before heading through, then stop again to close them. Out of respect to the people who live here, don’t sit in the middle of their home with your engine chuntering away

Step

47

7.7

1.6

Step

Step

40

48

8.7

Public Way Fell Foot 12

1.95

Step

41

Step

8.8

2.05

Step

42

49 Caution past the old farmhouse and over the bridge – it’s ridiculously narrow

43

ZERO TRIP

44 0.15 Step

45 0.95 Step

46 1.2 4x4 12pp Roadbook Jan 23.indd 71

50

Colwith Little Langdale

Caution – this is a main road

Step

51

Coniston

NY 328 017

2.0

9.25 Step

Step

ZERO TRIP

1.3

9.1 Step

Watch out for a sharply raised ironwork in the track just before the gate. The going gets quite rocky for the rest of the way after this

It’s not obvious who has right of way at the junction

Little Langdale Ambleside

Step

52 2.1

NY 313 034

Ambleside (Challenging option)

Keep it slow past the farmhouse

Step 42: If you think it’s narrow past the farmhouse (which it is), just wait until you get to the bridge shortly after it…

JANUARY 2023 | 71

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Step

53

Some nice rock steps to get up here

2.25 Step

54 55 3.85

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12pp Roadbook Jan 23.indd 72

56

Extreme caution – this is a horrible junction. It’s blind over your left shoulder and also round the corner to your right

3.95 Another set of rocks

Step

57 4.6

3.0 Step

Step

Keep it slow past the house

Step

58 4.7

Hawkshead Newby Bridge

4x4 15/12/2022 22:08

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PROPANE GAS FIRED

Ideal for use as a garage/ workshop Extra tough triple layer cover Heavy duty powder coated steel tubing Ratchet tight tensioning

PRO SANDER/ POLISHERS

Saddle exc.

Model Type Tonne Height VAT CTJ2L Long 2 378mm £44.99 CTJ3000QLB Quick Lift 3 465mm £119.98 CTJ3000C Pro Garage 3 465mm £152.99 CTJ2QLP Low Quick 2 510mm £162.99 Lift

BARNSLEY Pontefract Rd, Barnsley, S71 1EZ 01226 732297 B’HAM GREAT BARR 4 Birmingham Rd. 0121 358 7977 B’HAM HAY MILLS 1152 Coventry Rd, Hay Mills 0121 7713433 BOLTON 1 Thynne St. BL3 6BD 01204 365799 BRADFORD 105-107 Manningham Lane. BD1 3BN 01274 390962 BRIGHTON 123 Lewes Rd, BN2 3QB 01273 915999 BRISTOL 1-3 Church Rd, Lawrence Hill. BS5 9JJ 0117 935 1060 BURTON UPON TRENT 12a Lichfield St. DE14 3QZ 01283 564 708 CAMBRIDGE 181-183 Histon Road, Cambridge. CB4 3HL 01223 322675 CARDIFF 44-46 City Rd. CF24 3DN 029 2046 5424 CARLISLE 85 London Rd. CA1 2LG 01228 591666 CHELTENHAM 84 Fairview Road. GL52 2EH 01242 514 402 CHESTER 43-45 St. James Street. CH1 3EY 01244 311258 COLCHESTER 4 North Station Rd. CO1 1RE 01206 762831 COVENTRY Bishop St. CV1 1HT 024 7622 4227 CROYDON 423-427 Brighton Rd, Sth Croydon 020 8763 0640 DARLINGTON 214 Northgate. DL1 1RB 01325 380 841 DEAL (KENT) 182-186 High St. CT14 6BQ 01304 373 434 DERBY Derwent St. DE1 2ED 01332 290 931 DONCASTER Wheatley Hall Road 01302 245 999 DUNDEE 24-26 Trades Lane. DD1 3ET 01382 225 140 EDINBURGH 163-171 Piersfield Terrace 0131 659 5919

Max. Output kW 10.3 15 24.9 36.6 49.8 131

DEVIL 7003

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32854 (69) 4x4 (full).indd 1

*

14/10/2022 10:43

PUBLISHED 18 Nov 2022

Whatever your taste in Land Rovers, there’s one annual publication you can’t afford to miss. The Land Rover Yearbook is an eclectic blend of classics, modified motors, new Landies, product reviews, travelogues and more.

This year’s Yearbook includes a range of 90s and 110s that have been brought back to life with a twist. And a 107” Station Wagon, too, restored and modified into a Series I like no other. If you prefer your classics to be more, well, classic, you’ll find an 88” Series IIA rebuilt with a devotion to originality that borders on the fanatical. And how about one of the very earliest Freelanders? Not everyone’s idea of a classic, but everything about Land Rover’s history since then says it’s one of the most significant vehicles the company has ever made.

The Discovery, for example, was a truck in the pre-Freelander era. Now it’s a premium SUV. We’ve tested the current model in entry-level D250 form in a bid to find out whether you really need to stretch all the way to a top-spec engine.

And we’ve driven the basic Defender 90, too – steel wheels and all. Not just on any test drive, either, but a mighty green lane trip on some of the best trails in the country.

That’s one kind of travel story.

Getting up close to Africa’s wildlife is definitely another, and so too is the Dakar Classic. Loads of historic Range Rovers and Series trucks were involved in this marathon desert rally – yet not one of them had a British driver. So be warned spend a day or two poring over the 2023 Land Rover Yearbook and you might come away on a mission to put that right!

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www.amedia-shop.co.uk Yearbook 2023 FP Advert.indd 1

22/11/2022 15:39:41

Step 66: Just after the fox sculpture (inset), as the main track swings right look for a smaller one ahead. Don’t assume the timber stacks in our picture will still be there…

Step

Step

59 5.25 Step

60 5.55

63 Grizedale 3 Newby Bridge 8

The turning is very hard to spot until you’re on it

Grizedale Satterthwaite

8.35 Step

64 8.45

Step

Step

5.75

8.7

65

61 Step

62 8.1

4x4 12pp Roadbook Jan 23.indd 75

The biggest rocks come towards the top of the hill

SD 336 944

In Grizedale, pass Go Ape on your right then come in to the cluster of buildings. Look for a red post box in the wall on your right, then opposite that turn left and immediately left again on to the track. You WILL need to swing wide and use all the road, and even then you’ll need a shunt

Step

66

As the main track swings right just after you see the Fox sculpture, fork left so as to go more or less straight ahead on a smaller track, then immediately fork right as it splits

8.9

JANUARY 2023 | 75

15/12/2022 22:08

Step

67

Where the track splits around the tree, the correct line is to its left.

