WE were joined by a very special guest during our recent crossing of the Simpson Desert: the G-Father, Erwin Wonisch.

Erwin has worked on the G-Wagen since 1975, before the first production vehicle was revealed in 1979.

In the ’70s, Erwin worked in the workshop at Steyr-Daimler-Puch in Graz, Austria, where the G-Wagen was being developed and is still made to this day. In 1975 he moved to the engineering team developing the prototypes.

“I drove the fourth and fifth prototypes,” Erwin recalled. “And I drove the first production one.” That first G-Wagen was a soft-top 460 model and was meant to be delivered to the Shah of Persia.

“The idea [for the G-Wagen] was from the Jeep,” Erwin explained. “The Shah of Persia wanted a Jeep, but [as a Mercedes-Benz customer] he wanted a Jeep from Mercedes.” Unfortunately for the Shah, by the time that first G rolled off the line in ’79, he had been overthrown by Islamists and been forced to flee into exile.

“The first big customer for the G was the Argentinian army,” Erwin said. The Argies ordered 4000 of the robust vehicles.

The G-Wagen has become the vehicle of choice for militaries around the world, including the Australian Defence Force in recent years. A big part of Erwin’s job as G-Wagen driver is showing the vehicle to the military personnel, training them and training the local trainers. The job takes him around the world, for cold-weather testing in Sweden, training in South America and the Middle East, and hot-weather testing in North Africa.

Mercedes-Benz poached Erwin from Steyr-Daimler-Puch eight years ago – “I was costing Mercedes too much to hire,” he said of the move – but his role with G-Wagen remains very similar. He was with us on the Canning Stock Route when the G returned here in 2011, and there have been further trips for training and development. This was his fifth visit to Australia and we don’t think it will be Erwin’s last.

Erwin also gets to show off the vehicles he calls ‘my babies’ for the media. He was involved in the filming for Top Gear when they took the G63 AMG 6×6 through a water park in Dubai, and he was behind the wheel for the video clip of the G500 4×4² in Chile. He was also involved in the development of these vehicles as well as other special vehicles such as the LAPV 5.4 and 6.1, which we sampled here a few years back.

From the original G460 through to the current 461 and 463 models and the special vehicles, there isn’t a G-Wagen that Erwin hasn’t been involved with or driven. There wouldn’t be another person on the planet who knows the G-Wagen better than he does. And, even after more than 40 years on the product, he isn’t slowing down.

2018 will see the release of a new 463 G-Wagen, which will be the first to do away with the iconic live axles front and rear and have independent front suspension, plus a raft of new technologies. Of course, Erwin has been driving it already and will be there for the launch.

Erwin called it “a new generation. It is still 463 but is a different car. I have driven it a lot and it is still in engineering and development.”

The purists will be happy to know that Erwin assured us that there will still be a 461 with live axles, but, without revealing too much, he also stated that the new car is more capable off-road. It will be a vehicle to watch out for and we hope to see Erwin there to show us its abilities.

WE’VE spent the last few days wandering the grand halls of the SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Here’s a selection of some of the tastiest 4WDs on display this year.

Headlining this batch are a couple of immaculate FJ40 Cruisers and an assortment of wild Jeeps. Enjoy!

WHERE the bloody hell has this year gone?

The December issue is packed full of off-road, mud-slinging goodness, including a rough-road first drive of the Valentino Rossi-approved VR46 Ford Ranger.

We also bookend the new Discovery with Toyota’s LC200 and Prado 150. Plus, we take a look at a DIY-built RG Colorado and trace the Madigan Line with Denis Bartell.

It wouldn’t be a December issue without our Xmas Gift Guide, with a bunch of pressie ideas from the best in the aftermarket industry.

It’s also Custom 4X4 Of The Year time – we’ve cut the field back to 12, now it’s time to vote for a winner.

Get your copy of 4X4 Australia from newsagents or by subscribing to 4X4 Australia in electronic or print format.

