RedVision by REDARC is the Total Vehicle Management System.
The unit allows you to control and monitor multiple on-board devices for your 4WD, caravan, camper trailer, or motorhome in one place.
RedVision is proudly Australian Made. View the kits at https://www.redarc.com.au/total-vehicle-management-system
Rumours are circulating that a Wrangler-challenging five-door Suzuki Jimny is in the works.
Indian publication Autocar India recently published an article claiming that a five-door model is currently in development and will eventually be sold in India.
The report claimed the longer five-door model would employ the three-door’s ladder-frame chassis, 4WD system and 1.5-litre petrol engine.
We previously touched on this very subject, when 4X4 Australia editor Matt Raudonikis explained how a LWB Jimny would spark interest from a new breed of Suzuki enthusiasts.
“Imagine a LWB Jimny with four doors to make it more applicable to family use,” he wrote. “A whole family of new Jimnys would reinvigorate the nameplate by appealing to a much wider buying audience.
“This would spark a new breed of Suzuki enthusiasts modifying them to suit their needs, in-turn fuelling the aftermarket industry to produce products for them. It would be a win-win situation for buyers, the industry and the manufacturer.”
WhichCar spoke to Suzuki Australia last year at the launch of the three-door Jimny about the prospects of Australia getting a five-door version of the iconic nameplate, with Suzuki Australia general manager Michael Pachota saying it was clearly a desirable product.
“If the name starts with ‘Jimny’, we’ll sell it,” Pachota said. “A five-door would broaden the range of customers beyond just the thrill seekers, the adventure seekers and the young drivers who just want the cutest 4×4 on the block. It would really broaden our demographic.”
“The five-door would be great as an added bonus, but once you develop a long-wheelbase platform, you’ve got both ends covered – it’s just about the shell,” he said.
With the steep price of the new LWB JL Wrangler affecting sales in Australia (starting at $53,450 for the four-door Sport S), a five-door Jimny would be a considerably more affordable way into the 4×4 wagon segment.
The AutoCar India report claimed the manufacture of the three-door Jimny is slated to begin “around June 2020” at Maruti Suzuki’s Hansalpur plant, with production of the five-door version “to commence six months later”.
DUE to the current coronavirus pandemic facing the entire planet, businesses are finding ways to make ends meet. Aussie company ARB is one such company employing different strategies to adapt during these challenging times.
To this end and to abide by new regulations, ARB stores and stockists have implemented procedures including offering phone consultations, phone ordering and home delivery on a range of 4×4 products.
So if you find yourself stuck at home, fiddling your thumbs, now’s the time to purchase some 4×4 gear and get stuck into your build in preparation for your next (or postponed) 4×4 trip.
To make it easier, ARB provides extensive fitting instructions for home installation. Plus, if you find yourself stuck during the process, just pick up the phone and give ARB a buzz.
The company has also improved its hygiene and social distancing practices – “ARB has increased both frequency and depth of cleaning within all ARB stores, warehousing and office sites as well as setting up boundaries and guidelines for safe distancing measures,” it said. “Staff who handle customers’ vehicles are taking additional precautions to ensure a heightened level of sanitisation and surface cleanliness both before and after working on any vehicle.”
For more information and to suss out ARB’s range of products, head to: www.arb.com.au
GET YOUR hands on another massive issue of 4X4 Australia, with the April 2020 mag hot off the press and ready for your eyeballs.
In this issue we wrangled a drive of the all-new Defender, in Namibia of all places. The first taste of the new Defender whet our appetite for more, but we’ll have to wait until it lands in Australia later this year before we get to drive it locally.
We fanged a Musso XLV and stole the keys to an Aussiefied Chevrolet Silverado 1500, to find out if longer and bigger is better. Plus, we threw HSV’s SportsCat and Nissan’s NTREK Warrior into the ring for an all-out brawl on the rocky stuff – and then took a stroll along the Warrior’s assembly line.
It wouldn’t be complete without some custom metal, and in this issue we examined a Prado 150 built for mountains, not school runs.
As always, we’ve toured some amazing places around the country to inspire you on your next adventure. In this issue we’ve included 4×4 trips to Corner Country, Hell Hole Gorge and Yorke Peninsula. Plus, Ronnie lays down the Five Peak Challenge in Victoria.
WHAT ELSE IS THERE?
-New gear tested: MSA 4×4, Narva, Rhino-Rack and Goodyear – Monthly columns and long-term updates – Rainforest Challenge Adventure Tour – Bottoms up at the Pub in the Paddock, Tasmania
The April 2020 issue of 4X4 Australia is OUT NOW!