There’s an impressively uneven rock ledge to crawl over as you drop down a short, steep hill

9.45 Step

68

Step

70 3.25

ZERO TRIP

Step

71

9.65

5.3

Step

Step

2.8

6.15

69

72 Step

73

You have the right of way, but there are no road markings so assume the other bloke thinks he has too

SD 319 873

The turning is as you pass the Oxen Park village sign

Dead slow past the house

6.35 Step

74

SD 323 894

Turn left at the T-junction with the road then almost immediately left again on to another track

7.65 76 | JANUARY 2023

12pp Roadbook Jan 23.indd 76

4x4 15/12/2022 22:08

Step

77 9.05 Step

78

ZERO TRIP

9.8 Step

79 1.0 Step

80

Turning right here will take you on to the legendary Parkamoor trail.

We didn’t recce it for this route so you’re on your own, but it’s far more extreme than anything else you’ve done today, and it’s a dead end. It’s about four miles there and back and the views over Coniston Water from the top are every bit as good as the driving on the way there

Follow the road as is swings left down the hill for Coniston. All you’re doing is staying on the main road at the junction, but the markings are pretty much worn away so we’ve included it for clarity

6.3 Step

75

Take the left fork where the track splits on the way up the hill

Step

81

7.9

6.8

Step

Step

8.9

7.7

76

4x4 12pp Roadbook Jan 23.indd 77

82

Arrive in Coniston for the end of the route. The diagram shows you finishing at the town’s main car park, but it’s paid-for and ANPRcontrolled so only use it if you’re stopping. If all you want by now is diesel, carry on ahead then it’s left at the T-junction and just round the corner

JANUARY 2023 | 77

15/12/2022 22:09

The definitive publication for all enthusiasts of classic Land Rovers

LAND ROVER T H E G R E AT B R I T I S H C L A S S I C Sponsored by

10

Pages of spares and accessories for every classic Landy

Look after a Land Rover, and it will last forever. This longevity, which is almost unique in the car industry, means a vast number of classic Land Rovers are still on the road today – and not just as classics, but as historical vehicles still working for their living to this day.

Land Rover: The Great British Classic celebrates this magnificent heritage by focusing on the best of Land Rover from its early days. A high-quality publication from the makers of 4x4 magazine and The Landy newspaper, it covers a broad spectrum of historical vehi-

£9.99

cles: not just Series I, II and III Land Rovers from the post-

In Praise of Patina

s nothing We all love a showroom-spec Landy. But there’ pride quite like a Series I that wears its heritage with

y Range Rover and Discovery Series I, II/IIA and III • Pre-Defender 90/110 • Earl rs still doing what they do best Restored, preserved, modified: Classic Land Rove

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war years, but also the first generations of Range Rovers, Discoverys and Freelanders, as well as the 90s and 110s that were later to become the legendary Defender.

Covering the vehicles’ history, spotlighting case studies of restored and otherwise much-loved examples and searching out stories of adventure behind the wheel, Land Rover: The Great British Classicc is a publication for everyone who admires Land Rovers from the early days.

Published on 29 April, priced £9.99 • Available from WHSmiths and other large newsagents Or buy direct from www.4x4magazineshop.co.uk – with no P&P! Classifieds.indd 78

22/11/2022 16:31

CLASSIFIEDS

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JANUARY 2023 | 79

15/12/2022 23:01

4x4

NEXT MONTH IN…

Classic Porsches on an overland expedition the likes of which you won’t ever have seen before

Tested: All-new Kia Sportage and Skoda’s latest performance-focused version of the Kodiaq Jeep’s electrifying concept Wrangler PLUS a restored Range Rover that wants you to take it off-roading

ON SALE: 28 January Step 40: Tur n left off the main track, embankment dropping dow then plungi n the ng straight into a water trough (right) rock Step n – there are sharp

71 34

Step

Step

13

13.3.1 12

Cautio the iate as you climb steps to negot hillside

Step

47

Caution over a steps as you short set of rocky drop down the hill

ROADBOOK: Maybe this time we’ll get back to North Northumberland…

15.0 a Abbey Strata Florid

8.75

track to the left Take the rocky track the main Cat A

Step

14

4328

Step

43

Step

15

Look out for you cross the the waymarker as ford

15.2

Step

Step

16

44

11.8

Join the Cat A

Step

17 18

It’s a steep, sharp climb up over a bigg er track – you and can’t see ahead over your bonnet to start with

Step

48

13.4

11.7

Step

followed by a long

There’s a coup le of huge wate troughs afte r r the junction

1312 .1 .6

10.9

12.8

More rock steps, water trough

Ste p Step

of

track

You may find yourself drivi a river bed ng along for a while…

13.65 Step

45 Fill in your name14 and .7 address and give this form to your newsagent track Drop off the main the gate and immediately before trough water into yet another

●

these axleentum to clear h bigger t need a bit of mom

Step Step 37: You migh -off to the right Please order 4x4 Magazine and reserve/deliver meis muc a copy every month warned, the drop twisters – but be

12.8 Name Address

88 | JAN UARY 2020

46

than it looks here

4x4

14.9 4x4 JA NUARY

Newsagent This magazine is available to your wholesaler through Comag Magazine Marketing, Tavistock Rd, West Drayton, Middlesex UB7 7QE. Tel: 01895 444055 Fax: 01895 433602

80 | JANUARY 2023

Next Month Jan.indd 80

202 0 | 89

4x4 16/12/2022 00:03

Bulkheads availiable for Pre-Order NOW!!

UP TO 12 MONTHS INTEREST FREE CREDIT AVAILABLE NOW ON ALL OUR PRODUCTS. Call our sales team to find out more.

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RichardChassis_FP.indd 1

02/12/2022 09:07:45

THE AWARD-WINNING ISUZU D-MAX

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VISIT ISUZU.CO.UK FOR MORE INFORMATION All fuel consumption and emission values are based on the new WLTP (Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure) test cycle which uses real-world driving data. Official fuel economy for the standard Isuzu D-Max range in MPG (l/100km): Low 25.1–27.6 (10.2–11.2). Mid 31.4–36.4 (7.8–9.0). High 36.0–39.4 (7.2–7.8). Extra-High 29.0–30.8 (9.2–9.7). Combined 30.7–33.6 (8.4–9.2). CO2 emissions 220–241 g/km.

The Isuzu D-Max is Smarter Stronger Safer compared to previous model. Visit isuzu.co.uk for full details.

ISU04613-028 4x4 Award Ad_2.indd 1

15/12/2022 12:19

THE EXPERT VERDICT FROM 4X4 MAGAZINE

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | WELCOME

WELCOME OUR ANNUAL 4X4 AWARDS DEFINITELY HAVE A THEME TO THEM THIS YEAR. After the dark days of the pandemic and the euphoria of society’s re-emergence, millions upon millions of us are now facing up to the kind of new normal nobody prepared us for.

