Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2017 i NZ4WD

It was the ultimate accolade for Toyota New Zealand when a competition seeking much-loved trucks in dire need of refurbishment uncovered Rolleston’s Rubecca Soper-Hazlett and decades of Hilux history. The 34-year-old Hilux bought brand new by Rubecca’s father in 1982 was chosen as the deserving winner of the ‘Give Your Lux Some Luv’ competition, offering entrants the chance to win $20,000 worth of upgrades. “When we launched the competition, we were hoping to find a Hilux that reflected its 40 years of hard work and dedication to New Zealand,” said Andrew Davis, Toyota New Zealand’s general manager of marketing. “We were overwhelmed by the entries and the stories about Kiwis and their Hilux; some great tales, epic adventures and times of hardship people’s Hilux had gone through and why they…

Ford made the headlines at the Detroit Motor Show in early January this year revealing a new, even tougher, smarter and more capable F-150, and confirming widely-held rumours that ‘our’ Ranger ute would join it in 2019, and that a Bronco-badged midsize SUV would make up the trifecta in 2020. The all-new Ford Bronco midsize SUV will be available globally with commentators claiming it will be based on a Ford Australia-engineered Everest platform. Ford’s news at the North American International Auto Show – including expansion of its Chariot ride-sharing service to eight cities in the US – underscores the company’s drive to strengthen its core automotive business while aggressively expanding in growing mobility services. “This year, the expansion of our business as an auto and mobility company moves into even…

Lock in the date now, Sunday March 26. That’s the day Dan Cowper is running this year’s Suzuki Extreme 4x4 Challenge. The only event of its kind in New Zealand, the Suzuki Challenge is not to be missed. Created and hosted by CowperTrucks and held at 2278 SH3, Turakina (near Whanganui, Ed), it will feature the best of the best drivers and 4x4 Trials competition vehicles in the country. Vehicles and crews have been personally invited to test their skills against 12 extreme 4x4 courses. This year FMX superstar Levi Sherwood is also locked and loaded as the Suzuki Extreme 4x4 Challenge 2017 Guest Driver. Levi will be one of the 10 competing drivers and will pedal the current NZ1 CowperTruck. Steep hills, vertical banks, massive jumps, mud and speed,…

Nelson Four Wheel Drive Club was formed in 1973 with the object of running safe and interesting trips and events to suit most levels of experience and vehicles. We are based in the heart of Nelson and have members from all over the Top of the South (Nelson, Blenheim, Kaikoura, Collingwood, Motueka). Our club is affiliated with the New Zealand Four Wheel Drive Association. The clubs follows the objectives of Tread Lightly, an organisation formed to protect the environment and enhance recreational access ethically. Before joining, prospective members are encouraged to go on two trips as a guest of their nominator or someone appointed by the club. Our Club averages from 65 to 75 members annually which is still quite big nowadays. In the earlier days we had up to…

The all-new 2017 Jeep Compass 4X4 is a truly global compact SUV model which will be manufactured in Brazil, China, Mexico and India, for consumers in more than 100 countries around the world. The new model is immediately recognizable as a Jeep and will be available in four different trim configurations, Sport, Latitude, Limited and Trailhawk. Like the Cherokee and Renegade (see separate story) the Compass is based on an existed FCA chassis but boasts serious off-road tech and spec. courtesy two advanced, intelligent 4x4 systems, each of which can send 100 percent of available torque to any one wheel; Jeep Active Drive – full-time 4x4 system, and Jeep Active Drive Low – a class-exclusive full-time 4x4 system with 20:1 crawl ratio. Grip choice Both systems include the Jeep Selec-Terrain…

Trusted by 4WDers all over the world, ARB came into existence when reliable 4x4 gear in Australia was a rarity. Founded in 1975 and based in Melbourne, ARB spends extensive time and resources on research, design and field testing to ensure that the company’s vast range of Protection Equipment is the safest, strongest and most reliable in the market. Today ARB is Australasia’s largest manufacturer and distributor of 4x4 Accessories employing over 1000 staff and exporting to over 100 countries. Design & manufacture Design of Protection Equipment on modern vehicles is complex as the equipment not only has to protect the vehicle but also be fully compatible with the vehicle’s safety systems such as SRS Airbags. Changing the structure of the vehicle has the potential to change the vehicle's crush…