Land Rover has pressed 143 vehicles into the service of aid and health organisations to help with efforts to stem the coronavirus pandemic.
Of the total, the largest recipient would be the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, which will receive 105 models, the bulk of which, would be comprised of the all-new Land Rover Defender.
The UK Health Authorities received four Discovery vehicles from Land Rover, which will be used to help aid workers to carry out home-testing.
According to Land Rover the intent for lending its vehicles was to help health and aid workers to reach people, especially in vulnerable areas.
Land Rover joins a growing list of car manufacturers and motorsports teams which are using its down time to contribute to the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.
Ford recently released a sketch of how it plans to build ventilators for health workers using parts that are already used for the F-150’s seat blower fan, with General Motors offering its factories and workers to produce medical equipment.
On the motorsports front, leading Supercars team, Erebus Motorsport have been instrumental in the design and production of a new patient screen device. Whereas Le Mans racing team, Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus, have been working on a filter adapter for the common snorkel face mask.
The sign once read: “Free power, free shower, turn left at the road, go down to the pub, buy a beer or just say gidday.” These days the sign has mysteriously disappeared, but the deal hasn’t. Ring ahead and you’ll find a free campsite literally on the doorstep of one of the best pubs and locations in Victoria’s East Gippsland.
We’re in Lake Tyers, a small coastal hamlet barely ten minutes from the recreational mecca of Lakes Entrance. It’s a quiet, secluded spot, yet on the Australia Day long weekend just gone the Water Wheel Beach Tavern is the local hub and is buzzing with life.
At a time when many of the local businesses in East Gippsland and beyond are doing it tough – losing seasonal income during their typically busiest holiday period, due to the 2019-20 bushfire crisis – it feels good to be injecting some money into the area, knowing that every little bit makes a difference.
Over the course of the weekend it becomes clear that the Water Wheel Tavern is both an oasis for travellers and a local haunt for many. They come in their droves, many of them utilising the services of the tavern’s courtesy bus. For campers, the best bit is the area out the back. With free power and even a free shower, this has got to be one of the best finds in East Gippsland.
Part owner of the tavern is Kevin Campbell, who’s a chef by trade. Growing up in nearby Bairnsdale with a love of the sea, it’s perhaps understandable he’d end up in a tavern at Lake Tyers. Seven years ago, Kevin bought the tavern, which included the tiny caravan park out the back, and in 2019 he decided to remove the small cabins and convert the space to a free camp area. Now you’ll find marked-out sites with free power and water on each one, and access to a shower and toilet plus a small barbecue area.
It’s a clever and generous idea that’s proving very popular with campers passing through. The biggest attraction is undeniably the tavern just up the laneway where most campers end up, and there are no strings attached. It’s hard to deny the appeal and ambience of sitting on the decking, the structure of which is incredibly impressive. Kevin tells me that part of the material was sourced from the Sydney Opera House. The tavern has seen a lot of change over the years.
We do our part, enjoying drinks on the first afternoon, but then we’re back again at dinner time for the best pork belly I’ve ever eaten in my life. We return the following night to do it all again and to enjoy the lively music of a visiting Irish band.
It’s little wonder people come from miles away. Aside from the live music and the amazing food, the deck overlooks the expansive lakes system. Barely 500 metres away, the spectacular Ninety Mile Beach also beckons fishermen and sun lovers.
On the doorstep of the Tavern is the lake and, though the water was low on our visit, seasonal changes see amazing cycles. The lakes range from calm, sandy mudflats and wetlands to the raging torrent of the estuary breakout. Lake Tyers beach is undeniably unique. Located at the mouth of the Lake Tyers estuary, it’s a fisherman’s paradise.
In town, there’s a distinctly common theme in the street names: Flounder, Eel, Marlin, Mullet, Brim and Barracuda. The town surveyors must have all been fishos. That afternoon we watched from the decking of the tavern as a fisherman drove off with a four-metre shark on the roof rack, clearly the catch of the day.
Another way to explore the area is by kayak. The tavern has free kayaks available for those who want to get out there and explore the inlets and shallows of the lake, as well as the peaceful waters where the motorboats can’t go.
Close by are the spectacular stretches of the Ninety Mile Beach, and beyond the lakes are walking tracks above the town that lead to cliff-top views of the glistening shoreline. Down below, it’s not hard to wile away the days here; fishing, swimming and lazing along sandy shores that stretch as far as the eye can see.
