Indice dei contenuti per September 2016 in SA4x4

When you think back on a trip, or an extended adventure, there’s always a moment that stands out. It might be the sound of your buddy’s guitar as he strummed out an old favourite while the fire crackled and the ice clinked. It could be the moment you crested a dune that had got the better of every other driver. Or, it could be just the taste of your early morning cup of coffee steaming away as you watched the sun come up over a mountain. For me, it is often the great, calming silence that descends after a day’s driving to a remote place, when the camp is pitched, fire made, and the first stars blink in the sky. In places where there is little light pollution, one tends…

ROOF RACK FOR THE MASSES Front Runner’s Grab-On Slimline II Roof Rack It’s no secret that Front Runner is obsessed with adventure and designing great gear for it! Front Runner’s revolutionary Grab-On Slimline II Roof Rack has been tested to the extreme and this is why it comes with a Limited Lifetime Warranty. The Roof Rack is built to last and is made of high-grade aluminum. The stainless steel Grab-On Foot adjusts to fit factory roof rail diameters from 20mm to 45mm wide and has rubber padding. It's versatile, with over 50 Front Runner rack accessories, and has the ability to mount just about anything to the top, bottom and sides of the rack. With its well-engineered design, the Front Runner Slimline II Rack always lives up to expectation both…

Mike is an Honorary Member of the elite Explorers Club in the USA, the Laureus World Sports Academy, Personality of the Sea, has had an audience with the Pope, served as motivational coach for Germany’s Soccer World Cup Champions, as well as the Proteas, Indian and IPL cricket teams, and he is a survival expert for French reality TV shows. Here’s why: 1991PeruvianAndesParagliding and rafting for three months. 1994 Mont Blanc Glacier: Descent from 4800m to the French Riviera on a hydrospeed. 1995 Colca Canyon: First to hydrospeed the deepest canyon in the world. Pacuare Expedition: First complete descent of the upper Pacuare River in Costa Rica, including the highest waterfall (22m) ever on a hydrospeed. 1997 Amazon: six-month solo traverse of South America on a hydrospeed. 1999 Latitude…

One of the several exciting aspects of bird watching is the way in which you learn to identify certain birds by their song and by some of the unique sounds they produce. More often than not, I find that I hear a certain species even before I see them in the surrounding area or bush. This knack naturally comes with time and it develops and gets better as you make progress. At times, I find that I will involuntarily interrupt myself in a discussion with someone in order to listen to a bird sound which I’ve almost subconsciously picked up, leaving the other party wondering why I’ve suddenly stopped talking. Non-birders naturally find this type of behavior quite strange, if not a tad absurd; but bird lovers fully appreciate the…

BONNIEDALE HOLIDAY FARM Originally a Fynbos Farm, Bonniedale Holiday Farm is now what owner, Nico Hesterman, describes as a “people farm”. The land on which the farm lies was first discovered in 1689 by a European settler named Ensign Isaac Schrijwer. He was sent by Simon van der Stel to barter for cattle and sheep with the Khoi-Khoi in the Attaquas mountain range. In 1860, a Scotsman was sent to set up a toll house and to supply produce, mules and oxen for travellers passing through the area. In 1890, a local farmer, Mr Muller, bought the farm for 12 pounds. He started building the farmhouse in 1982, but was interrupted by the outbreak of the Anglo Boer War which caused him to finish construction a whole decade later. Nico…

We’d driven the new Hilux before, but, as is sometimes the case, we didn’t have the chance to fully connect with it: to live with it every day and to get to know the finer aspects as well as the foibles. Also, as snow begins to fall in the Western Cape highlands, any excuse to catch a cold and act like a child is gratefully accepted – and besides, what better test bed could be found for the manual Hilux that had landed on SA4x4’s doorstep? Having heard that massive traffic jams are the order of the day when snow falls on the Matroosberg mountains, we were up far before sunlight to beat the masses. Contrary to what we’d been told, though, the mountain was almost clear of traffic -…