Ironman 4x4 offers a range of replacement winch bullbars which are designed, engineered and tested in Australia. Every Ironman 4x4 bullbar is carefully crafted from premium grade materials and components to deliver the most comprehensive frontal protection and styling available. Ironman 4x4 bullbars are carefully modelled using 3D vehicle scanning techniques to achieve optimal cosmetic design whilst providing maximum vehicle collision protection. All bars are made from the highest quality SPHC oil and pickled steel (not mild steel) to give maximum strength and rust resistance. The finish on Ironman 4x4 bull bars is top quality using the AKZO NOBEL Powdercoat system, which gives a thicker, smoother and more durable coating. Along with winch and air bag compatibility, ironman 4x4 bullbars offer affordable protection for your farm utility or wagon. Five…

Writing this column in January it’s so far been an unsettled summer and maybe that’s a consequence of all the hot air that was expended during the US elections and subsequent outcomes. Where we will finish up as a trade partner with the USA is just as unpredictable, along with the relative values of our respective dollars. A gain in our dollar should hold down fuel and new vehicles costs, so maybe the Jeep brand could drop a bit in price? Other 4WDs that are a bit iconic among some New Zealander’s are the older generations of the Nissan Patrol/ Safari and equivalent Toyotas which are inevitably fading in numbers, with their longevity not always enhanced by where and how some are being used. A fair number seem to appear…

The hottest battle for the top spot, the narrowest margin of victory for the champion team (there was only one point in it in the end), the most number of champion teams, participants and media (numbering 1,050); all were features of the 20th anniversary Rainforest Challenge (RFC) held in Malaysia in late November and early December last year. The 20th Edition also set another record by introducing an entire new event for enduro and dual purpose motorcycles rallye with RFC Enduro Trophy attracting the adventurous motorcyclists from Singapore and Malaysia. Back to square one! The 20th Edition of the Rainforest Challenge (RFC) started (On Nov 26) where the original event did in Kuala Lumpur – Dataran Merdeka (Independence Square) facing the same civic building. The 2016 event saw participants and…

Toyota has added a new, limited-edition TRD (Toyota Racing Development) model to its local Hilux line-up, its exclusive remote locking motorised ABS plastic hard lid a New Zealand first. Based on the Hilux SR5 double cab diesel model, the 2017 Hilux TRD will be available in both 2WD and 4WD, with a choice of manual and automatic transmissions in seven colours. “We displayed a concept Hilux TRD at Fieldays back in June which garnered a lot of favourable comments,” said Steve Prangnell, Toyota New Zealand’s General Manager of Sales. The TRD Hilux comes complete with 18-inch black alloy wheels shod with 265/60R18 Maxxis all terrain tyres, a lid mounted sports bar, fender flares, honeycomb front grille, front alloy nudge bar and bonnet garnish all in matte black. The wellside tray…

Range River has celebrated 48 years of SUV innovation with a special animated video which you can view at https://youtube/ls6PibauaK0 The video offers viewers a trip through the generations from the 1969 Velar prototype to the – just released – 2017 Range Rover SVAutobiography Dynamic. The Range Rover story begins with the 26 pre-production models, which wore Velar badges in an effort to hide its identity – velare means to ‘veil’ or ‘cover’ in Italian – made up of letters from the ‘Land Rover’ badge that usually adorn the front and rear of a vehicle. Next comes the Range Rover Classic two-door as the images showcase successive generations, finishing with the most powerful derivative, the 550PS SVAutobiography Dynamic built by Jaguar Land Rover’s Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) division. When it…

