TRED THE BOARDS

CHRIS ROBERTS TOOK ON THE CHALLENGE OF BUILDING A DOUBLE-CAB Y62 WITH A CANOPY AS THE PERFECT CAMPING RIG AND SHOP TRUCK FOR TRED RECOVERY TRACKS

- CHRIS ROBERTS

WHEN Chris Roberts from TRED Outdoors went looking for a new 4x4 to take on camping and off-road trips, he was torn as towhat it would be. The plan was to always to get one of the big 4x4 wagons and cut and stretch it in to a double-cab ute, but choosing between two popular options wasn’t easy.

“I liked the Y62 because there was a supercharger option from Harrop, but the platform was not well-supported by the aftermarket at the time,” Chris recalled.

He even went as far as ordering a new LandCruiser 200 Series, but when the dealer called to say the delivery was delayed, it made Chris’s decision for him.

“Nissan not only delivered in time, but they were also substantially cheaper which left plenty of money in the bank to build this car,” he said with a smile.

He ended up with a 2018 Patrol and set plans in motion to make it what he wanted.

“One of my frustrations when going away with the car as a wagon, was having to load and unload all the time,” says Chris. “My campsite was always quick to set up, however all the gear needs to be loaded and unloaded a lot. Having a canopy on the back is going to help massively with this.”

Chris enlisted the team at Queensland company ASG4X4 when it came time to get the chop-and-stretch job done. ASG has done a few of these conversions on the big Nissans, with a choice of chassis lengths available. They also manufacture a selection of different size and design trays and canopies, so they are a one-stop-shop for these ute conversions.