1. BASE OILS Performance and characteristics differ from one lubricant to another, the only thing they have in common is that they have a principal ingredient called a “lubricant base”, which represents 75 to 85% of the oil and which may be of mineral (petroleum) or synthetic “blends” or of synthetic origin. 2. VISCOSITY The information on viscosity describes the behaviour of a lubricant when the temperature changes. When hot, the oil becomes more fluid; it flows more easily. In the event of city or leisure driving, or when the air temperature is high, the engine experiences high temperatures that accentuate this phenomenon. It is therefore important to use an oil that remains sufficiently viscous when hot to protect the engine but equally important to be low enough in viscosity…

POSITION: KANO, NIGERIA | ROUTE: KANO, NIGERIA – AGADEZ, NIGER DATE: 24.5.1987 I awoke in the oven-heat of the tin-roofed room within a shroud of soaking sheets. Mandi sat on the bed with a cup of warm water, which I gulped while trying to nod my thanks, and motioned for another. Bloody malaria, dysentery... “How’re you feeling?” she asked. “Thanks. Hey, a little fuzzy but I feel a bit better.” “You should; you’ve slept for twenty hours.” “Oh. Sorry. And how’re you doing?” “Much better, too; but still taking the antibiotics. I moved into the next room as you were swimming... Backstroke, I think.” It was the first time in months that we were both feeling almost normal. A bit weak; but, for us, normal. After more water, a lot…

A lot of confusion about coordinate formats could be avoided by using the new system known as Mapcode. As it stands, there is no simple co-ordinate standard for navigation. Most people use the format which is best suited to them, based on what they understand, and what they were taught at school, at scouts or in the army. Six formats are used in South Africa, some more than others, and each has a specific application. To start with, there are three geographical co-ordinate formats: 1. (hddd mm ss.s): here, h stands for hemisphere, followed by degrees, minutes and seconds, accurate to approximately three metres – the system used to mark maps. This is the old navigation format that we used in the army, as boy scouts, and at school, and…

A JEEP QUESTION I HAVE TO ASK Who makes the naming decisions at Jeep? During the last two years, Jeep (under the ownership of Fiat Chrysler) has launched two new ranges: the new Cherokee and the Renegade. Each of these ranges has a hierarchy of models, according to trim and specification levels, which might differ from country to country. In the US, the line-up looks something like this: Sport, Latitude, Limited, and, ultimately, Trailhawk. Outside of North America, more or less the same convention is followed, with one notable exception: “Latitude” becomes “Longitude”. And this is where the great mystery lies for me. “Latitude” has meaning; it goes beyond the simple term for the angular distance of a place north or south of the earth’s equator, or of the equator…

Mitsubishi, a brand synonymous with reliability and rugged 4x4 vehicles, have updated their Pajero again, catering even more for the off-road enthusiasts among us. Looking forward, Mitsubishi say that they will continue to focus on the Pajero’s off-road credentials, but leave the Pajero recipe essentially as it is for the foreseeable future – adding accessories and upgrading the vehicles slowly. The Legend II, as its name suggests, is the second incarnation of the special edition Pajero that was first introduced in 2013 as the Legend. Various accessories have been added to both the short- and long-wheelbase versions. Around R50 000 worth of extras has been added to the LWB, and R40 000 worth of extras to the shorty, without significantly increasing the standard retail price of the vehicles. In conjunction…

“My life has been a step by step thing,” says Mike Horn. “I’ve been busy putting building blocks in place so that I can do more.” “I like variety, that’s why I’m doing Pole2Pole 360. That’s how I keep myself busy. With every expedition a new one is born, because it is better to think about your next one while you’re not sitting in a warm, cosy kitchen. When you sit in a cold tent, your thinking process is based on reality. “I use shorter expeditions in-between, like K2, the South and North Poles, to water the seed of the next long one. “How did I decide on a route for Pole2Pole? I basically drew a red line around the world. I’ll use Pangaea (his specially equipped 35-metre aluminium yacht)…