A new normal involving blankets instead of radiators, the in-laws’ rather than Spain for our holidays and explaining to the kids why they can’t have that game they wanted for Christmas after all.

So this year, our awards come against the thoroughly depressing backdrop of what it means to be British in the early 2020s.

Two years ago, I pointed out that the new Land Rover Defender was 4x4 of the Year almost by default, because even if it had turned out to be no good it would still have set the agenda in the 4x4 world with a breadth and depth that simply defined its time.

What does that mean for this year? Right now, professional men and women from middle class families are getting in their 4x4s, going up on to the moors and letting their dogs out for a run, then driving off and leaving them there. It’s that or default on the mortgage. And that’s not even a particularly extreme case.

Life does go on, of course. But when people are making choices of that awful gravity, it’s hardly surprising that their car buying habits are going to be changing. Not everyone is having to give up and walk, but a good many now are bringing their targets down a notch or three in terms of what they spend.

Against that backdrop, over the last year some (but not all) car manufacturers have put their prices up. Most by around 10-15%, so about the rate of inflation, but a few by significantly more. And a few have done it by far less, too.

Interestingly, the latter have often tended to be those which were already seen as high-value brands. The kind where you get a load of kit for your cash and a warranty that goes on forever, yet for no obvious reason they cost ten grand less then the opposition.

This is the context of this year’s 4x4 of the Year awards. Value for money has always been important and now it’s doubly more so. Not just that, in fact: sheer affordability now matters more than ever. It’s no longer so much a case of whether a vehicle justifies the repayments as whether you can afford to make them at all.

As we all know, while us normal people suffer, the rich ones are still rich. And getting richer. Less of them, as more and more ladders continue to be pulled up, but as the pool of money gets smaller it gets deeper, too. So those who would once have bought an £80k SUV can now afford a £100k SUV, while those who could have bought a £60k SUV can only afford £40k. And so on.

You don’t need a crystal ball to be able to see which brands are going to chase the big money. The logical conclusion of all this is that one day, there’ll be luxury cars and bicycles and nothing in between, but for now the strategy for premium car makers is to get more premium and build more margin into their vehicles.

Which is all very well, but where does that leave us normal people? Thankfully, the rest of the 4x4 market continues to step up, and it’s doing so with some exceptional products. These are, increasingly, the real-world 4x4s – and this year, here in the real world, their relevance is very much our theme.

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

These awards come against the backdrop of what it means to be British in the early 2020s

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | CONTENTS

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | CONTENTS

CONTENTS 6

Crossover Estates

LAST YEAR’S WINNER: Subaru XV NOMINATED: Subaru Outback, Subaru XV, Volkswagen Golf Alltrack, Volvo V60 Cross-Country, Volvo V90 Cross-Country

8

Crossovers

LAST YEAR’S WINNER: Nissan Qashqai NOMINATED: Fiat Panda Cross, Nissan Juke, Nissan Qashqai, SsangYong Korando, Toyota Yaris Cross

10 Small SUVs LAST YEAR’S WINNER: Dacia Duster NOMINATED: Dacia Duster, Jeep Renegade, Kia Sportage, Skoda Karoq, Volkswagen T-Roc

12 Medium SUVs LAST YEAR’S WINNER: Toyota RAV4 NOMINATED: Lexus NX, Nissan X-Trail, Skoda Kodiaq, Toyota RAV4, Volkswagen Tiguan

14 Large SUVs LAST YEAR’S WINNER: Land Rover Discovery NOMINATED: Kia Sorento, Land Rover Discovery, Mercedes-Benz GLE, Toyota Highlander, Volkswagen Touareg

16 Electric SUVs LAST YEAR’S WINNER: Skoda Enyaq iV NOMINATED: BMW iX3, Ford Mustang Mach-E, Mercedes-Benz EQB, Skoda Enyaq iV, Volvo XC40 Recharge

20 Performance SUVs LAST YEAR’S WINNER: Porsche Cayenne NOMINATED: Alfa Romeo Stelvio Q4, Cupra Formentor 310, Lamborghini Urus, Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT, Skoda Kodiaq vRS

22 Luxury SUVs LAST YEAR’S WINNER: Bentley Bentayga NOMINATED: Aston Martin DBX, Bentley Bentayga, Mercedes-Benz GLS, Range Rover, Rolls-Royce Cullinan

24 Off-Roaders LAST YEAR’S WINNER: Land Rover Defender NOMINATED: Jeep Wrangler, Land Rover Defender, Mercedes-Benz G-Class, SsangYong Rexton, Toyota Land Cruiser

26 Pick-Ups LAST YEAR’S WINNER: Toyota Hilux NOMINATED: Ford Ranger, Isuzu D-Max, SsangYong Musso, Toyota Hilux

29 RESULTS

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | CROSSOVER ESTATES SUBARU XV

£33,195-£35,195

Supplanted only by its bigger brother, last year’s class winner offers a strong combination of space, equipment and road manners as well as top-class safety spec. It’s fun to drive on the road, with crisp handling and endless grip – and when you take it off-road, its ability to take impossible looking conditions in its stride is little short of amazing.

VOLVO V60 CROSS-COUNTRY

£49,125-£53,825

Audi and Merc have dropped out of this category, leaving Volvo alone at the premium end. And the V60 cleans up, with all you could ask for from an executive estate – as well as a 66mm suspension lift which, combined with its rugged 4x4 ability, lets it tackle rough trails and even a surprising level of off-road terrain.

WINNER | SUBARU OUTBACK

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | CROSSOVER ESTATES VOLKSWAGEN GOLF ALLTRACK

£38,755

It may not be a premium brand but the Golf Alltrack has a huge cabin whose space is equalled by its quality and class. Its drivetrain and diesel engine are excellent, too, the former featuring off-road modes that allow it to tackle remarkably tough terrain. It’s a lot of money for a Golf but not for such an excellent all-round vehicle.

VOLVO V90 CROSS-COUNTRY

£56,465-£67,135

The V90 Cross-Country is a superb luxury estate with slick looks and ultra-modern tech.

It’s a safety monster, too – and with its lifted suspension and smart all-wheel drive system, it can do things you would barely believe possible on unmade tracks and rough terrain. It’s still available with a diesel engine, too.

£35,995-£41,495 IT’S ONE OUT, ONE IN as the Subaru XV, which won this class last year, is replaced on the top step by its big brother. The Outback continues to stand for all-round usability coupled with better off-road ability than you’re ever likely to need.

The current Outback has one drivetrain option and three spec levels. These include the mid-range Field, whose waterproof interior materials are aimed at owners with outdoor lifestyles – though whichever model you have, it’ll be stoutly put together and convenient to use.

The undoubted star of the show inside, however, is emphatically the vertical tablet which dominates the central facia, creating a more or less full-height display used to operate the vast majority of vehicle functions. It allows the rest of the dash to remain uncluttered, though the multi-function steering wheel is very multi-function indeed.