There’s another side to Lake Tyers, but to get there you’ll need to leave the beach. Here, farther out from the Lake Tyers State Park, you’ll find four-wheel drive tracks and scenic forest drives into nearby hills. Less than 20km up the road is the small town of Nowa Nowa, located at the northern end of the lakes region where Boggy Creek enters and feeds the system.
The town and General Store came perilously close to being wiped out by the recent bushfires. Stopping for supplies and to get directions at the General Store, I spoke to the owner who told me the fires were coming straight for them before the wind changed direction.
We made our way up to Mount Nowa Nowa via Two Mile Road, which had only recently reopened after the fires whipped through. It felt surreal to drive through scorched forests, where one side of the road was burnt and trees survived on the other. At the summit, under a blue but hazy sky, we could just make out the lines of the fires through the charred forests below. Sadly, there wasn’t much left of what would have once been a scenic picnic ground. However, the tower was still standing.
We drove back down along the powerlines, a steep track which had us locking the D-MAX into low range before backtracking onto Gorge Road and on to Nowa Nowa. The driving, though not overly challenging, was scenic, and we could see several difficult tracks branching off in many directions.
Within the state park is the Nowa Nowa Mountain Bike Path, with 20km of mountain bike trails for those who love action on two wheels. As we drove through, it was heartening to see some wildlife in the scrub including a few kangaroos, lizards and even a monitor that narrowly missed becoming flattened as it scampered across the road.
Not far away in the Colquhoun State Forest is the Stony Creek Trestle Bridge, built to service the 97km Bairnsdale to Orbost rail line extension in 1914 – the last train crossing the bridge in 1988. You can’t walk on the trestle bridge anymore, but there’s a rail trail alongside the bridge allowing walkers and cyclists to marvel at the engineering feats of a forgotten era. It’s an impressive structure constructed mainly from red ironbark and grey box. At 247m long and 20m high, it’s one of the largest of its kind in Victoria, standing there almost like the embodiment of survival.
Back in Lakes Entrance at the Fisherman’s Co-op on Bullock Island, we stocked up on fresh seafood for our Australia Day dinner that night. With our table overlooking the boat ramp of Lake Tyers, we watched the pelicans feast before laying out our own banquet of oysters, prawns and local wine.
Australia might be doing it tough during this current crisis, but, as travellers, and in true Aussie spirit, we can all do our bit to help the fire-affected regions by getting out there, spending a bit of money and helping these small communities get back on their feet.
Here in Lake Tyers, with free camping, beer on tap and four-wheel driving on your doorstep, what more could you possibly want?
Water Wheel Beach Tavern location
Address: 577 Lake Tyers Road, Lake Tyers, Victoria
KROOMBIT Tops National Park, located about three hours’ drive west of Rockhampton in Queensland, has been on our bucket list for quite some time. And, after much digging, we found more than what we bargained for.
Most people who visit the park generally come in from the north, but our exploration began from the east at a little town called Miriam Vale. After talking to some locals they suggested we cut through the Boyne Valley and enter via Ubobo towards Kroombit. “As long as you’re totally self-sufficient,” they said.
The road is narrow and unsealed west of Ubobo, passing through extremely dry paddocks and dried-up creeks and dams. We followed Cedarvale Road and then Clewleys Gap Road for a good 20km, where small signs along the route indicate you’re heading in the right direction.
Eventually we arrived at the Kroombit cattle station, where we turned south and followed Mahoon Creek Road through some pretty steep ridgeline tracks and eventually onto Monal Road.
It is here, along Monal Road, we were told to keep an eye out for old mining relics and cemeteries the Queensland Heritage Association has signposted. Back in the 1890s gold was discovered in this valley, and by 1892 a proper road was cut in and a town emerged with hotels, a store, post office, market gardens and a little school.
However, by 1912 the gold had all but dried up; some miners persisted with little success, but by 1916 the school and post office had closed and eventually the buildings were gone by 1925.
Today you can walk around the mining relics, which include a huge 10-head stamper, boilers, a steam-driven engine, tower buckets and various wheels. Due to the extremely remote and rough conditions of the area, it’s reported that the boiler and stamper were brought in by a team of 52 horses pulling a single dray at any one time. It was low 4WD when we tackled the same hill, both up and down. If you follow the track past the mining equipment it will take you into the Monal Valley, where the main mine was located.
Following another lead we headed back up the main road, where we found the historical cemetery of Monal. A memorial plaque pays respect to the several dozen people buried here in unmarked graves in the open paddock – it was obviously a hard life when you see the ages of the deceased.