What you’ll get this month:

CUSTOM RG COLORADO DIY Colorado is the ultimate adventurer’s toy.

DISCOVERY V 200 SERIES V PRADO 150 Cutting-edge Disco fronts up against Toyota’s Prado and 200 Series workhorses.

VR46 FORD RANGER Valentino Rossi-approved Ranger adds MotoGP flair to 4×4 market.

2017 CUSTOM 4X4 OF THE YEAR Twelve wildly modified 4x4s – and one 6×6 – have made the shortlist this year. Get voting!

MADIGAN LINE WITH DENIS BARTELL, NT Tracing the Madigan Line with the legend who did it 40 years earlier.

ALPANA STATION, SA One of the best station stays in South Australia’s Flinders Ranges.

SNORKEL BUYERS’ GUIDE Chatting to the experts about why a quality snorkel is a must-have accessory.

SAFARI ARMAX SNORKEL: INSTALLATION Troopy gets a Safari Armax snorkel to free up its induction.

2017 XMAS GIFT GUIDE Gift ideas for your four-wheelin’ friends and family.

ROTATING TYRES Regular tyre rotation should be part of a 4WDer’s routine.

THE REST WE ducked down to Safari HQ to check out the brand’s game-changing Armax Performance ECU. Plus, we put Redarc’s BCDC1240 D battery charger to the test.

Readers’ Rigs includes an ’89 GQ Patrol, a ’99 XJ Cherokee and a 2014 JKU Wrangler.

This month, Deano reckons attitudes towards 4WDers are changing, Ron reminisces a Nullarbor expedition, Fraser praises rubber, and Roothy heads cross-country in Milo to attend a wedding. Plus, Viv whips up her last Camp Cooking column.

The December issue of 4X4 Australia is in stores Thursday, November 2.

Get the latest info and all things 4X4 Australia by signing up to our newsletter.

AUSTRALIAN company Piranha Off Road is best known as the manufacturer of dual battery systems and other 4WD-related products, but not everyone might know that it also installs the products it manufactures, as well as many other accessories.

Celebrating 30 years in the 4WD industry, Piranha offers professional fitting and installation for all manner of electrical systems, so now’s the perfect time to get your fourby ready for the towing season.

Piranha employs experienced and qualified auto-electrical technicians to professionally install dual battery systems, for example, which ensures complete safety when dealing with today’s modern electrical systems.

Piranha Off Road in Boronia, east of Melbourne, provides professional installation of brake units, driving lights, dual battery trays, rear work lights, and Anderson plug kits for cars and camper trailers.

Electric brake units will cost you $595 supplied and fitted. For full pricing on all installation services provided, head online to www.piranhaoffroad.com.au or give them a bell on (03) 9762 1200.

Piranha’s dual battery complete system is covered by a two-year warranty, but when fitted by Piranha it has a five-year warranty. All other work is guaranteed.

Get a job done properly the first time, and you’ll save in the long run!

COMING from a racing background, I was pretty excited to fit a set of the new Mickey Thompson Deegan 38s – named after legendary MotoX, RallyX and off-road racing champion Brian Deegan – to my two-door Series 1 Land Rover Discovery.

Rolling a set of Deegans on my old Disco was never going to turn it into a racing truck, but I needed something less aggressive than the mud terrains I was replacing. The new rubber needed to be quieter for long-distance tarmac driving, and they needed to grip in the dirt when in low range.

Mickey Thompson’s all-terrain Deegan 38 seemed to be the right fit, with its tough, high-tensile two-ply body cord sidewalls for increased durability, deep, open-void tread pattern, and angled shoulder scallops with a two-pitched side-biter pattern for off-road traction.

The tall, square-edged (with minimal sidewall) construction gives the Deegans a race-ready and modern style, and they’d be a pretty good look on something like a modern Ranger, Mazda BT-50 or Toyota Hilux – they perked up my old bus.