In terms of practicality, the Outback is all the family car you’re ever likely to need – with the added bonus of being to slop around all day long on muddy and loose tracks. It’s perfectly suited to use as a rural workhorse.

It’s a very composed companion in town, too, as well as making the most of its prodigious grip to let you smoke around confidently on every kind of open road. It steers and handles very naturally and the overall refinement of its drivetrain matches well with the linear pull from its 2.5-litre petrol engine.

The Outback’s character and looks remain much as they were before. But with a new plaform under the skin, it’s a far safer and more athletic vehicle – and one which continues to move the game forward in the crossover class.

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | CROSSOVERS

TOYOTA YARIS CROSS

£24,350-£30,975

Apart from the Qashqai, the Yaris Cross is the only vehicle of the five you see here that’s available with all-wheel drive.

It’s sure-footed and capable in most situations on and, within reason, off-road, though its cabin doesn’t feel in any way premium. To get a Toyota 4x4 at this sort of money, however, counts as very good value indeed

NISSAN JUKE

£20,695-£30,425

The Juke’s small size suits its styling well, making it look fun and funky. There’s substance to it as well, though, with a roomy cabin up front and good cargo-carrying abilities, even if the rear seats are only for kids.

It’s an up-for-it vehicle to drive, with decent dynamics and enough zest to put a smile on your face.

WINNER | NISSAN QASHQAI

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | CROSSOVERS

FIAT PANDA CROSS

£15,985-£17,485

The price of the Panda Cross has gone down since last year, yet it’s still as charming as ever. What it’s not, though, is as capable, because the lower price reflects the removal of all-wheel drive from its spec.

It’s still hilarious to drive around town, with a funky interior to go with its chic image, but now it only looks like it can go off-road.

SSANGYONG KORANDO

£21,495-£31,825

The Korando is another vehicle on which all-wheel drive has been deleted in the last year.

If that’s not a deal-breaker, it’s smooth, refined and enjoyable to drive whether in petrol or diesel form. The top-spec model comes laden with kit, and all are strong on practicality.

There’s a gigantic warranty there to back it up, too.

£26,045-£40,980

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

LAST YEAR’S WINNER remains the one to beat in this category.

That’s in part because following its launch last year, the Qashqai’s range is still expanding in very significant directions – but also because Nissan has been far more modest with the price rises than some car makers this last year.

The headline powertrain in the range is now the 190 e-Power unit, in which an electric motor does the driving while a petrol generator keeps the batteries charged. It’s very, very smooth and refined, and it offers what may be a more palatable form of EV for customers who are still reticent about charging.

The range also includes a 1.3-litre mild-hybrid petrol unit with a choice of 140 and 158bhp outputs. Both are available with manual and CVT gearboxes and there are five trim levels, with four-wheel drive available towards the top.

The most engaging thing about the Qashqai is its blend of steering, ride and handling – all of which give it a nice, natural flow through corners whether in town or on the open road. Pot holes are well damped out and it sits steadily on the motorway, with nothing more than a touch of road noise to disturb the calm.

In the cabin, the back is best for children but the boot behind them is huge – and when the seats go down, they lie as good as flat to create an impressively long cargo bay.

Up front, the media screen has fantastic graphics and a brilliant high-res display. Top models have loads of equipment – including one of the best camera-driven parking systems we’ve seen, along with superb diamond-quilted leather seats.

It feels every inch the premium SUV, at everyday crossover money.

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | SMALL SUVS

JEEP RENEGADE

£30,050-£38,100

The Renegade looks funky and has a cabin that’s roomy and well put together. It drives pretty well, too, and you can get it with an excellent plug-in hybrid powertrain. Most of all, the Trailhawk model at the top of the range puts it head and shoulders above everything else in its class for off-roading.

VOLKSWAGEN T-ROC

£26,080-£42,155

Fresh from a facelift, albeit a mild one, the T-Roc remains one of the grooviest SUVs on the market. It’s very well made inside and is generally fun to drive, especially when you hit the top of the range and come to the high-performance R model. The Tiguan is much more practical but this is still a benchmark among SUVs for youthful attitude.

WINNER | KIA SPORTAGE

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | SMALL SUVS

DACIA DUSTER

£15,295-£22,445

The Duster won this class last year, and it remains a strong option. It’s a lot of car for your money, as always, but that would mean nothing if it wasn’t a lot of car full stop. And with an excellent kit list, solid build, good all-round road manners and, in 4x4 form, a very sure-footed performance in the rough, that’s exactly what it is.

SKODA KAROQ

£26,545-£38,805

Related to the T-Roc, which is a good start, the Karoq is a little less youthful and a little more like a family SUV on a smaller scale. Its practicality is sky-high and its build quality is off the charts. Versions with all-wheel drive are more than a little handy in the rough, too, and every model will look after you admirably in all driving situations.

£27,800-£41,550 THIS IS AN INCREDIBLY HARDFOUGHT CLASS, and one in which previous Sportages have triumphed before. The new model is a definite progression from its predecessors, with technology at every turn to go with its futuristic looks.

What’s noticeable is that Kia has moved yet further from the budget end of the market. It’s in very similar territory to other mainstream car makers nowadays. But this hasn’t been a case of cranking up the tickets while the products have stood still, because the new Sportage has a degree of quality and refinement which you’d be more likely to associate with a premium SUV. Its cabin materials are excellent, for example, and its seats are very comfortable indeed. There’s loads of space all round and, at the top of the range, almost limitless kit. This is quality stuff, too: decades ago, Kia used to fit low-rent equipment just so they could say they had it, but those days are well in the past.

The Sportage is practical, too, with a decent boot when the seats are up and a huge one when you need it. Legroom in the back is adequate rather than generous, but it’s certainly very well set up to be a family SUV. It’s a delight to drive, too, in the range-topping hybrid form we’ve tested. Its ride is phenomenally smooth, and NVH in the driveline is basically absent, while it steers and handles with a controlled poise that lets you enjoy its spirited output. It’s as manoeuvrable as you’d expect around town and you’d think nothing of crossing a continent in it.

Does this sound as if we’re talking about a hundred-grand SUV? Maybe. For sure, the Sportage is no longer a 4x4 you merely settle for.

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | MEDIUM SUVS

LEXUS NX

£42,700-£63,550

The new NX came very close to winning this class. You may or may not like its styling but the elegance and quality of its cabin are beyond doubt. Hybrid and plug-in versions alike are superb to drive, with ample power and sublime refinement, and on top of that it’s the first SUV Lexus has made that also wants you to take it off-road.

TOYOTA RAV4

£35,350-£45,755

The RAV4 is related to the NX – and it feels more like a Lexus rather than the other way round.

