J

JacobJames

New Member
Hey guys,

This is my first post on Landyzone so go steady on me :p

Basically I'm a 20-year semi-professional travel/cultural documentary photographer (finishing off my degree so working around term time at the moment) with a dream to pursue a completely location independent lifestyle in a year or twos time. I have the idea that I want to spend at least 12 months but maybe up to two years driving through Africa in a land rover.

Africa has been a dream for me for many years and as a photographer I feel having a vehicle would allow me to get out to the places I want to shoot like the nomad settlements in Mauritania and so on which would be difficult to reach otherwise. The main problem I have is that currently I don't have stacks of cash to go out and buy 10s of thousands of pounds of car/gear for the first trip and so I would probably have to limit myself to around £5-6000 for everything to start off with.

I 'think' I have decided on getting a 90 or 110 Defender. Seems to be a common choice of car for overland expeditions and I hear it is 'relatively' fairly simple mechanics in case anything goes wrong on the road. What are people's views on this?

The next question would be, what additions/mods would you deem essential for the car?

My not very detailed list so far is:

- Winch
- Expedition Rack
- Extra Fuel & Water would be in jerrycans or similar rather than a dedicated extra tank (again to save £)
- Storage could be built in by my dad (handy having a carpenter) or using army storage boxes (Half my family are in the military so I could have access to some old military gear too)
- Cooking I already have small stoves and things from backpacking expeditions, any reason why these wouldn't be suitable?
- Sleeping would most probably be in a normal tent on the roof rather than a dedicated roof top tent (to save money) and maybe fit a hammock inside the back for when the roof isn't appropriate.
- Snorkel (I'm thinking this could be essential)
- Compressor, I've seen some cool mods on other cars with it under the hood (is this possible on a landy too?)
- Awning (I'm thinking this could be useful for when I need to work from my computer to provide shade?)
- Second battery system for powering my laptop, camera gear etc

Is there anything else people can think of?

Apologies if I sound like I don't have a clue, I don't haha but I have at least 18 months to learn so if you guys have an detailed resources that you sugest me to read I would love that too!
 
JacobJames said:
Hey guys,

This is my first post on Landyzone so go steady on me :p

Basically I'm a 20-year semi-professional travel/cultural documentary photographer (finishing off my degree so working around term time at the moment) with a dream to pursue a completely location independent lifestyle in a year or twos time. I have the idea that I want to spend at least 12 months but maybe up to two years driving through Africa in a land rover.

Africa has been a dream for me for many years and as a photographer I feel having a vehicle would allow me to get out to the places I want to shoot like the nomad settlements in Mauritania and so on which would be difficult to reach otherwise. The main problem I have is that currently I don't have stacks of cash to go out and buy 10s of thousands of pounds of car/gear for the first trip and so I would probably have to limit myself to around £5-6000 for everything to start off with.

I 'think' I have decided on getting a 90 or 110 Defender. Seems to be a common choice of car for overland expeditions and I hear it is 'relatively' fairly simple mechanics in case anything goes wrong on the road. What are people's views on this?

The next question would be, what additions/mods would you deem essential for the car?

My not very detailed list so far is:

- Winch
- Expedition Rack
- Extra Fuel & Water would be in jerrycans or similar rather than a dedicated extra tank (again to save £)
- Storage could be built in by my dad (handy having a carpenter) or using army storage boxes (Half my family are in the military so I could have access to some old military gear too)
- Cooking I already have small stoves and things from backpacking expeditions, any reason why these wouldn't be suitable?
- Sleeping would most probably be in a normal tent on the roof rather than a dedicated roof top tent (to save money) and maybe fit a hammock inside the back for when the roof isn't appropriate.
- Snorkel (I'm thinking this could be essential)
- Compressor, I've seen some cool mods on other cars with it under the hood (is this possible on a landy too?)
- Awning (I'm thinking this could be useful for when I need to work from my computer to provide shade?)
- Second battery system for powering my laptop, camera gear etc

Is there anything else people can think of?

Apologies if I sound like I don't have a clue, I don't haha but I have at least 18 months to learn so if you guys have an detailed resources that you sugest me to read I would love that too!
Click to expand...

you on facebook ???
 
even with a degree it's a fairly simple task to make your first post in the aptly named " introduce yourself" section :rolleyes:
 
JacobJames said:
Anyway to move on :p I've popped a post in the introduce yourself section but it's fairly similar to the first bit of this post anyway so I won't bother linking you :D
Click to expand...

edit

not posted in the introduce section and lied about it, shame on you :(
 
Last edited:
:welcome2:

Disco up for the job but being a 110 owner I would opt for that.
No expert but easy mistake is over kitting, dont add weight if not needed, more weight, more fuel used, high up weight less stability on crossing at angle, and more likely to bog down.
I would suggest plan your trip first, research the tracks, google earth the whole lot, check for best seasons, ie avoid tracks with flood conditions etc.
Once you know the route and distance and know the fuel / supply stops you can budget costs and also plan whats needed.
No point having a £3K winch fitted if its not needed for you planned route.
Once you have this, plan the vehicle and kit......remember visa's and forign office advice is essential :)
 
Last edited:
SmileySteve said:
:welcome2:

Disco up for the job but being a 110 owner I would opt for that.
No expert but easy mistake is over kitting, dont add weight if not needed, more weight, more fuel used, high up weight less stability on crossing at angle, and more likely to bog down.
I would suggest plan your trip first, research the tracks, google earth the whole lot, check for best seasons, ie avoid tracks with flood conditions etc.
Once you know the route and distance and know the fuel / supply stops you can budget costs and also plan whats needed.
No point having a £3K winch fitted if its not needed for you planned route.
Once you have this, plan the vehicle and kit......remember visa's and forign office advice is essential :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info Steve, really appreciate it. Makes sense to have an idea of the route but with my plans it is more likely to be head where I feel like rather than a set route. This is more a long term plan than a single trip :) However I have a friend doing very similar to what I plan so I will also be picking his brain on equipment needs too!

blue beasty said:
Approved though I've no idea why it needed it :confused:
Click to expand...

No worries :D

Freelaner said:
that's never happened afore

i retract my previous statement in that case...tiger :p
Click to expand...

Again no worries :D
 
In which case vehicle prep is paramount, and usual critical spares carried too.
Exciting stuff.
I would say vehicle wise keep clear of anything loaded with electronics and sensors, you cant fix these at the side of a track road.
:)
 
Anyway JJ.......

Forget about a 90, not enough space. A 110 is much more adaptable and spacious and myself I'd be looking at ambulance/utility body versions though they do go for a premium.

Split charge system/aux battery is pretty much a must if your running a winch and extra electrics.

2 spares are sensible so you need to budget for a swingaway carrier on the back and the other bonnet mounted if you want to keep the inside and roof as clear as possible.

Jerry cans can be mounted to the sides and worth a look at under wheel arch storage systems........expensive to buy but diyable once you know what you want
 
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