A quick and positive report on my recent trip ( returned Friday the 17th June ) to the SIMPSON DESERT.
A 6200 km round trip with 3 other 4wd's ( patrol ute , Tojo 78series ute and late model Triton Ute ) with 7 dirt bikes , and my 08 Puma SVX. Started in Melbourne and drove to Port Augusta and then to Mount Dare, then to Mount Dare , crossed the Simpson ( as far as we could get i.e. no further then Poepels Corner as Birdsville side still under water and closed) , then up the Hay River track to meet Batten Hill Camp then PLenty highway , then back to alice and then dow the Finke Track (Day after the race ). Back to Mt Dare ( pick up trailers and load bikes ) then home to Melbourne.
Only issues were loose bonnet hinges ( no loctite or spring washers to hold Bonnet on ) replaced lost bolts with spares we had ( lucky ) and ripped a couple of Mudflaps off. That was the only issues I had ! the car drove perfectly all the way , and didnt miss a beat.
Great trip all in all and , and really happy with Puma reliability. Cant fault it. Only thing I would complain about is the dust and sand ingestion , wow , must have washed half the desert ou of it today !
Forgot to mention that the Factory GG tires performed well and no flats or any siginificant wear at all.
So for those of you wondering if your factory tires are up to a task such as the Simpson /Hay river /Oodnadatta track etc , id say yes they were. of course , some people have good and bad luck. There were two flats in my group both on Cooper St's. Nail and broken bead.
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