Thread: OKA, does anyone know what happened?

Dean,

...There is absolutely no comparison between an OKA's handling on highway or off road and that of a sixty series or a series LR, forward control or ...."

My apologies, I was comparing the differant types of ride you experience when seated between the axles (leaf-sprung 4WD) compared with the preferable IMHO ride enjoyed when seated above or in front of the front axle.

If you have to know, it was a very old Nissan, compared with a Jap imported diesel 4WD, torsion front and ELLIPTICALS on the rear.

The Nissan with it's crude cart-springs and rock-solid shockers merely emphasised the motion.... that is, a pitch UP of the front, followed by a similar pitch UP as the rear axle hits the same bump. Net effect is, inertia makes the head snap forward...the snaps it backwards.

With a Forward control the driver is pushed UP... only. There is a slight rotation when the rear axle lifts up over the same bump... but the lever (chassis) is so long, that the effect on the driver is minimal.
Indeed, the natural reaction to being forced UP over a bump, is for the driver to lean or tense muscles to pull the head fractionally 'forward'. Only a gnat's hair, but enough to automatically counter the tiny 'head-back' snap induced by the car's rear going UP.

A long - winded way of saying that a FC gives the front occupants a nicer ride. - A properly sprung FC makes it even nicer, and a heavier one nicer still.
- Which you've noticed...

In a bus, with the front axle a few metres behind the driver....the ride is heavenly, whatever the springs are !

Damn I didn't know they had stopped production. Does anyone know if the NT model actually went into production?

Originally Posted by blitz

Damn I didn't know they had stopped production. Does anyone know if the NT model actually went into production?

Yes. There's at least 14 of them out there.



This one was in Innamincka October last year.


Deano

Not all buses have a nice ride....we used to have one at work we called the bone shaker....nobody cried when it got sold!!!

I'm saving up for one of these Home- Earth Cruiser Vehicle | Luxury overland vehicles | Comfortable Luxury Travel

Love the Oka, pity they didnt sell like hotcakes so that us mere mortals might have the chance of buying one. For 1/4 the price i could import a fully restored FC101.

Originally Posted by Discomark

I'm saving up for one of these Home- Earth Cruiser Vehicle | Luxury overland vehicles | Comfortable Luxury Travel

I saw a very similar set up to this in Alice Springs a couple of years ago. The guy had just come via the western deserts and reported a very rough ride with some (minimal) camper damage. I think that if you're going to invest in an off-road truck camper, then a coil sprung unimog will serve you better than any fancy box on cart springs.

Originally Posted by Discomark

I'm saving up for one of these Home- Earth Cruiser Vehicle | Luxury overland vehicles | Comfortable Luxury Travel

I'm with you. Having driven one, I thought it was awesome and can be driven on a normal licence which is fantastic for husband and wife teams.

In reality it is not much bigger than a 130 or a Cruiser ute in length and width (minus the mirrors!)but higher.