This Disco was prepared by us for Transafrica through Middle East, and then east route to Cape Agulhas. Sadly we had to begin the trip in Northern Kenya, but the vehicle was prepared for the entire trip.
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On the day of purchase. A standard Disco 1 with sidesteps and soft suspension. No Africa mods whatsoever.
Added to exterior:
Patriot roofrack
Howling moon rooftent & awning
Heavy duty Old Man Emu suspension
BF Goodrich All Terrains
x 6 (no punctures to date in 2 years)
Winch bumper (no winch though)
Bash plate
Rock/tree sliders
150 litre fuel tank (replaced old).
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Back seats stripped out, dog guard installed. Added blackout film to all windows except front and installed metal grills to back windows so if the front of the car was broken into, they couldn't get into the back and visa versa. Replaced back door cover with checquerplate.
It is a legal requirements to have reflector tape in some African countries as follows:
White on front bumper
Yellow on all inside doors
Red on back.
Waterproof seat covers are a must. |
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Its a scary concept when faced with metallic paintwork, but it is possible to install a snorkel yourself if you are practically minded. |
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The section where the back seats usually go: 3 x 25l water jerries behind front seats (only one shown) to keep weight central and low). Lockable boxes in wood to house spares and other items not used on a daily basis. Water filter from Brownchurch on dogguard - easy to access water jerries.
Jerries were designated as follows:
D: Drinking water
U: Unfiltered water
F: Filtered water
Cargo nets on roof to house hats, windbreakers; light items. Chairs were stored on top of wooden boxes. |
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5 x wolf boxes labelled as follows:
A: Andrew's clothes & shoes
B: Bron's clothes & shoes
F: Food (spices/cans etc)
K: Kitchen (everything cooking related)
Yellow: Full tool box
40 litre Engel on fridge slider
Cooker, compressor & first aid kit in space bottom left. Cargo nets for loo rolls/light items etc.
Our table was stored in the space on the top level of boxes. |
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The finished product before trip commencement.
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At the equator in Kenya. On the roof:
Rooftent
Sand ladders
6th wheel
Small BBQ
Washing machine (aka bucket)
Adjustable spots independently wired (used once but recommended). |
Any learning points? Don't bother with a BBQ - never used it. We took far too much stuff although we were lighter by miles than any others we came across driving North. You can't have anough mozzie coils. Fix a mozzie net inside your roof tent (the permethrin injected one). Bottled water is found everywhere Kenya & South. Don't need to bother with filter if you are going only as far as Kenya. Weight is your biggest enemy, and roof weight will kill you (literally). Oh, and there is no way to drive on corrugations comfortably!
We are currently rebuilding the back as we have put the middle seats back and are cutting our kit in half. We are going to Namibia for a month and need a system built by then (March 2008). |
