Those following our Operation 200 series will know we have been travelling around the country with our 200 Series LandCruiser towing a 3200kg offroad van.
Our motivation in taking on the project was to ensure the vehicle was safe, legal and practical. We started with a Tough Dog GVM upgrade that allowed us to install useful items like our MSA drawer system, a 60L myCOOLMAN freezer, Ironman bullbar and roof rack, Redarc battery and inverter and a set of Monster alloy wheels shod with Yokohama X-AT GO16 tyres and a bunch of vital accessories.
LOCKING IT DOWN
All the changes we've installed have made the Toyota a better travelling companion and allowed us to carry all the gear and food we needed for remote travel, but the extra weight comes at a price when you reach the bowser. And out in the middle of everywhere, we found diesel costs up to $3.40 a litre, and we were guzzling it down like a thirsty camel. Typical calculations were 25L/100km on many legs over unsealed roads. In windy conditions, we saw 28L/100km, which makes it hard to calculate fuel range over longer distances between pumps.
Under most conditions, we drive in S4, which is direct drive on the 200 Series. But it was rare for the box to lock into gear where revs dropped into a