Retracing our steps back to the property we’d passed earlier, we turned left towards the signposted Kroombit Tops NP. The diff-busting roads coming in from the east are narrow, steep and rocky, yet the views across the mountains are nothing short of spectacular.
An old dray that was once used to drag massive logs can be seen as soon as you hit the NP entry sign. An information board provides relevant tips on where to camp, points of interest and other relevant details. As we were towing a camper our choice of camp was Griffiths Creek camping area, which has tall gums that provide plenty of shade, huge fire pits and around 50 acres of manicured grass – kept neat by the wild horses that roam the area. A great spot to stop en route to the camping area is at Griffith Creek lookout, which has stunning views into and across the Boyne Valley.
There are only three roads in and out of Kroombit Tops, plus one loop road to an aeroplane wreck. Heading to the wreckage is as simple as jumping back onto the loop track just 6km from the camping area. It’s a rough 35km loop track, where you really need to knock some air out of the tyres due to the harshness and sharpness of the rocks.
It has been said that Kroombit Tops has some of the most inhospitable mountains around, and as you drive along it’s easy to see why with sheer cliff faces and massive drops either side. Midway along you’ll come to the Bomber Crash Site parking area, where a 400-metre walking track leads to the wreck.
According to experts, the flight crew only had seconds notice that something was amiss, hence why no SOS was sent out, the landing gear was still up and the propellers were at full pitch speed (see Beautiful Betsy below). At the wreck site, the four engines are located about 100 metres from the main wreckage and the intact tail section – the main body exploded – is twisted among the trees. You can also find old instrument gear scattered around.
Upon leaving the crash site the track leads past the Wall camping area, which is 4WD only and one-way, with steep rocky sections leading into camp. The Wall track follows the ridgelines along the western side of the park, where there are plenty of views across sandstone escarpments and deep gorges.
Kroombit is home to nearly 800 different tree species, as well as the critically endangered Kroombit tinker frog – experts say only 300 tinker frogs exist in Kroombit. The one-way loop track eventually joins back up to its starting point and back to camp. From Griffiths Creek camping area the track passes Forestry Barracks Camp, while the 4WD-only Razorback Trail back to Biloela isn’t recommended for trailers due to its steep, narrow sections.
The well-maintained Tableland Track past the Barracks is the track most visitors use, as it wanders past the Calliope Range, with Mount Chapman, Mount Rideout and the impressive Amys Peak in the distance. The road flattens out at Callide Creek, and once out of the park it’s a good run through private stations until bitumen returns at Calliope.
Kroombit is a harsh place, with little traffic and minimal phone reception, so you need to be totally self-sufficient. The park is aimed towards the visitor that is happy to take on the rough stuff, and it demands respect.
Beautiful Betsy
EIGHT crewmen died when Beautiful Betsy crashed on the mountain early one morning in 1945. What happened remains relatively unknown, but investigators have tried to piece the puzzle together.
Beautiful Betsy was an American WWII Liberator bomber which served its time during the war, but after it was found to be unsafe for further missions it was decommissioned for civilian life.
Repainted, it was used to fly throughout Australia, doing what was known as ‘fat-cat’ runs where it would collect fresh produce, ice-cream, alcohol and live animals for drops at Darwin. Named after the wife of the aeroplane’s first pilot, Betsy, it was also used for several parachute training drops.
On the night of February 26, 1945, when it set out from Darwin towards Brisbane, it never made it and was lost for many years. In 1994, when a park ranger was conducting a burn-off in the area, the wreckage was found with all onboard dead.
A team from the USA was sent out to retrieve skeletal remains, along with personal items, military goods and coins. The wreckage was left as it crashed all those years ago as a mark of respect to the eight onboard. Sadly, Flight Officer Cannon was onboard flying to Brisbane for his wedding day in four days’ time, and his best man, Lieutenant Cook, was also onboard.
WHEN THE new Land Rover Defender lands in Australian showrooms in August, it will arrive with a nine-model line-up and a choice of three engines.
That’s just for the five-door 110 wagon, as the short-wheelbase, three-door 90 will come later in the year. Of significance is that the top-of-the-range Defender 110 X P400 costs almost $140, 000, while the entry level Defender D200 is close to half that at $69,990.
MORE DEFENDER NEWS
The features list contains a minefield of options and packages, but here are some key things to consider when choosing the right Defender for you.2020 Land Rover Defender spec highlights
- The two diesel engines use the same 2.0-litre four-cylinder that makes 430Nm from 1400rpm, but the D200 produces 147kW and the D240 177kW.