Suzuki’s versatile S-Cross has moved further upmarket with the arrival of the new facelifted range. Not only has the five-door crossover hatchback been accorded styling changes but the model is now offered with a choice of two engine options, including the latest generation Boosterjet (turbo) engine. Standard specification upgrades also make the Suzuki even better value for money. In the shift to more comprehensively equipped cars as favoured by New Zealand buyers, the entry-level GLX grade is gone, and the revised line up comprises LTD and flagship Prestige models. The new LTD automatic is priced at $29,990 plus on-road costs, the same as the outgoing GLX. Powered by the 1,586cm3 M16A, 16-valve engine producing 88 kW, the LTD is additionally available with the selectable four mode ALLGRIP iAWD (intelligent all-wheel-drive),…

Proof that competitions in NZ4WD do produce results, our 2016 Your4s photo comp winner Sheryl Currie emailed us this shot of her with the family BT-50 already kitted out . “Just letting you know we have just had the new tyres fitted to our Mazda BT-50, and we are now all set for a month of touring around the South Island,” she said. “We opted for the Kumho MT51s so hopefully I can have some photos to send of them performing on some of the tracks.” The tyres could hardly have gone to a better home, the BT-50 having already done quite a few safaris within the North Island over the last few years on Kumho KL71s, including the Motu (twice), Urewera, Matawai, Waiouru Army Grounds (twice), Hokianga and Ngunguru.…

March 3rd-5th 2017 Hereworth 4WD Safari – The Rissington 4WD Run; The Hereworth Old Boys’ Association 5th bi-annual Hereworth 4WD trip will be based in and around Rissington in the Hawke’s Bay crossing private land. Accommodation will be camping in a central location. Numbers are strictly limited so be in quick. Price includes a 2 course meal Friday and Saturday night, 2 full cooked breakfasts, 2 lunches, hot beverages at the campsite, access to private properties on designated 4WD routes, camping at a single campsite (treks will be in a clover-leaf fashion). Event starts from 10.00am onwards on Friday with later arrivals for Saturday. All vehicles to have current Warrant of Fitness and a minimum of good condition all terrain or better; have proper tow hooks front and rear (rated…

Black Duck canvas seat covers are regarded as the very best seat covers available that fully protect your vehicle’s seats. Black Duck has over 3000 patterns for all commercial vehicles' (the largest range available) seats ranging from vans, utes, wagons, trucks, heavy equipment and agricultural machinery as well as all quad and ATV seats. So what makes Black Duck the best seat cover? The canvas used is unique to Black Duck. That’s a start. Then there is the quality of workmanship, tailoring, fit, durability and the fact the seat covers do exactly what they are designed to do, which is last for years and provide full seat protection ensuring the seats stay in perfect condition whilst the cover is in place. Black Duck is the pioneer of the tailored canvas…

When considering to use additional protection bars, there might be a few things you will want to take into account. A Bullbar is a great platform for adding more recovery options to your vehicle as well as a firm and level mounting point for coms parts and auxiliary lighting, and obviously there is the additional security of a system that can take a strike and maintain the vehicle's drivability. Firstly, they need to be designed for the vehicle. Long gone are the days when you can whack on a few bits of steel and call it a Bullbar. Every bar manufactured to suit current model vehicles by Opposite Lock has been designed and tested to comply with design rules set out to maintain a high level of safety, strength and…

There are many ways to hold things together – nails, screws, nuts and bolts, clamps, glue. And rivets, which date back to the bronze age and were used in medieval wooden shipbuilding. There’s two main types of rivet, solid and blind. Solids are the oldest and strongest and most commonly known for holding iron or steel ships, railway engines, boilers, cranes and bridges together. Skyscrapers, the Eiffel Tower and series Land Rover bodies are held together by them. Though these days they’ve been replaced by hi-tensile nuts and bolts that are much easier to fit, or welding. Solid rivets have a round shank and a mushroom or countersunk head. The shank goes through a hole in the material to be clamped then the tail of the shank is squeezed to…