There’s a distinct chunkiness to its cabin that’s very reassuring and it drives beautifully around town, when cruising and on the open road. It’s a more than capable off-roader, with the ability to take rough trails in its stride, and it’s excellent value for money.

WINNER | NISSAN X-TRAIL

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | MEDIUM SUVS

SKODA KODIAQ

£33,485-£48,075

We’ve previously described the Kodiaq as the best vehicle never to win 4x4 of the Year.

It’s superbly made, well specced and enormously practical in both 5 and 7-seat form. All models are excellent on the road and with all-wheel drive the Kodiaq is more than a little capable in the rough, too. It’s still a brilliant, brilliant vehicle.

VOLKSWAGEN TIGUAN

£29,910-£49,040

It may be a little conservative for some tastes, but the Tiguan is roomy, well equipped and enormously flexible. You can get it in seven-seat Allspace form, too, making it even more practical. It’s easy and pleasing to drive on every kind of road, as well as being a sure-footed off-road performer when equipped with four-wheel drive.

£32,030-£47,155

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

THE X-TRAIL WAS ONCE a trucklike soft-roader whose owners had a laugh at people in Freelanders.

Now, it’s a technological vision of the future – but still as much of an off-roader as ever, and still with the capacity to make mincemeat out of any premium brands that try to trade on their reputation.

The big story here is Nissan’s e-4ORCE drivetrain, which uses a petrol engine to keep its batteries charged while a pair of electric motors do the driving. It does its thing in terms of economy but mainly, it delivers a level of refinement whose silent smoothness is lavish.

Both around town and on the open road, the X-Trail has plenty of urge but makes almost no road noise. It’s remarkably smooth on the motorway, too, and you can chuck it around to your heart’s content. Forget your qualms about the drivetrain – it’s just like any other SUV of its size, only one whose ride and handling make your jaw drop.

That’s if it has any further to drop after what happens when you climb into the cabin. The materials are superb and the equipment is lavish, with controls that are elegantly laid out and beautiful to touch. The feeling of wellness is immense.

Yes, we’re talking about highspec models here. But every X-Trail is laid out with the same graceful design and perceived build quality is exceptional throughout.

What you might not expect is that off-road, the electric all-wheel drive delivers way more traction than you’d expect. The X-Trail can do remarkable things, given the grip – which will come as no surprise at all if you’re one of those owners who used to sneer at Freelanders all those years ago.

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | LARGE SUVS

TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

£57,920

You don’t see many of these on the road, but the Highlander’s big footprint translates into a vastly spacious and practical interior with no end of kit. It’s a suave cruiser and a surprisingly agile B-road tool as well as delivering sure-footed traction in the rough, while an excellent hybrid powertrain combines pulling power with impressive fuel economy.

MERCEDES-BENZ GLE

£69,660-£133,000

The GLE absolutely reeks of quality. A roomy, comfortable cabin is elegantly styled and trimmed in top-class materials, and every model in the range is pacy, agile, smooth and refined.

Most buyers who want to be different will go for the Coupe model, and/or full-on AMG power, but you can spec it with an amazingly effective off-road pack too.

WINNER | KIA SORENTO

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | LARGE SUVS

LAND ROVER DISCOVERY

£57,225-£76,085

It’s getting on a bit now but the Discovery is still a remarkable vehicle whose range of talents is little short of sensational. It’s very refined on every kind of road – and agile, too, for such a big truck. Inside, its materials and design are outstanding, creating a fabulously relaxed feeling of wellness, and its performance off-road is a high-tech tour de force.

VOLKSWAGEN TOUAREG

£55,885-£69,675

Another vehicle that’s been around, the Touareg remains one of the classiest SUVs you’ll ever sit in. It was one of the first with a full-width virtual dash and media screen, and its seats remain among the very best in any vehicle of any kind. It’s resolutely practical, good on every kind of road and capable of getting about on rough ground.

£49,495-£56,995

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

THE SORENTO CAME WITHIN A WHISKER of winning this class last year, and one look at the numbers above will explain why it’s so relevant now. On the one hand, Kia has come a long way since its days.of building cars down to a budget and the Sorento is certainly not cheap.

On the other, its price band finishes where the others begin.

These are vehicles whose buyers are the sort of double-income families who can, or could, afford to treat themselves. The sort whose mortgage and energy bills have just gone up by enough to wipe out their entire monthly car-buying budget.

The Sorento ventures to suggest that you can still treat yourself after all. You just need to look beyond the badges and learn a little about what matters most in a car.

It’s a big seven-seater with allwheel drive as standard. It comes heaving with equipment and its build quality is everything you’d expect from the Far East.

In the last year, the range has been restructued with just one trim level, called Edition and higher specced than anything that’s gone before. It can be had with a choice of petrol, diesel and plug-in hybrid drivetrains, all of which are smooth and strong.

In every case, the Sorento is a highly refined vehicle that’s easy in town, poised on a cruise and agile enough to enjoy on A and B-roads.

It’s very roomy indeed and its cabin looks fantastic, with a crafted dash and loads of quality fittings.

As always, a bargain is only a bargain if you wanted it anyway. And there are still plenty of people in Britain who, blinded by badges and union jacks, don’t realise that the Sorento is exactly what they want.

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | ELECTRIC SUVS

MERCEDES-BENZ EQB

£55,310-£62,810

The EQB packs seven seats into its relatively compact proportions, housing them in a cabin that feels carved from rock and looks the work of craftspeople. Firm ride apart, it’s pretty composed – though you might not be first time you experience its acceleration, which is immense whichever of the electric powertrain options you choose.

BMW iX3

£64,165-£65,865

The iX3 looks more like any other SUV than most electric vehicles. That’s becasue it’s based on the X3 – and it has the performance to carry this off, as well as the handling to match. It’s supremely refined, too, making barely a noise as it carries four adults, or a huge load of luggage, within a cabin whose design is like a work of modern art.

WINNER | SKODA ENYAQ iV

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | ELECTRIC SUVS

FORD MUSTANG MACH-E

£42,530-£66,280

Does it deserve to be called a Mustang? Well, the Mach-E pulls like an actual train and handles tidily, with pleasing refinement on most roads. It promises to go up to 335 miles between charges, too. Inside, its seats are excellent and a vast infotainment tablet in the facia adds high-tech interest among the sea of plastic trim.

VOLVO XC40 RECHARGE

£45,755-£55,055

Like the iX3, the XC40 Recharge is almost identical to the XC40 that’s been around for years.

Under the skin, though, it’s a fully electric SUV with pace and refinement – plus the handling to match its performance. Its cabin is exceptionally well put together and, despite being a bit dark, provides you with a very pleasing place in which to travel.

