THE traditional 4x4 ute or pickup, depending on which side your bread is buttered, was always a single cab-chassis. The perfect tool for getting you and your offsider, plus a load of whatever you’re hauling, to wherever you wanted to go.
Over the years utes have become more family-friendly, with double-cab bodies and a raft of safety and convenience features; but the old single-cab really has remained the realm of the farm truck, missing out on the best of factory equipment.
Cut down and often stretched Land Cruisers and Patrols are a great way to get the functionality of a ute with the comforts and equipment only a 4x4 wagon comes with. The Land Cruiser 200 is a popular candidate for such a conversion and we’ve seen them in many guises including five-seaters, seven-seaters, 4x4 and 6x6, but generally, they are always four-door double-cab bodies. What you’re looking at here is one of the few single-cab LC200s we’ve seen.
Mick Whitehead had what was for many years his perfect outback touring 4x4: a GU Patrol coil-cab. After buying the Nissan new and having engineer-approved 35s, the Patrol served Mick on many trips. As the Nissan drivetrain aged and NSW registration changed to make engineering a newer car more difficult, Mick replaced the TD42 engine and manual gearbox with a 1HD-FTE Toyota engine and the associated five-speed auto transmission, to create something special. But after more years and thousands more kilometres, you couldn’t hide the age of the GU and Mick went looking for something new.
This story is from the November 2020 edition of 4x4 Magazine Australia.
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This story is from the November 2020 edition of 4x4 Magazine Australia.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
OUTBACK WATERING HOLES
SINCE OFF TRACK WINES WAS LAUNCHED, OWNERS ANNA AND BRETT FISHER HAVE DRIVEN MORE THAN 20,000KM UP, DOWN AND ACROSS AUSTRALIA SPRUIKING THEIR WINES-IN-A-CAN MADE FOR CAMPING. THEY DROPPED INTO PLENTY OF OUTBACK PUBS ALONG THE WAY AND THESE ARE THEIR SOUTH AUSTRALIAN FAVOURITES
BIG COUNTRY
THE PILBARA IS THE VERY DEFINITION OF BIG COUNTRY, AND THERE IS PLENTY TO SEE, DO AND ENJOY IN THIS ANCIENT LANDSCAPE IN WA'S RUGGED NORTHWEST
ISLAND PARADISE
NEAR THE TOP OF THE BUCKET LIST FOR EVERY AUSSIE FOUR-WHEEL DRIVER, K'GARI IS PACKED WITH STUNNING HIGHLIGHTS AND BOASTS SOME OF THE BEST BEACH DRIVING IN THE COUNTRY
WEIGHTLIFTING
INCREASING THE GVM OF YOUR 4X4 SHOULD NOT BE TAKEN LIGHTLY, BUT BY THE SAME TOKEN SHOULD NOT BE AVOIDED IF YOU NEED IT. WE GO THROUGH THE PROCESS ON OUR FORD RANGER TO EXPLAIN HOW TO GET IT RIGHT
NOW HEAR THIS
THE CEL-FI GO MOBILE BOOSTER WILL KEEP EMAILS, MESSAGES AND CALLS COMING THROUGH TO YOUR DEVICES WHEN EVERYBODY ELSE IS HEARING CRICKETS
LOOKING BACK
A PAIR OF MSA 4X4 TOWING MIRRORS ENSURE WE ALWAYS KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON BEHIND US WHEN WE HAVE A TRAILER HITCHED TO OUR MITSUBISHI TRITON
TRUCKIN' LIFE
CAN FORD AUSTRALIA'S NEW F-150 BE AN ACCOMPLISHED OFF-ROAD TOURING 4X4?
WHAT LURKS BENEATH
IT MAY LOOK LIKE A FAIRLY STANDARD (IF CLEAN) 80 SERIES, BUT DIVE A LITTLE DEEPER AND YOU'LL FIND A MONSTER BELOW THE SURFACE
EYE OF THE HURRICANE
RAM HAS DUMPED ITS HEMI V8FOR A SIX-CYLINDER, AND IT'S COMING TO AUSTRALIA
GETTING TANKED
GWM EXPANDS IT TANK 4X4 RANGE WITH THE LUXURIOUS TANK 500 WAGON