New trucks are popping out of the woodwork for 2017 in huge numbers – Neville Smith’s Prolite kits and trucks mentioned last month, imported trucks reworked for local conditions, Craig Carlyle’s new black and white truck. But what do you do when your pride and joy gets comprehensively trashed? Raina Horan had the grandstand view from his Nissan Titan V8 truck. Jono Climo’s locally-built Toyota Hilux – near as anything to a Trophy Truck, and exquisitely built with painstaking attention to detail – leaped into the air over a fast rise at the Hawke’s Bay national round last year. The landing was not pretty. Climo described it as a ‘lawn dart moment’. The truck’s nose dropped out of the air and dug into prime Hawke’s Bay farm soil, launching 869…

Just as Ford’s Ranger has made history here in New Zealand by being our top selling individual model, Toyota’s Hilux has done the same thing across the Tasman. As the top choice for Australian motorists in 2016, HiLux – which also set a new national record for 4x4 sales last year – edged out stablemate the Toyota Corolla, Hilux sales 42,104, Corolla sales 40,330. In a banner year for the brand in Australia, Toyota was the best-selling brand in every state and territory, helped lift the entire industry to a new sales record of almost 1.18 million vehicles in 2016, 2.0 per cent ahead of the previous record set in 2015. All up Aussies bought 209,610 vehicles from Toyota dealers in 2016, 91,393 more than any other brand and a…

1970: Original two-door Range Rover (the Classic) goes on sale. 1972: Range Rover crosses Darien Gap on the 18,000-mile British Army Trans-America expedition. 1977: Range Rover wins 4x4 class in the 30,000km London-Sydney Marathon . 1979: A Range Rover wins the inaugural Paris-Dakar rally (and again in 1981). 1981: First production four-door Range Rover appears. 1982: Automatic transmission introduced on Range Rover. 1985: Diesel-powered ‘Bullet’ Range Rover breaks 27 speed records. 1987: Range Rover launched in North America 1989: Range Rover is world’s first 4x4 to be fitted with anti-lock brakes. 1992: Range Rover is world’s first 4x4 to be fitted with electronic traction control and automatic electronic air suspension. 1994: Second-generation Range Rover introduced. 2001: Third-generation Range Rover introduced. 2002: 500,000th Range Rover produced at the Solihull plant. 2012:…

Toyota is keen to catch the rising wave of new ‘small SUV’ sales with the all-new C-HR this year. With its distinctive design, the new five-door crossover will enter a segment of the market where sales have grown threefold in the last five years, from 11 to 22 different models. Combining a coupe-like upper body with the underpinnings of an SUV, the production vehicle remains remarkably true to the concept car’s exterior which was first shown at the Paris Motor Show in 2014 and registered extremely well with target customers. “Every market wants this car,” said Steve Prangnell, Toyota New Zealand’s General Manager of Sales. The C-HR will be available in 2WD or AWD form, powered by a four-cylinder 1.2-litre turbocharged petrol engine producing 185Nm of peak torque from 1,500rpm…

European Motor Distributors is excited to announce that its portfolio of brands will increase by one in the second quarter of 2017 with the introduction of Spanish marque Seat (pronounced ‘see at’). Given the dominance of SUV body styles in New Zealand, the recent launch by seat of the all-new Ateca SUV was the catalyst that led to Seat making an entrance into the New Zealand market. The Ateca will compete head-on in the popular compact SUV segment. At launch the Ateca will be joined by the new Seat Leon in five-door hatchback guise. Whilst full pricing and specification data is yet to be released, recently appointed Seat New Zealand General Manager James Yates said that “hot-hatch aficionados will be pleased to hear that the Leon Cupra with 300 horsepower…

For any number of reasons, it’s not every day you are invited to fly to Spain to drive a diesel-powered Bentley off road. Firstly, why Spain? Secondly, a diesel-powered Bentley? And thirdly, a Bentley (regardless of what powers it) off road? The first one is easy – why Spain? Because it is close to England and the rest of Europe, really. I may have been flying for several days to spend a day and a half on the ground, but getting a bunch of Bentley Bentaygas and a whole bunch of European journalists to Spain is a far easier option. The second one is also pretty easy – Yes, a diesel-powered Bentley is now actually a thing for the first time in the company’s 98-year history. Triple treat But the…

