SHED: 1972 LAND ROVER SERIES IIA
THE SIMPSON? SERIOUSLY?
IHAVE owned my little Series IIA Landy for 18 months now and in that time the only thing that’s needed attention was a loose wire on the ignition coil, which was promptly detected, tightened and sorted. Admittedly, I only get the Landy out once a week or so and usually only for short stints, so it only covers about 1000km a year.
If you recall the last In The Shed update (Dec, 2018), I mentioned that one day I’d like to drive the Landy across the Simpson Desert, “while wearing a big bloody hat with the roof down” – after all, what better way to immerse myself in the complete desert experience than driving it at a slow pace with the wind in my hair (in my case, that’d be facial hair, because there’s nothing left up top).
When fellow 4X4 Australia contributor
Glenn Torrens read about this loose plan (read: pipe dream), it inspired him to want to drive the Simpson in an old fourbie, too; in his case, an old Pajero he’d recently re-engined. He’s since roped in a few other enthusiasts, a couple of whom are experienced bush mechanics including Brad Newham and Norm Needham, which I reckon could come in very handy. Other likely vehicles include an old live-axle Daihatsu Rocky and a 40 Series Land Cruiser. I reckon 4X4 Australia Editor Matt Raudonikis should ready his BJ73 Land Cruiser, and I have it on good authority that Deputy Editor Justin Walker is hoping to convince his better half that he needs to buy an old Rangie for the trip.
My preferred timeframe for a Simpson Desert crossing would be late-august or early-september 2020, depending on the weather, of course. This would (hopefully) give me enough time to get the Landy ready…
While it seems to be in pretty good mechanical shape, the Landy leans down a fair bit on the driver’s side. I recently put it up on a hoist at my local suspension specialist and discovered that the leaf springs are, in fact, in good nick, but there are a couple of kinks in the chassis that are likely causing the wonky stance. While it drives okay, I reckon I’ll need to straighten out this little problem before embarking on a desert crossing. The method? Several ‘experts’ have offered their opinions, from resetting the springs, packing the springs and even pulling the chassis into line at a truck-repair specialist. I’ve got a bit of time up my sleeve, but this is definitely a priority.
On the positive side, the only other ailments discovered up on the hoist include items such as steering arm joints, tie rod ends and shock bushes.
Prior to the Simpson Crossing, however, I need to thoroughly check all the electrics, because I can see wires threaded through holes without rubber grommets fitted, and the last thing I want is a short circuit and a potential fire. I also need to source a hoop set and new canvas roof, because the hardtop will stay at home in the shed for this trip.
I have considered buying a Roamerdrive Overdrive, but it’s hard to justify the substantial expense for a vehicle that only gets driven occasionally. The Landy currently tops out at about 90km/h, but is much happier at 80km/h, so driving long distances are not its forte.
Bearing this in mind, rather than drive all the way to Mount Dare from Sydney for the start of the trip, I might ship (or tow) the Landy to Adelaide before setting off. This would knock a good 2500km off the trip overall, which will save a lot of time.
I also need to figure out how much fuel I’m going to need to use on a Simpson Crossing. The Landy is quite thirsty and it only has a 45-litre tank, so I’ll need to carry quite a few jerry cans. This will, unfortunately, eat into beer-carrying capacity, so hopefully our support vehicle will be able to help out with fuel haulage.
The next time you read about the IIA, hopefully it will no longer be dubbed Eileen.