- The D200 is only available in the entry level Defender, while the D240 is available right up to the First Edition model, but not offered in HSE or X trim levels.
- The petrol engine is Land Rover’s new 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder, which is boosted by both a turbocharger and an electric supercharger in what JLR calls a mild-hybrid system. The P400 engine makes 294kW and 550Nm from 2000rpm.
- The P400 is available in all Defender 110 models except base-spec trim, from the S up to X variants.
- All Defenders come with an eight-speed automatic transmission and full-time 4×4 with high and low range. There is no manual gearbox and no single-range transfer case on offer.
- All Defender 110s come with extensive chassis electronics including stability and traction control, low traction launch, roll stability control, hill descent control, cornering brake control, and Terrain Response.
- Base Defender through to HSE spec all have standard Terrain Response while First Edition and X models get Configurable Terrain Response 2 as standard. TR2 is available on the lower grades as part of a features package.
- All Defender 110s come with height-adjustable air suspension with adaptive dynamics. There is no coil spring 110 model in 2020.
- With the suspension raised the 110 claims 38°, 40° and 28° for approach, departure and ramp-over angles, as well as 900mm of wading depth. The Wading mode in TR2 can extend the suspension a further 70mm if it detects the vehicle is floating during water crossings.
- Wheel choice ranges from 18-inch white steel wheels through to 18-, 19- 20- and 22-inch alloy wheels. 18s can fit on any diesel 110, but the P400 has bigger brakes so 19s are a minimum with the petrol engine.
- Option packs range from Cold Climate and Comfort packages through to Towing and Off Road packs.
- The standard Off Road pack is a $1448 option and gets you the electronic active rear differential, off- road tyres (not available on 22s), a 12-volt power socket in the cargo space, and black roof rails. It is available on base, S, SE and HSE models.
- The Advanced Off Road Capability pack costs $2210 and includes all the kit of the Off Road pack plus Configurable Terrain Response 2 and All Terrain Progress Control; a crawl control-like system that controls vehicle speed at low speeds. Again it is available on base through to HSE 110 models and would be recommended for anyone planning to take their Defender off-road.
- The Comfort and Convenience pack adds LED interior lighting with changeable colours, wireless device charging, a Meridian sound system and a fridge in the centre console.
- Wade-depth sensing, traffic/speed sign recognition, 3D surround cameras, blind spot monitoring, 360-degree parking aid and cruise control are all standard equipment, as is a tyre pressure monitoring system.
- Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Navigation Pro, a 10-inch touchscreen and keyless entry are all standard across the range.
- Seating can be configured for five, six or seven passengers. Two bucket seats are standard in the front, with a centre ‘jump seat’ an $1853 option for three passengers in the front. Front seats go from basic trims right up to 14-way power-adjustable heated and cooled leather jobbies.
- Rear seat options include 40:20:40 split or 60:40 split and can be heated. The third row seat is just for two passengers, and rear air-conditioning is available.
- The only no-cost solid colour is Fuji White, with all the metallic options a $1950 extra. The white roof is only available with Pangea Green or Tasman Blue body colour.
- Defender can be configured with a full glass panorama roof or a unique canvas roll-back roof, which we’re keen to see.
- The winch seen at the front of many of these vehicles is a factory accessory. It’s a Warn Zeon winch, but the winch and mounting kit will be close to $10,000 extra.
So the list of engines, options and packages is extensive and can be intimidating when you look at the full list. An easier way is to have a play on Land Rover’s online configurator to build your own Defender.
We went through the process and came up with our Defender of choice: a 110S D240 in Tasman Blue with a white roof; five seats in Acorn leather; the Country pack; Comfort and Convenience pack; Advanced Off-road Capability package; 18-inch alloy wheels with off-road tyres; expedition roof rack; and a handful of other convenience features. A quick add-up puts this car around $95K price mark, but you wouldn’t expect much change from $100K.
2020 Land Rover Defender prices
D200: $69,990 D240: $75,900 S D240: $83,800 S P400: $95,700 SE D240: $91,300 SE P400: $103,100 HSE P400: $112,900 First Edition D240: $102,500 X P400: $137,100
THERE are plenty of unsubstantiated rumours flying around about what will be powering the next Toyota LandCruiser, even what the 200 Series replacement will be called. Fraser Stronach looks at why the 1VD diesel engine is vital to the LandCruiser’s success.