Once upon a time it was enough to add a monsoon and set of mudflaps. Now pre-delivery customisation of the new-generation of high-riding two and four-wheel-drive utes is the exception that proves the rule. For some, particularly the largely urban-based contractor, tradie and consultant sectors, a set of large diameter mag wheels and low-profile tyres is enough to make their ‘work’ vehicle stand out from the crowd. For those in rural areas, or those town and city dwellers who have been exposed to the joys of driving off-road, there is a whole new world of need, demand and opportunity. Wheels – steel or alloy – might be smaller in diameter but more than compensated by taller, fatter and much more aggressively treaded M/T (mud) tyres. Winch or not, the next…

Raptor is the new name in super tough durable protective coatings which protects against rust, corrosion, damp, and extreme temperatures. Raptor has high coverage up to 12 m² per kit and provides excellent UV protection. It is highly water resistant as it provides a tight seal, keeping water and fluids out and is resistant against fuels, hydraulic oils, animal urine, salt water and more. Resistant to mechanical damage and stains as well as being flexible, and helping to deaden sound and vibrations, Raptor can be applied with excellent adhesion across many substrates with no need for after care post application. It is easy to apply with no spray booth required, and can be applied with: Schutz Gun, HVLP Gun, roller or brush. Benefits • Scratch and stain resistant. • Chemical…

When it comes to vehicle protection, Airplex has got you covered. Auckland-based Airplex manufactures and distributes a range of products to protect you, your vehicle and your load. Nudge bars and side steps not only look smart, they are a practical vehicle protection feature for your vehicle. Airplex stock a range of alloy and stainless sidesteps and airbag compliant nudge bars to suit a wide selection of vehicles. The tray of your ute can take a hammering. Easy and cost effective protection is to install an Airplex Rugged Liner (made in USA). For those vehicles with a pre-installed liner that doesn’t offer any protection on top of the wellside or tailgate, Airplex can supply and install a set of rail caps to help prevent damage to these exposed areas. These…

The company that created the first all-terrain 4WD tyre in 1976 has delivered the BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2, the toughest All-terrain tyre ever, and it’s being put to good use since its arrival in New Zealand. Engineered from BFGoodrich’s championship off-road motorsports racing technology, the KO2 4x4 tyre delivers exceptional toughness, durability and traction for traversing harsh conditions, including gravel, dirt, rock, mud and snow. The KO2 uses CoreGard technology developed in the Baja T/A KR2 for split and bruise-resistant sidewall rubber and a thicker, extended shoulder to prevent sidewall failures. Computer modelling was used to create a sidewall design most likely to deflect protruding objects. The KO2 has a new tread design and rubber formulation that helps it last twice as long on gravel and 15 percent longer on…

When I booked for the trip I looked at the very unstable pre-Christmas weather and took the option to stay in the army barracks and have all the catered meals rather than my usual habit of camping and self-catering. This gave me a small experience of being on a military base and the associated culture – a very different experience to my normal independent lifestyle. I had booked for the mid-level ‘dull shiny’ trip and as I was traveling alone I was asked by the organisers if I could take the trip leader with me since his vehicle was out of action. I thoroughly enjoyed having Tony as a passenger for the two days. His knowledge of the area and experience in driving the eight-wheel LAVs across the same terrain…

Figures released show that we had a record number of new vehicle sales in 2016 and that there was strong sale for 4WD ute market, yet we still have a large percentage of older vehicles still on the road. Vehicle manufacturers would prefer us to buy new vehicles every couple of years and the Politicians have been trying to modernise the average age of the vehicle fleet in this country on the basis it is better for safety reasons. A vehicle will last many years if regularly serviced to a proper standard and with reputable parts and fluids, but as a vehicle ages, the regular services are left for longer periods, higher mileages and the vehicle deteriorates to the point people baulk at spending hard earned dollars on their vehicles.…