Keithys P38 Cape Trip update

[Keithy P38]

Hey everyone!

Made it to Mossman yesterday, easy highway drive and about 420km all up.

Weighing in at a nudge over 3t I averaged 14.12L/100km at 100km where traffic allowed (that figure is GPS and fuel bowser numbers). Not bad considering I have a foxwing awning and oztent on the roof.

Have had no signs of welch plug trouble!

Will update again when I have reception!

Cheers
Keithy

[finallyrangie]

Good on you mate, living the dream, very impressive fuel figures, hope you have a good trip.

[TheTree]

Keith

Looking forward to following your progress, best of luck :D

Steve

[mtb_gary]

Keithy

Enjoy your trip up the cape. All your bad luck is behind you now. Drive safe and keep the shiny side pointing up :)

Gary

[Keithy P38]

Thanks guys!

We travelled the Bloomfield track yesterday, very rough going! Ended up at the lions den overnight (beaut counter meals there)! We are currently in cooktown fueling up (just because), off to Laura via Battlecamp rd today.

No issues with the P38 at all, hasn't used a drop of coolant or oil.

Cheers
Keithy

[Keithy P38]

Well here I sit on the beach at Punsand Bay (the tip of oz)! It is day 9 of our trip now and what a beaut trip it has been!

We travelled through Lakefield National Park up to Princess Charlotte Bay, had some very close encounters with a 4m salty, we travelled the Telegraph Track (over 2 1/2 days). It was very rough, none of the water crossings gave any grief for our convoy of 2, however, a few Nissans put engine fans through radiators and a brand new triton drowned at Nolan's Brook (Bridge Creek). I used the tarp and forded every crossing without drama.

The developmental road is quite corrugated but nothing in the P38 has rattled loose at all!

It has developed the nickname "cow bell" as any high foliage that hits the snorkel makes a cow bell ding as it goes past!

Off to cook tea now, will update again after the frenchmans track!

Cheers
Keithy

[Keithy P38]

It's that time again - not without drama, but not P38 drama!

We left Punsand Bay a few days ago (I've lost track of what day and date it is!), travelled the bypass road around the tele track. I would strongly advise against taking the northern bypass road as the corrugations are bigger than Woolies shopping car park speed humps.
My mate in the classic was traveling along the table drains at 30kmh for most of it and I simply overtook him and sat at 85kmh on the corrugations. God bless airbags - still, take the northern section of the tele track both north and south and save yourself the bounce!

The southern bypass is a smooth dirt highway. The first 20km are bitumen, the next 20km is a bit hit-n-miss and the last 80km odd is 100kmh and great!

We pulled up at Bramwell Junction for the night then headed south to begin the Frenchmans track. 5km before the turn off the classic lost his front driveshaft (bolts had snapped), we spent some time putting it back together and got down to driving again.

About 10km into the Frenchmans, we pulled up to air down and noticed oil under the classic! Luckily I had a spare oil filter in my kit, there was a hole in his oil filter, so he put my (only) spare one on and borrowed some oil too, then we were off again.

The Frenchmans is slow, not hard in my books, just slow. Crossing the Wenlock was easy, just a matter of picking the right line. More slow going and eventually you get to the Pascoe River crossing (we had a bt50 join us for the Frenchmans by the way, he was going to do it alone), a slippery walk down to the river had me quivering! The water was bonnet depth which I didn't mind, it was the rocky base and the fact you had to idle across in low 1st that had me worried.

We packed heaps of rocks on the northern bank as there was an ifs 100series with camper trailer on the south blocking our way so we figured we'd hurry his progress up. He decided against crossing, but then had the hour long task of reversing the camper trailer back up the bank (which requires a good dab of traction control to drive up forward with no trailer on its own).

Once he moved we crossed slowly and without drama. I should add, the only time on this trip that I've used my locker was at Palm Creek on the tele track, have not touched it otherwise.

We finished Frenchmans and camped on the Wenlock river.

Next day we were planning on getting to cooktown so we could do the CREB on the way back. I passed another P38 just south of Coen (this is yesterday by the way). Got the wave from the female driver! It was a fine specimen too - I could see the timber highlights on the steering wheel as she flew by!