We had been living in Perth in Western Australia for a while before we decided to do a typical Aussie road trip. After being transferred from British Columbia, Canada, to Western Australia, we’d decided that one of the things we were going to do in Australia was travel. We bought a small Holden Astra as a runabout, and then started looking for a “good” 4x4 in which we could tackle the famous outback. Having travelled extensively through southern Africa in a Hilux, I started looking for a second-hand (or as some dealers call it, a “previously loved”) vehicle. We soon realised that the Aussies don’t really “go bush” in things like Hiluxes and other smaller utes (‘bakkies’ in South Africa) – these are used for work on-site and on the…

Old Trucks is a sometimes gathering of old four-wheel-drive vehicles. Held at various places around South Africa, it is not a club or formal organisation, but a group passionate about its metal dashboards and accompanying bits. The first meeting was held at Babanango in Zululand in 1981, where many thousands of acres of great rocky hills, bush, and the broad sandy bed of the uMfolosi River provided the attraction. Though perhaps not attraction enough to equal the goings on as a collection of old things rattled and howled their way from places in the north, south, east and even the west, to meet at Stan’s Bar at the Babananago Hotel, and there to be made most welcome and fed and watered by that great host, Stan Wintgens. For 2016, the…

HAMMOCK TENT Without a doubt, this gem falls under the “shut-up and take my money” category of must-have items. Have Mother Nature rock you to sleep as you swing between the tree tops in the Lawson hammock tent. The tent comes with a detachable waterproof flysheet in case the clear skies suddenly turn to winter downpour. On clear nights, a see-through mesh keeps you safe from rolling over into the darkness. Price: $135.99 Available: www.amazon.com/ Lawson-Hammock-Ridge-Camping-Forest PORTABLE ‘WASHING MACHINE’ Doing laundry is not the first thing on anyone’s mind when overlanding. But, after a week of touring, it’s not just the car-ride that can become stale. This Australian invention gives travellers a convenient way to wash their dirty laundry while out in the bush. Simply fill the bag with…

EVOQUE TURNS FIVE Range Rover’s compact SUV, the Evoque, puts half a decade under its belt this year as it celebrates its fifth year of production in the UK. The Range Rover Evoque is not only Land Rover’s most efficient model, with CO2 emissions of just 109g/ km, but is also Land Rover’s greatest sales success story, with over half-a-million sold globally in more than 180 countries since 2011. The Evoque has become so popular that the Halewood plant in Britain runs a 24-hour production line to meet demand; a new Evoque now rolls off the production line every 170 seconds. The Evoque accounted for one in four of Land Rovers sold around the world in 2015, making it the fastest selling Land Rover of all time. Sales started at…

SAVANNA OWTRAN LAND ROVER 110 DEFENDER 2.8L (AKA THE ‘BEAST’) Age: 8 (my mum Mel Owtran, the driver, is 45) Occupation: Homeschooled (My mum teaches me and my brother) Modifications: Warn winch, Safari snorkel, Howling Moon rooftop tent, Eezi roller awn, solar panel, four Hella spotlights on roof-rack and two driving spots, BF Goodrich wide All-Terrain tyres and two spares, mounted spade and axe, DVD player, Indel B fridge, battery- capacity meter, Mean Well TN-1500 inverter, cruise control, air suspension, compressor, boxed-in windows for storage, drawer runner in boot, mounted gas bottle and two fire extinguishers, tow hitch, three fuel tanks, water tank and tap, bull bar and replacement rear 4x4 bumper, rocksliders and H-Lift jack mounted on the bull bar. Future modifications: Replace the four Hella spots with LED…

Anyone who’s watched Jurassic Park will remember the first scene, in which a convoy of 4x4s drive together through the undulating terrain, autonomously following a rail in the ground. This great system allowed the excited passengers to observe dinosaurs on their pre-historic safari without worrying about the pesky task of controlling a vehicle. Autonomous vehicles have been around for ages – in fact, it was in 1912 that the mechanical gyroscopic autopilot was invented. This device was able to keep an aeroplane on the straight and level for as long as the pilot deemed necessary. Later, autopilots became a necessary addition to planes making long-distance flights, and they have since been incorporated into boats, submarines, and (most recently) cars. So far, autonomous vehicles are proving to be extremely safe. Manufacturers…