The first thing I noticed on-road was how quiet and smooth these tyres are – my old Disco is pretty loose, but it never felt so smooth or tracked so straight. I was also surprised by how well they cornered in the wet. The Disco is a pre-swaybar model, so I was able to put that to good test and never lost traction, even under brakes.

Off-road, the deep tread holds well and, even at road pressure, I was able to get the tyres to bag due to the square edges. Even though I’m running the standard LT225/75 R16 size, it feels like I’m running a much wider tyre due to the tread running edge to edge.

And, with a silica-reinforced compound, tread durability seems great – even after a couple of runs up the challenging Rocky Track in Toolangi, Victoria, there were no cuts or chips.

The square edges and the minimal-but-offset sidewall tread-blocks were able to extract me from clay, muddy ruts on my most recent fishing trip, and with a little squirt of the throttle I was able to clear the mud from the deep tread. I’m looking forward to putting the Deegans to the test on some upcoming longer trips.

The silica-reinforced tread compound should see good longevity, but I’m just happy to have a smoother, quieter and easier-to-handle old truck.

AVAILABLE FROM: mickeythompsontires.com.au RRP: N/A WE SAY: Worthy of the Deegan name.

AUSTRALIAN aftermarket company EFS has expanded its range of bullbars to include the new EFS Adventure Series 2 bullbar.

In July this year, EFS – originally an off-road suspension company – announced it was expanding into general 4×4 accessories, with the release of its Adventure Series barwork (this included the rear bar), and an electric winch.

The all-new Adventure Series 2 bullbar features new stylish design features with an embossed EFS logo in the plastic bumperettes, as well as newly designed steel light buckets (not plastic) for improved durability.

The winch-ready Series 2 bar features recessed ports for easier access to winch clutch controls. Made using a 63mm tube and steel infill trims, the bullbar is powdercoated in EFS’s Enduracoat finish.

The Adventure Series accessories range, designed and developed in Australia to survive the punishing outback, is available for Isuzu D-Max (2016+), Mitsubishi Triton (2015+), Nissan NP300 (current), Toyota Hilux (revo 2015+), Toyota LC200 Series (2016+), and VW Amarok (2017+).

The all-new EFS Adventure Series 2 bullbar will ask for $1890 and will be available late in December, 2017.

Check out the EFS Adventure Series range at: www.efs4wd.com.au or call 1300 EFS 4WD.

THE wait is over, as the first official photos of the 2018 Jeep Wrangler have been released by FCA.

All of the intricate details are still unknown, but all will be revealed on November 29 at the Los Angeles Auto Show.

What we do know is that the design of the new Wrangler is touted as modern but one that will stay true to the original. It’s also been slated to run advanced fuel-efficient powertrains, more open-air options, and more safety features and advanced technology than ever before.

Expected here late in 2018, the Wrangler will retain a dual-range transfer case, body-on-frame chassis and live-locking axles front and rear.

In a press statement, FCA said: “The all-new Wrangler’s unique design includes an instantly recognisable keystone-shaped grille, iconic round headlamps and square tail-lamps, improved aerodynamics, a convenient fold-down windshield for off-road purists, even more open-air freedom, and dozens of different door, top and windshield combinations”.

The 2018 Jeep Wrangler range is expected to receive a four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine option, as well as the traditional petrol V6 and a V6 diesel engine from VM Motori. An eight-speed automatic transmission is also slated for inclusion.

WE’VE flown across the Pacific, saddled up an F-150, and driven from California to Vegas for the annual SEMA show.

SEMA is not only the home to some of the world’s wildest custom machines, but the major players of the aftermarket industry descend on the city’s bright lights each and every year.

Stay tuned to 4X4 Australia for full coverage of this year’s event, where we’ll chat to the movers and shakers of the industry, as well as bring you up to date with all of the whacky and wonderful rigs and gear.