We travelled back through Lakefield National Park as the developmental road is hardly worth calling a road.

Once we hit the tar at Laura is when the fun began (literally). 20km into the bitumen the classic lost his engine. It went bang! No signs of trouble, just a big puff of diesel from behind (I was tail end Charlie at this stage and I coughed it up)!

Long story short, I towed him to Lakeland Downs where we pulled up for the night, then I pulled him all the way to Mareeba where we then hired a car trailer and I towed him down the Kuranda range (with brand new brakes on that are not very new anymore), and to a Landy bloke in Cairns.

Anyone want to know how a fully loaded P38 goes towing a fully loaded classic? 80kmh is too easy! Could have sat at 100kmh but we didn't for safety's sake. I was planning on putting a dirty great diesel in my P38, but now I'm sticking with my 4.6! Didn't rev over 2000rpm unless we were going up a steep hill. Not bad! Then you add a 1.2t car trailer into the mix, still the same. More torque below 2000rpm than I can find a use for!

Some of you may have seen, I put an SOS on the general chat forum yesterday to see if we could get a replacement 200tdi close by but to no avail. Cairns was the closest, so 350km or thereabouts I towed the classic for, and she loved it!

Enough rambling, sleep time, I've got an engine to replace in another vehicle tomorrow so we can do the CREB track!

P38 - she'll do anything mate!

Cheers
Keithy

[Keithy P38]

Just because, ill add some quick stats!

Highway at 100kmh where possible, I averaged 14l/100km.
Dirt highway with 30psi average tyre pressure and hilly terrain, 16.2l/100km.
Telegraph track (slow, lots of creek crossings and an average speed you could beat on a push bike) 21l/100km.
Towing a classic Rangie and a 1.2t trailer (still fully loaded mind you), 20l/100km.

I have used 500ml of oil, zero coolant, no anything else...

As soon as you leave the bitumen you lose the right to Premium Unleaded, so those dirt numbers are on regular ulp.

Eftpos is everywhere too, perhaps the only place it's not is the Jardine ferry, but you'd be silly to buy it there as the rumors have it that fuel there has stopped a few vehicles this year.

The most I paid was $2.55/litre at Bamaga (only put 35l in there to get me back to Bramwell Junction).

It gets cheaper as you go south. Musgrave Roadhouse was $1.95/litre, Bramwell was $2.20/litre.

I only used my Jerry can because I could, I did not need to take it, the standard tank was sufficient.

[redandy3575]

If its the same Landy guy in Cairns, ask him if he came across a blue 96 P38 about a year ago? He'll have a photo of my vehicle when I stopped there with minor radiator issues. He loved the snorkel as much as he'll like the one on yours. Nice bloke, will help anybody out. If I remember he was located in a semi- residential zone with a part supplier next door.

[Keithy P38]

I am pretty sure he's the same bloke, drives a Perentie, it's located in Nununda (nearish to the Cairns Airport).

I must ask him! It was 5pm when we arrived yesterday so it was more about unloading the classic than chewing the fat!

Cheers
Keithy

[Discotd5fan]

Wow Keith I am really impressed with your consumption figures! Have you done anything to make it run more economically?

I took my old v6 hilux up to the cape last year and it almost returned the same figures as your v8. Are those readings courtesy of the onboard computer or did you work them out based on km and pump readings?

[roverrescue]

Keith I see you are now down in Cairns so likely able to source needed parts but I have enough engine bits of usable condition to get a 200/300 to go up and down round and round??? Likely you coulda diverted to here and sorted the classic out... anyways.

If you need anything give us a hoy but Im heading up west of Coen tonight to chase 'toga and barra will be back Monday night. Old man will be driving down to Cairns Tuesday morning and could easy deliver bits that may be needed?

by this

We travelled back through Lakefield National Park as the developmental road is hardly worth calling a road.

Im guessing the PDR is a little more chopped up than a month ago when it was sweet... It might be a slow trip tonight.

S

[Hoges]

Grrrh!!:D I wanna go!!

Quote:My mate in the classic was traveling along the table drains at 30kmh for most of it and I simply overtook him and sat at 85kmh on the corrugations.

