When Liam folded out his hard-earned cash on this 2024 LandCruiser 79, he had a clear idea of where he wanted to go with his new purchase. He was going up, up in every way, and in the ensuing months the Cruiser grew into the monster truck you see here.

The Cruiser was one of the last 1VD V8-powered examples to arrive before Toyota phased that engine out of production, and Liam knew he was going to need all of that V8 grit and more to propel the rig he had planned. But there was plenty of work to be done before he was able to drive and enjoy it.

Legal build planning (SSM setup)

With his high-riding plans, Liam wanted this build to be stunning but also legal, and to do that the key engineering work had to be completed before the vehicle was first registered.

This is known as the SSM (Second Stage Manufacturer) scheme, and it allows vehicles to be modified with pre-approved equipment or kits so that the end result is legal in all states of Australia, with the vehicle plated as such to avoid any hassles with the authorities.

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Suspension and driveline transformation

To get the Cruiser up in the clouds and stay on the right side of the law, Liam turned to the Superior Engineering catalogue, specifically Superior’s SSM-approved coil rear conversion, 4-inch lift and remote reservoir suspension setup.

The Superior rear end starts with a fabricated diamond diff housing with mounts for the trailing arms. The housing is also wider than the factory unit to resolve the difference between the front and rear wheel tracks, and comes with chromoly axles to suit. The factory Toyota rear diff lock is retained in the new housing.

The coil conversion kit includes forward mounts on the chassis for the arms, as well as locations for the coil springs. This is made possible with a bolt-in section added to the chassis, with it and the arms all part of the Superior Engineering kit.

For Liam’s Cruiser, the team fitted Superior’s 2.0 remote reservoir shocks at the rear. Another set of 2.0s went in up front, along with a pair of Superior’s Hyper-Flex radius arms and 4-inch lifted coil springs. The fit-out on Liam’s Cruiser was all done by the team at The 4WD Shed in the Melbourne suburb of Bayswater.

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Wheels, armour and touring setup

Contributing to the raised ride height is a set of 37-inch Yokohama muddies mounted on 17-inch KMC Grenade alloys that certainly look the part.

The front bumper shows more of the great work from Superior Engineering, and it houses a Runva 11XP winch for recovery duties. At the other end of the Cruiser is a tray and canopy from Reds Fabrications. Liam was still working on the inside of the canopy when we photographed it, but it will eventually house all of his camping and touring kit. A CSS roof-topper sits atop the canopy.

A TAG towbar with recovery points is at the rear and, in between it and the tray, Liam has made a mount for his MAXTRAX where they are easy to access when needed and out of the way at other times.

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Power, tuning and final touches

To help move the weight and turn the big tyres, the team at BSC Performance carried out a dyno run and flash tune on the 4.5-litre V8 engine, so it now makes around 660Nm and 200kW at the treads.

Helping it breathe is a five-inch snorkel from Meredith Metal Works and a four-inch stainless steel exhaust system. To harness the grunt through to the factory five-speed manual ’box, an Xtreme Outback 1600Nm heavy-duty clutch was fitted, as we all know those OE Toyota clutches don’t like the extra torque, especially when you’re trying to turn massive 37-inch tyres.

Liam says he’ll be looking for more grunt from the engine as he continues to sort out the build and gets a feel for it out on the tracks. You can follow his exploits on Instagram at Aussies Most Lifted 79 Build (↗).

Liam thanks all of those who have helped with the build, including The 4WD Shed, Superior Engineering, HD Automotive, Black Ops Off-Road and Groundswell Wash for exterior and interior detailing products.

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Aftermarket products and upgrades

  • Superior Engineering SSM-approved coil rear conversion kit
  • Superior Engineering 4-inch lift suspension setup
  • Superior Engineering fabricated diamond rear diff housing
  • Superior Engineering chromoly rear axles
  • Retained Toyota rear diff lock (integrated into upgraded housing)
  • Superior Engineering chassis-mounted coil conversion hardware (forward arm mounts + coil mounts)
  • Superior Engineering 2.0 remote reservoir rear shocks
  • Superior Engineering 2.0 remote reservoir front shocks
  • Superior Engineering Hyper-Flex radius arms
  • Four-inch lifted coil springs
  • The 4WD Shed full fitment and build installation
  • 37-inch Yokohama mud terrain tyres
  • 17-inch KMC Grenade alloy wheels
  • Superior Engineering front bumper
  • Runva 11XP winch
  • Reds Fabrications tray and canopy
  • CSS roof-top canopy/topper
  • TAG towbar with recovery points
  • MAXTRAX recovery board mount system
  • BSC Performance dyno tune and ECU flash tune (4.5L V8)
  • Meredith Metal Works five-inch snorkel
  • Four-inch stainless steel exhaust system
  • Xtreme Outback 1600Nm heavy-duty clutch
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