£38,970-£54,370

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

WE SAID LAST YEAR that electric vehicles are flooding their way on to every part of the market. And so they are – but none of them so far have managed to improve on the Enyaq iV. This was already an outstanding vehicle, and then during the last year Skoda has improved it still further.

Witness the new vRS Coupe, which adds performance and eye appeal at the top of the range. This model has all-wheel drive, too, as has the 80x – whose potential for adventures we demonstrated earlier in the year by taking it green laning.

These abilities will matter less to most people than the Enyaq’s superb cabin. Its seats are very spacious, as is its boot, where the volume of cargo space with the seats folded makes it like a small van.

The cabin’s styling is slick and classy, and you can tailor it using a variety of design themes. Up front, a pin-sharp media screen controls almost everything via a clear, instant interface which, once you’re used to it, is a powerful tool that feels like it’s working for you, not against you.

People still expect EVs to be strange to drive, but the Enyaq is as natural as anything. It pulls well and both steers and handles with a pleasing tautness, making it as enjoyable to drive as any other crossover estate. It’s nice and quiet at all times, including on the motorway, and bumps in the road are well damped out.

Owning an EV does mean dealing with charger anxiety, especially on long journeys. That’s hardly the cars’ fault, though. If your life is suited to electric motoring, no vehicle in existence has done more than the Enyaq iV to convince us that the time has come to make the change.

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | PERFORMANCE SUVS

SKODA KODIAQ VRS

£48,075

The original vRS left us a little underwhelmed, but this new model makes more sense thanks to a 242bhp petrol engine that’s far better suited to the standard auto box. It has all the qualities of the everyday Kodiaq but adds a free-revving urgency which lets you cut loose and enjoy the dynamics in its taut, athletic chassis.

LAMBORGHINI URUS

£177,415-£213,500

The Urus range recently grew to include a new Performante model with a little more power and less weight – as well as a Rally mode for going mental on gravel tracks. Even the standard model is staggering fast, with the dynamics and soundtrack to go with its performance, and yet a comfy, spacious cabin means it’s also a very usable family car.

WINNER | PORSCHE CAYENNE TURBO GT

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | PERFORMANCE SUVS

CUPRA FORMENTOR 310

£43,125-£46,210

SEAT’s spin-off performance brand has hit the ground running with the Formentor. Not all models are fast, but with the range-topping 310 engine it’s scorchingly quick and handles with the razor-sharp directness of a trackday car. It’s also a usable family motor – but one whose whole image, inside and out, is all about performance.

ALFA ROMEO STELVIO QUADRIFOGLIO

£79,619

The Quadrifoglio starts as a good SUV and, thanks to its searing 510bhp V6, becomes an absolute weapon. When you put the dial to Race mode, it turns into a hairy-chested trackday monster with a 3.8-second sprint time and wired-to-your-brain dynamics. It’s rude, it’s loud and nothing else comes close for the money.

£150,500 IT’S AS YOU WERE at the top of this ferociously competitive class.

The Cayenne Turbo GT arrived last year to take the crown from its cousin, the Lamborghini Urus, and it’s still as strong as ever now.

In addition, as if it matters to people who can afford it, Porsche has been fair-handed with the vehicle’s price – which, over the last year, has only gone up by 2%.

The Turbo GT’s 3996cc V8, which also appears in the Urus, has 640bhp and 627lbf.ft and will blow away the 0-62 sprint in 3.3 seconds.

The numbers sounds phenomenal and that’s exactly how it feels, too – and the sensational acceleration is accompanied by a thunderous roar which makes the experience even more glorious.

It’s not just about speed, either.

On twisting B-roads, you can only imagine the joy of taking tight corners with such a combination of precision, balance and sheer grunt; it’s so, so stable under braking, so sharp as it turns in and so instant as the throttle goes back down.

And at the other end of the scale, its grip level redefines the sort of corner for which you don’t have to slow down at all.

Yet it’s also not nervous and harsh the way a performance vehicle can be. Around town, it’s like any other SUV in terms of both its ride and its drivetrain refinement.

It’s lovely to sit in, too. The cabin combines a very snug, settled driving position with a real sense of occasion and excitement – and if you’re riding in the back you won’t feel anything like as cramped as the plunging roofline might lead you to assume. The Cayenne was already a brilliant SUV – in Turbo GT form, it’s an absolute masterpiece.

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | LUXURY SUVS

MERCEDES-BENZ GLS-CLASS

£85,800-£177,505

With seven-seat practicality and S-Class quality, the GLS is a workhorse and luxury car in one. The optional off-road pack gives it all the capability you’ll ever need, too. The AMG model is searingly fast and at the top of the range, the Maybach version takes luxury to a new level.

Prices have remained as good as unchanged since last year, too.

LAND ROVER RANGE ROVER

£99,375-£181,720

Technology and craftsmanship meet in the fifth-generation version of an iconic 4x4. Expect an imperious driving position, effortless performance and silky ride and refinement, plus box-of-tricks off-roading. The cabin will make you feel great about yourself, too, and Land Rover is well known for its quality and reliability.

WINNER | BENTLEY BENTAYGA

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | LUXURY SUVS

ASTON MARTIN DBX

£174,400-£192,400

Blurring the lines between the sports and luxury classes, the DBX packs a 4.0-litre V8 engine with up to 707bhp, giving it a 0-62 time to match the Lambo Urus. It’s very spacious inside, for passengers and luggage alike, and of course its image is ultra-cool – compounded by being so much rarer than most of the other vehicles here.

ROLLS-ROYCE CULLINAN

£290,000-£326,599

An absolute monster of a car, the Cullinan is as luxurious as it gets. The options for making it your own are limited only by your imagination, and the 6.75-litre V12 under the bonnet means it’s effortlessly fast and endlessly refined. Its looks are not to all tastes, but if you can afford one you’re unlikely to trouble yourself with such concerns.

£165,550-£220,900

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

THE BENTAYGA HAS NOW won this class three years in a row.

That’s quite an achievement given the competition, but the sheer all-round brilliance of the vehicle simply brooks no argument at all.

While it does attract attention, there’s a pleasingly understated feel to the Bentagya which makes it less showy than some other vehicles in this class. Inside, too, its cabin manages to be definitively luxurious without appearing to be trying too hard. It’s effortlessly spacious and seat comfort is sublime, while a hand-crafted dash houses a set of contols, both physical and virtual, whose tactile quality is imacculate.

Behind the wheel, the Bentayga is every inch a driver’s car. In fact, its pace and, in particular, its handling are more than a match for some vehicles in the Performance SUV class. But what really takes your breath away is its agility – it may be big and heavy, but it steers and handles with the sharpness and lightness of touch you associate with a hot hatch. And this comes in tandem with a quality of ride whose suppleness and refinement make every journey a pleasure.