For want of a better name we’ll call it the 300 Series, the long anticipated but yet to materialise replacement for Toyota’s now long-serving Land Cruiser 200 Series. Toyota may not call it the 300, but we’ll settle on that for now.
Many, including I, thought the 300 would be here by now as Toyota had 300-Series prototypes in Australia being tested as long ago as 2015. Amongst other things they were being benchmarked against the then all-new (aluminium monocoque) Range Rover and Range Rover Sport. By 2017 the 200 was also in its 10th year of production, and 10 years was already stretching the typical lifecycle for the ‘passenger’ LandCruiser models given the 80 Series lasted eight years and the 100 Series nine years.
So why the delay? Put simply the 200 has been selling well enough, nowhere more so than in Australia, which is the third biggest market for the 200 overall and the number one market for the 200 diesel. In fact, despite the 200’s age, Australian sales have strengthened significantly over the last five years, especially since you haven’t been able to buy a Nissan Patrol with a diesel engine.
Meanwhile Toyota is no doubt anxiously looking at where global sentiment is going with regards exhaust emissions, the long-term viability of diesel engines and the idea of ‘electrification’. Toyota has already said it will have ‘electrified’ models right across its entire range of 2WD cars, SUVs and 4x4s by mid-decade, but that doesn’t mean a fully electric 300 by 2025 – that’s a long way off, if ever– but some sort of petrol-electric-hybrid 300 is definitely in the pipeline.
The situation is made complex by the conditions that prevail in different markets. In Australia the 200 is now only offered with the 4.5-litre diesel V8. In the wealthier parts of the Middle East, where most 200s are sold, the preference is for petrol and both the 4.6-litre V8 previously offered here and 5.7-litre V8 from the Lexus LX570. In the USA the 5.7-litre petrol V8 is the only engine available while, notably, the 200 is largely absent from the essentially diesel European market.
Given Australia is the biggest single market for the diesel 200, that puts us in a unique place with regards what’s going to happen with the 300, at least in terms of diesel engines. Right now the Australian federal government is also deciding where it wants to go with future vehicle emissions, notably the timing of the introduction of Euro 6. It has already delayed the introduction of Euro 6 fuel standards until 2027 and without Euro 6 fuel it’s harder to achieve Euro 6 exhaust standards. A change of government in Canberra could however change that.
Right now Euro 5 is in play, which the 200’s V8 diesel currently meets thanks to its diesel particulate filter (DPF) and other changes introduced in late-2015. But this engine won’t meet Euro 6 without the addition of Selective Catalytic Reduction (aka AdBlue) – at the very least – so if it’s to be employed in the 300 in Australia in its present form, Toyota needs to move before the federal government introduces Euro 6.
If the introduction of Euro 6 follows the pattern of the introduction of Euro 5, 4, etc., it will be a two-staged affair. A initial date will be set where all, all-new-design models have to comply and then there will be second date (a year or two down the track) where all models, whether newly introduced or existing, will have to comply. If Toyota can upgrade the diesel V8 to Euro 6, which should be possible though not simple, it would then be future-proofed well into the decade, perhaps even longer.
Some have suggested the 300 will get a new-generation diesel engine, possibly a V6, or even a diesel-electric hybrid powertrain, but both seem like fanciful thinking.
Sometime down the track we will however see a petrol-electric hybrid 300 in Australia, where the petrol engine will most likely be a mid-sized V6 with low-pressure forced aspiration via turbocharging or supercharging (perhaps even electric supercharging), variable valve lift, variable valve timing and direct cylinder injection.
Is Australia ready to accept a petrol-engined LandCruiser again? Well, sooner or later we probably won’t have any choice.
LAND Rover officially launched the all-new Land Rover L663 Defender earlier this year on Namibia’s wild west coast, and the scenery was truly epic.
We were lucky enough to take the trip to Africa to drive the Defender on some of the country’s challenging tracks and trails including Van Zyl’s Pass, a 600-metre descent on rocky terrain.
MORE DEFENDER NEWS
It was here where we put the Defenderu2019s Terrain Response 2 system and eight-speed automatic transmission to the test, both standard across the range.There are three engine variants available across the range: two versions of the 177kW/ 430Nm 2.0-litre diesel for the D200 and D240, and a 294kW/550Nm 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbocharged petrol for the P400.
The Defender has a payload of 900kg and a towing capacity of 3500kg.
The L663 Defender will arrive in Australia in August this year. Until then, click through the above gallery to get your Defender fix.