To kick things off, here’s a selection of wild rides… and that’s just what’s on display in the outdoors area.

THE LDV T60 has been awarded a five-star safety rating by independent safety authority, ANCAP.

The budget-priced 4WD received an overall score of 35.46 out of 37, with a perfect score in the side-impact test (16 out of 16). It received a score of 14.46 out of 16 for the frontal offset test.

“The LDV T60 dual cab enters the Australasian market this week with the five-star rating it needs to gain sales traction in the highly competitive utility segment,” ANCAP Chief Executive Officer, Mr James Goodwin said. “This broadens the segment even further with added choice for safety-conscious consumers using their ute for work and weekends.”

Blind Spot Monitoring is standard across the T60 range, as are dual frontal, side chest and side head-protecting airbags.

“The T60 performed well in our crash tests, although like all light commercial utes currently rated, it lacks autonomous emergency braking,” Mr Goodwin added.

The Chinese-made dual-cab will be available in two trim levels: the Pro is designed as a working ute, with a heavy-duty suspension set-up; the Luxe is aimed at the recreational market, with softer suspension and the addition of various interior niceties.

LDV Automotive’s General Manager, Dinesh Chinnappa, said: “The LDV T60 will transform the position of LDV in the Australian market, not just in terms of sales volume, but also geographically.”

We’ll have a yarn with our thoughts on the LDV T60 soon, after we’ve driven it at its local launch. So keep an eye out.

PRICING

SCOTT Cam’s love affair with the Aussie bush started when he left home on an eight-year adventure at the age of 23, just after finishing his carpentry apprenticeship.

This article was first published in 4×4 Australia’s June 2012 issue.

“I went around Australia in an old Nissan Patrol G60,” Scott remembers. “It was a three-speed with a top speed of about 80 clicks, and I travelled around Australia for about eight years, just cruising and working and driving, stopping in one place for three or four months, or a year, and swagging all the way. I had a great time, just living the life.”

Scott didn’t have much of a route plan.

“I just followed my nose. Originally I went over to Western Australia to watch the America’s Cup. So I did the Nullarbor and swagged along the way, and I ended up detouring here and there. I went all the way up the west coast, and then came back down about three-quarters of the way, and then made my way inland.

“I didn’t take any particular route; I worked in the bush, I heard about work here and there and I went there.” Scott was inspired to embark on his journey of discovery by the adventures of his older brother, with whom he had done his apprenticeship.

“My brother travelled around Australia with two mates in an old Series II Land Rover when I was 15. We grew up with Land Rovers. I had a 1972 model Series II ute. [My brother’s] might have been a bit older than that… this was in 1977, and he wouldn’t have bought a new one.

“When he went around Australia, I was so inspired by that. I tried to smuggle myself into the back of the vehicle… I had to go back to school, but as soon as I was able to I got a vehicle and off I went.”

Scott had that G60 Patrol for the whole eight years away. “We used to swag on the beach for a month at a time. I made friends and we’d find a little spot and set up camp, and then go fishing off the beach… we’d be eating fresh snapper and all that.”

It wasn’t all just lazing around though. “I worked and I had good jobs and I had bad jobs: I was boat building, I was maintenance manager of resorts, I was doing all sorts of things, working on cattle stations and working on sheep stations. I love the bush and so I just had a great time.

“I’ve just about been all over Australia, because I’ve crisscrossed the country. I’ve done the Simpson, I’ve done the Stony, Camerons Corner, Birdsville, Oodnadatta Track, I’ve done all that – but I’ve never been to Tasmania, would you believe?”

Scott learnt many lessons on the road over the eight years before he returned to Sydney, but he says one thing stands out as the most important. “Without a doubt, be prepared for anything. Tow a trailer with preparation in it. If you think you’re not going to get three flat tyres, you’re wrong. You’ll get three flat tyres.

