harsh african test drive

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seraphin

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57
Location
South Africa
took my td4 (2005) for a 4 hour test drive through THICK beachsand trails up along the eastern shore of lake sibaya. my pics don't show the difficult areas, as i was maybe too stressed at those stages to think about photography! the car handled awesomely well, and i didn't get stuck once. i passed a 4x2 difflock truck which had got stuck in the heavy sand, and then later encountered (head-on) a massive ford F-series with 6 wheels, we struggled to get past each other, i steered heavily into the thorn bushes (ouch paintwork) on the one side and he on the other. i asked him if he had 4-wheel drive, and he boasted "no i have 6 wheel drive hahaha". i managed to pull through the thick sand easily, and he got stuck, digging himself deeper and deeper into the sand. he didn't seem interested in my offers for assistance.

i was driving mostly at 20mph in 2nd gear, for a few hours, in almost 40 degree heat, with aircon of course. up and down some pretty steep hills too. what a dream car to drive. only wish it was easier to modify the drivers seat - i'm 6'2" and too tall for the seat.

here are a couple of photos of the area.....
 

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African greenlaning, no words can describe my envy! Post these pics on the greenlaning freelander thread :)!

Your hippo held up well, nice to see a working freelander being used the way it was intended. They seem very adept at not getting stuck, have you seen Hippo's videos of his FL breezing through an axle twister while defenders and discos get well and trully stuck?
 
i haven't, digby. been to a couple of car upholsterers though, and considered cutting the seat foam lower, but will only gain an extra inch at best. still not enough. think it's a cutting/welding job if you're serious about it.
 
took my td4 (2005) for a 4 hour test drive through THICK beachsand trails up along the eastern shore of lake sibaya. my pics don't show the difficult areas, as i was maybe too stressed at those stages to think about photography! the car handled awesomely well, and i didn't get stuck once. i passed a 4x2 difflock truck which had got stuck in the heavy sand, and then later encountered (head-on) a massive ford F-series with 6 wheels, we struggled to get past each other, i steered heavily into the thorn bushes (ouch paintwork) on the one side and he on the other. i asked him if he had 4-wheel drive, and he boasted "no i have 6 wheel drive hahaha". i managed to pull through the thick sand easily, and he got stuck, digging himself deeper and deeper into the sand. he didn't seem interested in my offers for assistance.

i was driving mostly at 20mph in 2nd gear, for a few hours, in almost 40 degree heat, with aircon of course. up and down some pretty steep hills too. what a dream car to drive. only wish it was easier to modify the drivers seat - i'm 6'2" and too tall for the seat.

here are a couple of photos of the area.....

Nice - sounds as though I'd need to get the old air con fixed!!:)
 
Nice................

How did you modify the drivers seat ??? I have the same problem as you

Odd ... I'm 6'3" and don't find the seat on my Td4 a problem at all (except the sun visor blocks my vision entirely, but I haven't had much cause to use that recently!). Maybe I have longer legs and a shorter back than you guys!
 
Tyres are Yokohama Geolander H/T-S G051. (16"). Quite impressed with their performance in beach sand, since they are highway tyres, not all-terrain.
 
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