Long trip from Scandinavia to Africa

lacrits68

Observer
Helllo all!

I plased this auestion an some other manufacturers forum pages too so lets run it here too!

This is the starting point:

run an long trip from Scandinavia to Africa ( Gambia) with 2 adults and 3 kidds.
we need a vehicle of some sort! looking for Toyota LC, Mercedes G and Land Rover 110/130.

what do you guys think of what vehicle to choose? which one is rugged and spacious enough for this kind of trip 10 000km/6500miles. Realy like to have some oppinios of pro's and con's! After all you have just one opportunity to buy right before you leave!

obiviously car is taking punnisment durin trip so axels, bearing and suspension has to be in top trim!

can anyone who done lång trip share some experience and hints/tips what to look and waht to think of!

any vehicle preparation suggestions are welcome too!

Chees

jan&family
 

gjackson

FRGS
Jan,

Any of those vehicles will work well. More important would be the condition of the vehicle you find and what your space/payload requirements are. With 5 people in the car as well as equipment, space will be important.

I would start with a list of your required equipment and maybe the range you want to get. Then start looking for vehicles. You are more likely to find a Toyota or Land Rover already equipped for overlanding, but equipping it yourself can be very rewarding. For ideas on what other people have done check out:
www.africa-overland.net

Are you planning on using roof top tents or a trailer or what?

good luck!

cheers
 

lacrits68

Observer
not quite sure...! :)

we are in start now, so we realy dont know much! Why start with vehicle? it biggest investmen and right now we are trying to figure out an budget!

this is done:

desission made; Gambia, why Gambia? cause of we have an friend that live the and invited us to visit!

Sahara Overland & Africa Overland orderd from Amazon

matination is FLYYYYING beyond! :)

i currently have an LR discovery 2 but i find it too "electronic" for that trip, wheel bearings no so easy to replace on road, etc etc. actualy we are familair with LR so an 110 is in our minds!

We have some plans to prepare vehicle ourself, learn to fix trhe car during preparation, find out what WE need!

I can imagine that SPACE is required, an trailer coud be an answer or an BIG & durable roofrack cold do the trick? Im not so of a rooftent fan, but maybe have to get used to one?

quipment we allready have, GPSx2 one hand held one PC, ham radion HF&VHF, storage, books, tools, and openmind!

when we get the books Im sure we discover ALL other things we are gona need! :)

as said, we are just 1 month in to planing, and we have not yet desided when trip takes place! (one option could be 2009 Paris Dakar 30 year jubilee)!

We are realy thankfull of any hint&tips we get!

Cheers

jan

PS: sorry my bad English! MAy an English dictionary could be an good purchase? :)
 
Last edited:
lacrits68 said:
PS: sorry my bad English! MAy an English dictionary could be an good purchase? :)
Your English is better than posts from some Americans I've seen :p! You should see my Norwegian...and I can't even make all the letters, I have to use aa instead of a with an o over it like your keyboard has ;). Uff da.

There are a lot of people here with HAM radios :). Let us know when you embark, who knows, someone might get a bounce to your rig at some point on the trip.

Looking forward to reading about your plans and preparations :lurk: I have a lot to learn from guys like you and Jackson.

-Sean
 

lacrits68

Observer
devinsixtyseven said:
There are a lot of people here with HAM radios :). Let us know when you embark, who knows, someone might get a bounce to your rig at some point on the trip.
-Sean

done! :)

cheers

Jan alias SM2YJK
 

stevenmd

Expedition Leader
2 adults and 3 kids... my vote goes to the LR 110 or 130. Either setup will have the room you need. And, yes, I am partial to LR!:friday: But, in the process of looking for a new daily driver I thought about the Toyota LC so I went and test drove a few. Being over 6 feet tall and a good 215+ pounds, I found the LC to be lacking in space width wise. I could never imagine being comfortable in an LC on a long trip like you are going to undertake. So, having said that, LR 110/130 get my vote for room

As for reliability, you said it yourself that the DII is too electronic for the trip. Finding a good LR 110/130 and stripping as much of the electronics out of it as possible is your best bet. Find a low mileage diesel or rebuild a high mileage diesel.

I hope you are planning on running diesel and not petrol!

My two cents! I look forward to seeing what you are going to do. You should set up a website to keep us all updated when you partake on your trip!
 

lacrits68

Observer
Hi Steven!

Yes diesel engine its gona be! I no nothing of gas engines, i drive diesel all my life! :)

an Tdi engine is pretty simple to deal with, low on fuel and reliable! Im planing for an "road trip" home page, but it might take a while, untill we get started for "real".

cheers

jan
 

lacrits68

Observer
gjackson said:
Jan,

Any of those vehicles will work well. More important would be the condition of the vehicle you find and what your space/payload requirements are. With 5 people in the car as well as equipment, space will be important.

I would start with a list of your required equipment and maybe the range you want to get. Then start looking for vehicles. You are more likely to find a Toyota or Land Rover already equipped for overlanding, but equipping it yourself can be very rewarding. For ideas on what other people have done check out:
www.africa-overland.net

Are you planning on using roof top tents or a trailer or what?

good luck!

cheers

hi!

Now i done some "Home work" i ordered "africa overland" and "sahara overland" and i got some "AHAA!! so thats the way it works!" experience! :)

some disaponiting reading was that LR is not valued that hi in those books. LC is the one to prefere, by Chriss Scott in sahara-overland! :(

now when we got some idea what we need and what we dont need i find 110 and LC 75/78 more than sufficient what comes to space! What comes to mechanical reliability, i agree that an vehicle in good condition both are equal. What i have learned is that engine power DOES matter when you are stuck in "soft stuff"

still thre is lost of learning and planing to do before its time to push "start" button and drive away!

realy enjoying this website and tips&hint i get tru it!

cheers

Jan
 

4Rescue

Expedition Leader
My suggestion would be an HJ75 TD Toupie or Wagon. Flat out the most durable Expo 4x4 on the planet. Thats my .02

Dave
 

Forum statistics

Threads
185,535
Messages
2,875,636
Members
224,922
Latest member
Randy Towles
Top