I had the same issue a couple of yrs ago... Cooper H/T tryes, new (std) shocks, standard airbags ...and the corrugations damned near gave me chipped teeth! So I took to the drains also....

The extensive corrugations are an excellent test:twisted: Obviously your GenIII bags are proving their worth for absorbing the bumps..

what shocks and tyres have you matched with them to diminish the harshness from the vibrations?

Safe travels!

[goanna_shire]

Keith,

Good to hear about the coolant situation :). Too bad about Kynan's 200 tdi :(. I hope you guys make it back in 1 piece. Go the 4.6! I am getting converted as we speak..

Cheers,
Brian.

[Keithy P38]

Thank you for the offer roverrescue! We have all we need here, will certainly keep you in mind if things don't pan out like we expect!

DiscoTd5fan, those figures are GPS kilometers and full fill at the fuel bowser. I've logged every fill and every kilometer as I went. Have done no mods to the motor! NGK BPR5ES spark plugs (gapped to 1.1mm), good quality leads, clean air filter. Just the usual things any old rev head does to get more bang for their buck! I have a snorkel now too but I don't believe I've gained much if anything from that in terms of fuel consumption.

Hoges, I'm running standard shocks that are a few years old! They were old when I bought the Rangie! They did well!

[goldiloxgirl]

Hahaha...that female driver was none other than myself ! Not sure if the fine specimen is referring to the car, lol :). I must say that I slowed down to have a chat with you Keithy but you disappeared in a cloud of dust :)

I'm only a second rate Telstra customer (kogan) so I have no Internet to post my trip so far...only getting this reply in on a Thursday Island ferry with their free wifi. More details of my travels will get posted later. Enough to say that the P38 is underrated in its off road ability...apart from needing a snorkel, they're up to any challenge.

Regards,

Lani

[Keithy P38]

I thought it may have been you! I would have pulled up but I feared I'd cop a Nissan or Big Rig in the rump and we were two hours behind as it were! I do apologies for not stopping!

Hope your trip is just as good as mine was!

Let me know when you are in Townsville next, might be able to catch up then!

Cheers
Keithy

[Keithy P38]

I am home now so I guess I should put up a few final details!

To end our trip we spent 4 nights in Cairns putting another 200tdi into my mates classic. What appeared to be the problem from a quick visual was the turbo lost vanes, seized, and bits of the turbo made the journey into a few cylinders and ended with a bang!

In the trip my P38 covered 3,295km via odometer (3,304 via GPS) from Townsville to the tip and back, cost just over $1,050 in fuel alone, travelled fully loaded the whole time (at a guess I'd say 3t, I have not actually measured the weight of my gear), travelled through Lakefield National Park twice, the OTT once, the Frenchmans Track once, towed a 2.6t Classic, towed the same Classic on a 1.3t car trailer up and down a steep rainforest range, started first time every time, hit potholes/bumps and millions of corrugations, and pulled me up safely every time.

I averaged 16.7L/100km for the entire trip, best of 13.6L/100km and worst of 21.6L/100km. The trip computer was generally within 0.2L/100km of the actual usage, except for the OTT where it told me I was much worse.

I passed 3 P38's (only one actually doing the cape, the other two were towing caravans up north).

Standard shock absorbers did great! Arnotts did great too! I met Razzasrangie in Cairns while repairing the classic, Goldiloxgirl near Coen (although I was a prude and didn't pull up).

Did not use my faultmate, did not use any coolant/water, used about 500ml of engine oil, plenty of fuel.

Two things that peeved me off were the low brake fluid alarm (first day on the tar this started - I suspect something to do with my recent brake system flush and caliper/pad renewal), and the bonnet open alarm on cool mornings (which I worked out to be the latch needing some lube).

Used the air locker only once (Palm Creek on the OTT), traction control came on maybe 4 or 5 times, not really major obstacles.

That snorkel - Cow Bell, best money ever spent. Same for my $1.50 tarp that went on for the bigger water crossings. Could have completed the trip without the snorkel easily, the bonnet only went under twice briefly, however, there was one crossing that I would not have driven if I didn't have the snorkel.