“We’re a little late,” said Mike, unperturbed, as we approach the remote, dusty town. When he spots the tails of three small planes, he turns off the road, finds a gap in the fence and bounces through the veld to stop in a cloud of dust on the airfield. This kind of make-do approach to getting things done, I realise, is exactly what he’d been talking about around the campfire a couple of nights before, when he’d said, “If you cannot adapt, you will never have an advantage”. In , our remote northwest of Namibia was one of adaptation. And I am pretty sure that this is the reason that Mike Horn, a man who likes to go solo, was saying just what he felt when he said, “I really…

Okay, so I used to like clubbing. Not seals, mind you, more the sort of thing where you hang out inside a dodgy building with a crowded bar, waiting for the fifth Black label to kick in while Taxi Man blares in the background. These days, it’s probably some Bieber or Beyoncé remix, so I’m gladly over that. Now, when I want to get all psychedelic, I go hang with the stars. Nope, not Hollywood, or Bollywood, but the real thing – preferably somewhere as far from civilisation as one can get. The reason for this is two-fold: (1) I’m tired of seeing people posting their ‘Pokemon Go’ pics, and (2) the further you are away from a town, the less light pollution there is. Just in case I’ve lost…

I have been involved in Protected Area Management in Africa for over three decades. The relevance of the scientific research and ongoing monitoring that informs management decisions is very important, no matter what the size of the area or locality. Research can be divided into two main categories: one directly supporting management, and the other focusing on general goals and/or the increase of knowledge. Monitoring and evaluation of conservation efforts tells one a great deal about the management success in a protected area. It is important to get a baseline measurement so that you know where you are, and how and where you should improve. A prime example is of the time I took over the management of a national park in central Africa while I was working for African…

You may be thinking that because you have a 4x4 and are carrying everything including the kitchen sink, you have no need to carry a survival kit. Well, you would be wrong. The wilderness is the best place in the world to be – right up to the time that things go wrong, and it becomes a very dangerous place. Imagine having your vehicle catch fire when you are stranded in the middle of absolutely nowhere, and you aren’t carrying a fire extinguisher. How would you manage to survive after losing everything? In our imagined disaster, we had put together a basic survival kit which we could have grabbed; a kit that covered all the elements necessary to survive in a disaster. We are not talking here about the contents…

PIETER JOOSTE Trying to avoid having to go through the car wash on his way home, Pieter splashed his 2009 Toyota Hilux D-4D through this stream in the Swartberg Pass. RIAAN DU PLESSIS Man’s best friend caught staring down the competition in this photograph of Riaan’s 1978 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ45, taken at Schmidtsdrift in the Northern Cape. His Cruiser is fitted with a Ford 302 Windsor V8 with fuel injection, and 33-inch Goodyear Wrangler tyres. DR JOHANN BLAAUW Johann captured the sky drawing a blanket of clouds over the mountaintops as he headed south of Sehlabathebe Park in Lesotho, in his 2006 Land Rover Defender Td5. ALAN GEDDES Alan took this snapshot of his faithful 1993 Nissan Sani crossing the equator in Western Tanzania on a recent 16 000km…

There’s no point in driving around with your roofrack/rooftop tent if you’re not on holiday. Save fuel (and wear & tear) by installing a Fredlin hoist. This proudly South African product solves the problem of where to store your roofrack/ rooftop tent, canopy, or even a sports car hardtop: up and out of the way! The Fredlin hoist fastens securely to your garage roof or carport, is easily installed and can be operated by one person. TO ENTER One Fredlin hoist will be given away every month to the lucky reader featured in Me & My 4x4. Simply send a photograph – 1 MB or larger – and the answers to the categories shown above, to editor@sa4x4.co.za. Vehicle and driver must be featured together in an off-road setting. (No driveway…