It’s little short of incredible offroad, too, when equipped with the optional All-Terrain Specification pack. This has additional drive modes which allow it to tackle the sort of terrain you would never expect it to be able to take on, with a controllable tractability that almost defies logic.

Having put the awkward styling of its first few years behind it, the Bentayga has become an SUV that looks and feels absolutely right.

It’s not a cheap vehicle, of course, but you’re paying for the best – and that’s exactly what you get.

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | OFF-ROADERS

JEEP WRANGLER

£60,080-£62,080

The Wrangler is, quite simply, the purest off-roader left on the market. It’s a traditional truck with all the right engineering but it’s also very modern in its safety kit, infotainment and so on. All models are excellent off-road but the Rubicon is currently unbeatable. Shame about the ridiculous prices, but it does hold its value like almost nothing else.

LAND ROVER DEFENDER

£60,705-£116,580

After two years as the overall winner of these awards, the Defender remains enormously sought-after. Its ever-growing prices are getting harder to fathom but there’s no denying its presence, nor the sense of occasion in the cabin. It’s superb on the road and a masterpiece of high-tech ingenuity on every kind of rough terrain.

TOYOTA | LAND CRUISER

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | OFF-ROADERS

MERCEDES-BENZ G-CLASS

£131,095-£195,155

With a live axle at the back and diff locks everywhere, the G-Class is an off-road vehicle with few compromises. Its build quality is rock-solid, too.

But it’s also a luxury vehicle of the highest order. Its cabin space is rather less generous than in a true SUV but the driving position is immense, and its image is straight out of a rap video.

SSANGYONG REXTON

£38,350-£45,495

The Rexton is a roomy, classy all-rounder that has always stood for great value. And with its price hardly having gone up at all in the last year, that’s still the case. Especially now SsangYong has introduced a new top-spec Ultimate Plus model with more premium equipment than ever – which is still cheaper than anything else in this class.

£46,235-£62,710

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

IT MAY SEEM STRANGE that with little having changed about the Land Cruiser over the last year, it has suddenly climbed to the top of its class. However the logic behind this award is very clear.

If you want to buy a new off-road vehicle that’s not a pick-up truck, realistically you’re looking at the Land Cruiser, Defender or Wrangler. Of course, some people can afford to spend sixty grand before going near the options list, but value for money matters more than ever in the new reality we now inhabit.

The Land Cruiser has always made a strong case for itself in this sense. Despite being possibly the vehicle you can rely on most in the world, it has always been priced sensibly in the UK. And now that its two main rivals have become yet more expensive, it makes a stronger case for itself than ever.

Particularly at the top of the range, the Land Cruiser blends solid old-school engineering with hightech driver aids very effectively. But at base level, what it proves is that it doesn’t need all the electronic stuff to be a thoroughly competent off-road performer. It’s incredibly tractable and very sure-footed, and it crawls over extremely rough ground in remarkable comfort.

You’d never regret choosing it for a long road trip, either – or indeed as your everyday work wagon. Its driving position and ergonomics are exceptional, in a big, no-nonsense sort of way, making it wonderfully relaxing to drive whether around town or around the world.

And of course, build quality is unimpeachable. Look after one of these and it should go on forever – without forcing you to break the bank in the first place.

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | PICK-UPS

TOYOTA HILUX

£32,385-£69,385

Last year’s winner in this class remains as good a truck as ever. Lower-spec models are tailor-made for working life, while the premium offering has been strengthened by the new GR Sport. Toyota has raised its prices by more than any other pick-up over the last 12 months, but the Hilux is as strong an investment as a truck can be.

SSANGYONG MUSSO

£29,463-£39,543

The Musso’s engine has been revised in the last year, with more power and better fuel efficiency, and its looks have been subtly tweaked too. It remains excellent value for money, having gone up by well under the rate of inflation, and its spacious interior is as SUV-like as you’ll ever see in a commercial vehicle.

WINNER | ISUZU D-MAX

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | PICK-UPS

FORD RANGER

£29,700-£43,050

At the time of writing, the old Ranger was still holding the fort as Ford prepared to start deliveries of the new model.

It may be more than a decade old, but the outgoing vehicle remains a hugely capable truck in every form and in every on and off-road theatre of action. They’ll be going some to improve on it.

FORD NEW RANGER

£27,550-£57,960

As we were going to press, the first customers were taking delivery of their new Rangers.

What they’ll get is more modern, more premium and higher-tech than the old one – but there’s more to the Ranger than just the premium models, with a full line-up of work-spec versions to go with the luxury and performance headliners.

£30,110-£57,530 THE D-MAX HAS BEEN at or near the top of the pick-up market since it was first introduced. Fine margins make big differences, though, and as has been the case in some other classes it has been helped back to the top by the hefty price rises some of its rivals have imposed on their customers.

There’s more to it than just that, though. During the last year, the D-Max range has expanded in some worthwhile directions – whether you’re looking for a doughty work truck or the ultimate 4x4 toy.

The latter, of course, is taken care of by the AT35 version whose big lift, big tyres and big arches go with the spec of the range-topping V-Cross model to make a truck whose premium equipment is backed up by an appearance that commands your attention. It’s immensely capable, too, in the right conditions, but mainly it’s a lifestyle pick-up like no other.

At the lower end of the market, meanwhile, Isuzu has now extended the availability of automatic transmission to include Utility models.

The same goes for the locking rear diff that can make a world of a difference to the way it performs.

All of this means the D-Max is now more things to more people than ever before. And it was already a sound, solid truck with good all-round road manners, excellent off-road skills and a typically robust level of build quality to go with its smart, well equipped cabin.

Our feeling is still that the D-Max is at its best in the lower and midrange models – where, of course, if matters most. Get these right, and everything else will take care of itself – and Isuzu has got them very right indeed.

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4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | RESULTS

SPECIAL AWARDS BEST CROSSOVER ESTATE Subaru Outback BEST CROSSOVER Nissan Qashqai BEST SMALL SUV Kia Sportage BEST MEDIUM SUV Nissan X-Trail BEST LARGE SUV Kia Sorento BEST ELECTRIC SUV Skoda Enyaq iV BEST PERFORMANCE SUV Porsche Cayenne BEST LUXURY SUV Bentley Bentayga BEST OFF-ROAD VEHICLE Toyota Land Cruiser BEST PICK-UP Isuzu D-Max

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

BEST VALUE SSANGYONG REXTON

OFF-ROAD AWARD JEEP WRANGLER

Value for money has been a bit of a theme this year. And though it has played a pivotal role in deciding several classes here, the destination of the Best Value award itself remains unchanged – as it has for more than half a decade now.

SsangYong recently updated the Rexton by adding a new Ultimate Plus model, giving it more kit and deeper-seated luxury than ever. Its prices are keener than ever, too, and it comes with the biggest warranty in the business – none of which would matter if it wasn’t also an excellent all-round vehicle that’s both classy and practical. That’s why it’s our value champion yet again.