Cheers
Keithy

[mtb_gary]

Keithy

Welcome home. All in all it sounds like a successful trip. No doubt lots of pics? It was also great to hear that all the main problems you were having just prior to leaving did not resurface.
I reckon the p38 is one of the most underestimated vehicles for off road use. Trips such as yours certainly reinforce it!

Gary

[RR P38]

Grrrh!!:D I wanna go!!

Quote:My mate in the classic was traveling along the table drains at 30kmh for most of it and I simply overtook him and sat at 85kmh on the corrugations.

I had the same issue a couple of yrs ago... Cooper H/T tryes, new (std) shocks, standard airbags ...and the corrugations damned near gave me chipped teeth! So I took to the drains also....

The extensive corrugations are an excellent test:twisted: Obviously your GenIII bags are proving their worth for absorbing the bumps..

what shocks and tyres have you matched with them to diminish the harshness from the vibrations?

Safe travels!

Mmm agree here totally with the P38 ability to soak up corrugations, I am constantly amazed at its ability to keep up a pace well in excess of many other 4wds, one that comes to mind was an X5 a few years ago, what a pain it was to have it in front of me, overtaking the damn thing saw the thing well gone in no time.
Yep the 38 is a great vehicle much maligned, but greatly appreciated by any owner prepared to keep her in good order.

[TheTree]

Hi

Great travelogue Keith, that trip has been on my list for many years !

Steve

[redandy3575]

How was the old Nolans brook?

[Keithy P38]

It was deep, as is to be expected of it. The water was over bonnet depth, there is a chicken run that still goes through the creek, but has you high and dry after a brief nose dip under water. It was one of the easier crossings on the trip!

[goldiloxgirl]

Chicken run...lol. All I can say is one man's puddle is another man's flood. First vehicle in our group (a diesel Mazda) went through effortlessly but my friend's son in his late model Suzi grand Vitara went in but didn't come out. His was the second car that day to drown. It was declared DOA number 86 for the season by the local RACQ at Bamaga. I went third but attached a strap to the Mazda on the other side as a precaution. After making an improvised raised air intake and pumping the front up to the emergency high setting, I purred through under my own steam.

I will start my trip writting soon and post it up with photos on the general chat forum.

Regards,

Lani

[Keithy P38]

Sorry to hear about the Suzuki! Nolan's claims a few each year - the insurance companies would be hating it! Good to hear you got through unscathed!

Hope your trip has been good so far! Will check out your update page!

Cheers
Keithy

[mtb_gary]

Chicken run...lol. All I can say is one man's puddle is another man's flood. First vehicle in our group (a diesel Mazda) went through effortlessly but my friend's son in his late model Suzi grand Vitara went in but didn't come out. His was the second car that day to drown. It was declared DOA number 86 for the season by the local RACQ at Bamaga. I went third but attached a strap to the Mazda on the other side as a precaution. After making an improvised raised air intake and pumping the front up to the emergency high setting, I purred through under my own steam.

I will start my trip writting soon and post it up with photos on the general chat forum.

Regards,

Lani

Well done Lani, sad to hear about the Suzi though as number 86! So what is the improvised raised air intake? You have got me intreagued....
Safe travels for the rest of the trip

Gary

[TheTree]

Hi,

Great stuff, go the P38's :p

+1 curious about the improvised raised air intake

Steve

[benji]

Ive heard someone say the sand in Nolan's Brook is quite fine, and the first car usually stirs it up for the next ones. After 10 minutes or so it settles and is good to go again.

+3 for the air intake improvisation.

[Pete38]

+10 for the raised air intake improvisation. Ita got me curious.

I've wondered whether disconnecting the pipe near the MAF and re route the air flow to a higher spot in the engine bay just for a water crossing. Hot air Yeh but prefer that over water...

Looks like this improvisation could become a new thread?

[FANTOM P38]

+ another 1 re improvised air intake - a neat termporary unit may prove a better option than a permanent one - raised my curiosity!!:confused:

[p38brickus]

+ another for the air intake.......and photos, PHOTOS (hint hint) of this amazing trip to the Cape.
I have just found out it is hard to talk with saliva dribbling from the side of my mouth.........:)