Thread: D4 Weight Measured

Originally Posted by Fatso

In january 1968 i drove a 1964 Mini Miner 850 from Sydney to Dampier in WA , the Nulabour was mostly sand and dirt , the road from carnavon to dampier was a nightmare of bulldust -bedrock - corrgations and flooded sections .The only off road eq i had was 2 spare wheels and a water bag & tools etc. Made it with a few minor hicups and drove to conditions ,which i believe is the secret to bush driving as opposed to fitting a lot of stuff to wiegh ones vehicle down . Just sayin .

Bugger I knew I should have bought a Mini Minor for outback touring instead of the Disco. ...

cheers,
Terry

Originally Posted by Redback

I toured around on a motorbike for 10 to 15 years and didn't have an issue, doesn't mean it won't happen, just sayin

Baz.

So I'm guessing Barry you must have reasoned when you recently fitted a winch bar, Dual rear wheel carrier, long range tank, roof rack, Cargo Barrier, rear draws and sliders to the D4 that you had used up all your luck back then so you needed all the protection you could get now? ...

cheers,
Terry

Originally Posted by gghaggis

I don't need a rear wheel carrier - it really isn't that hard to remove the spare from under the car if you pre-prepare access to the winch bolt in the cargo area.

Gordon

How do you do that, Gordon, out of interest? It's the single worst feature of these and maybe any 4WD I've driven, and really worries me if I were to be caught loaded with a flat.
Thanks

I think the earlier point about suspension upgrades is key, too - a lot of ppl leave it til last, maybe understandably cos its the final empty weight isnt known, but to put all the other stuff on and then head off down the CSR would surely just be asking for trouble - LC200 or Mini!
Now if someone would just make heavy duty airbags and shockies (keep up the shockie testing Terry!) for D4....

Originally Posted by TerryO

So I'm guessing Barry you must have reasoned when you recently fitted a winch bar, Dual rear wheel carrier, long range tank, roof rack, Cargo Barrier, rear draws and sliders to the D4 that you had used up all your luck back then so you needed all the protection you could get now? ...

cheers,
Terry

No, I just like being prepared for the worst, I've been in a car when we have hit a Kangaroo, my fathers old Ford Prefect, roo 1, Prefect 0, even had a Kangaroo hop into the side of my old Triumph(car) between Wilcannia and Broken Hill, I've seen the damage they can do.

Also, not interested in carrying jerry cans, they leak they are smelly, dirty and they are heavy, wheel carriers are because rim and tyres are heavy, did the whole wheel on the roof thing, pain in the arse, I'm not 25 anymore, besides all our carrying of gear is in the camper, we carry minimal gear in the car now, the heaviest thing is the 40lt fridge, the camper ball weight is around 65kg, so not heavy at all compared to most.

Baz.

Originally Posted by Stuart02

How do you do that, Gordon, out of interest? It's the single worst feature of these and maybe any 4WD I've driven, and really worries me if I were to be caught loaded with a flat.
Thanks

There's been a couple of write-ups about it. Cut a small hole in the boot floor, secure a socket + handle to the winch nut, that protrudes through the floor and pack your luggage around it. The small additional effort of deploying from the standard location, over the rear wheel carrier is, IMHO more than compensated by not having to unlock the damn carrier every time you want to get into the back (which is a _lot_ more often than needing the spare tyre) and consequent issues with the rear parking sensors.

If you need to fit a long-range fuel tank, then obviously the rear wheel carrier becomes a much greater priority.

Cheers,

Gordon

Yes, unlocking the rear wheel carrier each time you open the boot is a definite PITA but you learn to live with it. Now that weight is such an issue in my car I kind of wish I didn't have the rear bar and long range fuel tank. I can hardly use the tank anyway due to the 75 plus kg the fuel adds to the weight! However, it is nice to have the extra range when on long trips for those times when you are travelling light or towing.

Bob

I recently had a Long Range Automotive aux fuel tank and a Outback Accessories RWC fitted to my D4 by Opposite Lock Newcastle. Since it has been fitted the RWC it has not caused any interference at all with the rear parking sensors. IMO it might be a bit of an inconvenience to open and close the RWC each time you need to access the rear but I would not say that it is APITA. For everything that you do or every decision that you make in life there is some sort of trade off or compromise associated with it.

The aux fuel tank allowed me to travel from Newcastle to the Sunshine Coast towing my Bushtracker before having to refuel. A top-up at Rockhampton then allowed me to continue to north Qld without having to continually look for fuel stops and plan ahead as in the past. Every time the primary tank becomes a bit low I only have to hit the switch to transfer more fuel from the aux tank.

Elsey...