Every off-road vehicle these days comes with at least some level of electronic driver aids. But engineered-in mechanical ability remains as fundamental as ever to covering terrain – and the Wrangler still holds that banner proudly aloft.

In particular, the Rubicon model continues to be the most focused off-road machine on the market, adding features like heavy-duty axles, locking diffs and a lower crawl ratio to the abilities every Wrangler has built-in. Jeep’s know-how is evident everywhere you look – and, unlike most manufacturers, they won’t cry if you modify your vehicle. It’s everything a pure off-roader should be.

SUSTAINABILITY AWARD TOYOTA LANDCRUISER

MANUFACTURER OF THE YEAR KIA

People with a certain idea of sustainability would probably put one of those fake parking tickets on the windscreen of a Land Cruiser. But look below the surface and you see a vehicle which breaks the cycle of consumption that bonds us all.

These vehicles are built to last. Look after a Land Cruiser, and it will last for as long as you want to keep it.

Whatever the industry says, avoiding waste is good green practice. Make one of these your truck for life and you’ll be investing in a 4x4 that obviates the need for you ever again to saddle the world with the energy it takes to build you a car.

This is not the first time that Kia has had two class winners with the Sportage and Sorento. The Korean giant has looked like the most innovative, imaginative 4x4 maker out there before now, too.

The new Sportage is a brilliant small SUV, and was a genuine contender for the overall title. The Sorento is equally good in its own class, and both are more relevant than ever by blending strong quality and design with keen pricing.

The EV6 and future EV9, meanwhile, are looking like game-changers in the EV market. Kia has it all going on – and most of all, it’s making superb 4x4s.

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PUBLISHED 18 Nov 2022

Whatever your taste in Land Rovers, there’s one annual publication you can’t afford to miss. The Land Rover Yearbook is an eclectic blend of classics, modified motors, new Landies, product reviews, travelogues and more.

This year’s Yearbook includes a range of 90s and 110s that have been brought back to life with a twist. And a 107” Station Wagon, too, restored and modified into a Series I like no other. If you prefer your classics to be more, well, classic, you’ll find an 88” Series IIA rebuilt with a devotion to originality that borders on the fanatical. And how about one of the very earliest Freelanders? Not everyone’s idea of a classic, but everything about Land Rover’s history since then says it’s one of the most significant vehicles the company has ever made.

The Discovery, for example, was a truck in the pre-Freelander era. Now it’s a premium SUV. We’ve tested the current model in entry-level D250 form in a bid to find out whether you really need to stretch all the way to a top-spec engine.

And we’ve driven the basic Defender 90, too – steel wheels and all. Not just on any test drive, either, but a mighty green lane trip on some of the best trails in the country.

That’s one kind of travel story.

Getting up close to Africa’s wildlife is definitely another, and so too is the Dakar Classic. Loads of historic Range Rovers and Series trucks were involved in this marathon desert rally – yet not one of them had a British driver. So be warned spend a day or two poring over the 2023 Land Rover Yearbook and you might come away on a mission to put that right!

–

£8.99

in whsmith

or order online at

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22/11/2022 15:39:41

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023 | RESULTS

THE WINNER | NISSAN X-TRAIL

4x4 OF THE YEAR 2023

THE ORIGINAL X-TRAIL was an absolutely seminal 4x4, and those that came after it have hardly been bad either. But the new model, which has just gone on sale in the last month or so, raises the bar further than ever.

No, it’s not truck-like the way the old X-Trail once was. This is a part of the market in which technology will always now shoulder the burden, and that’s part of what makes the X-Trail so good. Nissan has taken an approach to the business of electric propulsion which dares to buck the trend, the result being an SUV which may be what it takes to convince you that the time has come to change.

In a nutshell, the X-Trail uses a a pair of electric motors to do the driving. Rather than being powered by a huge battery pack linked to a plug-in charger, however, it also has a petrol engine whose sole job is to develop the electricity those motors need.

What does this mean in practical terms? For one thing, fuel economy figures which, rather than looking impossibly good and turning out to be just that, look achievably good – and are, again, just that.

For another, the X-Trail is incredibly smooth and quiet to drive. We’re yet to test it on UK roads, but on the superior surfaces of (insert name of any country you want, they’re all superior) its ride and refinement are little short of breathtaking. It glides on the motorway and smoothes out any bumps you do hit around town. Body movements over uneven, undulating surfaces are very well controlled too.

With a seven-seat cabin whose flexibility gives it all the practicality you’d expect from a family SUV, the X-Trail is also as good to sit in as it is to drive. There’s a glorious tan leather option available at the top of the range; not much to British tastes (we normally prefer black) but for those who dare, it adds a fabulous sense of occasion to a cabin whose layout, materials, equipment and controls are all absolutely in keeping with what

you’d expect from a premium vehicle costing twice as much. The driving position is superb, too, as is the overall cabin ambience.

On top of all this, the X-Trail continues to be a giant-killer off-road. Its ability to dig out traction in uneven terrain, aided of course by copious electronics, is highly impressive; it even has decent wheel travel for the kind of vehicle it is. Of course, electric motors are perfectly suited to easing your way slowly over extreme ground, and their torque-from-zero characteristics allow you to get about on a feather of gas.

The X-Trail is price-pointed against the Skoda Kodiaq and Toyota RAV4, both of them formidable rivals. The quality in the medium SUV sector is sky-high – but Nissan has made it more so than ever with what promises to be an absolute game-changer. It is, in every sense, the 4x4 of the year.

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SUBARU OUTBACK. AWARDED 4X4 MAGAZINE’S ‘BEST CROSSOVER ESTATE OF THE YEAR’.

“It’s often said that once you’ve owned a Subaru, you never want to be without one.

And there’s a reason for that. The Outback is all the family car you’re ever likely to need—and, in the real world, it’s all the off-roader you’re ever likely to need too.”

Alan Kidd, Editor of 4x4 Magazine

SUV CAPABILITY. READY FOR ANYTHING. Outback is the original permanent Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive (AWD) crossover. It is as comfortable on muddy fields as it is on city streets. Whatever your destination or the weather conditions, you can rely on Outback to deliver superb safety and effortless capability on every drive.

Find out more at Subaru.co.uk

SUB04654-003 Outback 'Best Crossover Estate' 4x4 Ad_1.indd 1

Award-winning features.

Fitted as standard.

• 2.5i Boxer Engine Lineartronic • Permanent Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive • EyeSight Safety Package • 2,000kg Towing Capacity (braked) • 213mm Ground Clearance • 11.6" Tablet-like Infotainment System • Reversing Camera

08/12/2022 15:05