“When I was a kid I saw [Australian artist and TV adventurer] Jack Absalom; I used to watch his TV show. Anyway, I was driving in the middle of the dunes in northern Western Australia – and you know what it’s like in that country up there, there are sand dunes and there’s nothing else – and then the vehicle just stopped dead in the middle of the dunes.

“We worked out it wasn’t an electrical problem, and [eventually] discovered it was fuel. I said, ‘I reckon the fuel pump has s**t itself’. So I remembered when I was 10 years old I’d seen Jack Absalom gravity feed the fuel pump.

“I was towing a boat at the time, and I had roof-racks – big cage racks over the top of the fourby. I put a jerry can on the roof, pulled the fuel hose off the boat, and stuck it in the top of the jerry with rags wedging it in, and then ran the fuel line down with the hand pump – you know, the bubble pump – into the side of the bonnet straight into the carbie.

“We pumped it to get it going, to prime it, and it turned over and… it started!

I could not believe that it started! Once we got it going – and the line was primed – it just gravity fed. We did 600 kays, just changing over the jerry cans. That was one of those million-to-one shots.”

These days Scott drives something a little more comfortable than a G60 Patrol, but his Lexus LX470 isn’t merely a luxury wagon; it’s been transformed into a dual-cab chassis.

“I’ve had it about five years now. I bought it standard and then got someone to do the bodywork for me. Then I put on the tray and did the timber work on the sides. It’s been a great vehicle because I go to the bush a lot and I tow a bit. So I needed a big V8 with plenty of room for the kids and all the stuff I’ve got.

“I’ve got a big box trailer with a lot of gear in it, and a couple of motorbikes and things like that. When I go to my farm in Mudgee, and I’ve got the ute full and the box trailer reasonably full, and you’re going up hills like Mount Victoria, the old Lexus struggles with it sometimes.”

That old farm in Mudgee is where Scott and his family get away from the hustle and bustle of living in Sydney.

“That’s why I’ve got the place at Mudgee,” Scott says. “My grandfather had a 50-acre place where we used to go and just hang out. To me it was 50,000 acres, because I was a kid, and so I said to my wife – we didn’t have any money at the time – we’ve got to get ourselves a bush property, so we can go and swag and take the kids to the bush and get a fire going.

“I did that when my [first] son was about two. As I say, we had no money, and so I begged, borrowed and stole, got a bit of money from my job, borrowed some money from the bank, and I bought a little block at Mudgee – 135 acres for $30 grand – which is fantastic.

“It’s a s**t block, but I bought the joint across the road seven years ago, a much bigger place, a 1000 acres with a house on it, and it’s a nice little property. It’s got a lot of mountains and four-wheel drive tracks and bush and a lake…

“I don’t get the chance to go on big drives, but we do go out to the bush a fair bit. We go down the south coast [NSW] and we swag and camp down there, and we do a bit of beach fishing.

“When we’re at Mudgee for, say, three weeks, then we’ll go on an adventure from there. We’ll take off and maybe go overnight and we’ll drive west to various places. You know, we might drive to Dubbo and go to the zoo, or go to Wellington Caves or drive on further and keep going.”

Scott’s a Toyota man through and through. He has an old LandCruiser ute, kitted out with bar, winch and UHF, and an unregistered HiLux on his property that’s about to click more than half-a-million kays. But when the Lexus is retired, Scott says he’s considering a switch of brands.

“I’m looking at turning [the LX470] over at the end of the year and I’m looking at getting a Dodge Ram… the 6.7-litre turbo-diesel,” he says. “I need a good towing capacity, and that’s got a great towing capacity, as well as a great payload – a tonne, I think.”

If he does get the Ram, one of the first places it’s likely to journey to is Tassie.

“We planned to do a trip to Tassie, and I was working as a chippy at the time, I had my own business for 25 years, and I had some dramas with the job we were doing and we had to give the trip away to my wife’s brother and his wife. We paid for it and everything. That was about 10 or 15 years ago and I’ve never done it since.”