Scott
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Mar 17, 2010
- Messages
- 1,046
The Aussie has arrived!
Finally after much time, effort and money Wanda, our FZJ105, is on UK soil. After using her to tour parts of Australia we couldn’t bear to part with her, so here she is.
Chris and the team a the team at FNB 4WD did a great job of preparing and packaging her for the long journey. A condition of carriage was that all fuel tanks were drained, and then the engine run until it stalled. The RTT was removed due to height constraints, all the gear and spare wheels mounted on the rear bumper were stored in the vehicle to reduce the trucks length as much as possible.
A tilt bed recovery truck was arranged to get her to Adelaide docks, with the RTT following on the bed of Chris’ HiLux.
Back at base at the end of our trip:
Preparation:
The tool used to load her into the container:
After docking in Tilbury the container was moved to Barking by road.
The first signing in the UK:
She was pretty snug in there:
The lorry was backed up to a ramp and then I was able to get my hands on our truck for the first time since Feb 2014.
When the lorry backed into the ramp it was clear how much the truck was rocking inside the container, the straps had been placed around the chassis inline with the lashing points in the container, so not utilising the trucks stout recovery points. Every strap was lose so she was moving more than you expect. Fortunately the pieces of wood nailed into the containers floor, alongside the wheels and fore and aft, kept her in place and safe from damage (without these there would have been damage).
It was a bit snug in there!
I was able to get down the side of the truck, but it was really tight. I found that I could actually slide underneath the axles, so thats what I did to release the straps and lever the wood out from around the wheels. There were a number of spider webs in the container and truck, so I had to be careful as something nasty may have hitched a ride!
I’d brought two helpers along with me, plus my Discovery loaded with tools and fuel to get the truck reassembled and fuelled ready to run. We elected the skinniest of us to squeeze into the drivers seat, I then pushed her single handedly out of the container and onto the ramp. The driver was now piloting a heavy Land Cruiser down a steep ramp with very poor braking, as the truck was still a non runner at this point.
Fortunately the driver piloted her perfectly down the ramp and managed to bring her to a halt without colliding into anything.
This left the RTT to unstrap and place back on top where she belonged, the forklift made easy work of getting it back up there.
I then brought the Discovery into the warehouse and began getting the truck running.
We added 40L of fuel to the main tank and let it settle while we got busy bolting the RTT down, mounting the rear number plate and reconnecting the batteries.
It was then time to fire her up, I cycled the ignition 3 times to prime the fuel system then gave her a go. She fired first time and immediately settled to a smooth idle, I was very chuffed. She hadn’t been driven since Feb 2014, or ran since Feb 2015 when the tanks were drained, Toyota ruggedness and simple but strong designed meant the she’d started as though nothing had happened. I tested that she moved back and forth, and that the brakes worked, with that I declared her fit to hit the road for the first time in the UK.
We packed up the tools and gear and headed out of the warehouse, taking Wanda out into the daylight of a beautifully warm summers day, the kind of weather thats she's used to.
Once signed out Wanda entered out into the busy streets of East London for the first time, on route to the MOT station in Romford. She drove really well, it was a bit strange driving her along roads that I never expected to see through her windscreen, we’re used to seeing the Australian bush when piloting Wanda. She did get some funny looks when people clocked the South Australian license plates!
In the queue at the MOT station.
She passed just needing a light bulb and a tweak on the handbrake.
Then it was time to stretch her legs and head home, via a fuel station to add some fuel to the sub tank. During the journey I tested the AC which was working as good as ever, and ran on the sub tank for a few miles to keep everything lubricated.
Once home the reassembly could start (five spiders were dispatched during this):
So a massive thanks to everyone that has helped ship our great Cruiser half way around the world, its now time for her to start the next chapter of her adventures.
Next step, the DVLA.
Finally after much time, effort and money Wanda, our FZJ105, is on UK soil. After using her to tour parts of Australia we couldn’t bear to part with her, so here she is.
Chris and the team a the team at FNB 4WD did a great job of preparing and packaging her for the long journey. A condition of carriage was that all fuel tanks were drained, and then the engine run until it stalled. The RTT was removed due to height constraints, all the gear and spare wheels mounted on the rear bumper were stored in the vehicle to reduce the trucks length as much as possible.
A tilt bed recovery truck was arranged to get her to Adelaide docks, with the RTT following on the bed of Chris’ HiLux.
Back at base at the end of our trip:
Preparation:
The tool used to load her into the container:
After docking in Tilbury the container was moved to Barking by road.
The first signing in the UK:
She was pretty snug in there:
The lorry was backed up to a ramp and then I was able to get my hands on our truck for the first time since Feb 2014.
When the lorry backed into the ramp it was clear how much the truck was rocking inside the container, the straps had been placed around the chassis inline with the lashing points in the container, so not utilising the trucks stout recovery points. Every strap was lose so she was moving more than you expect. Fortunately the pieces of wood nailed into the containers floor, alongside the wheels and fore and aft, kept her in place and safe from damage (without these there would have been damage).
It was a bit snug in there!
I was able to get down the side of the truck, but it was really tight. I found that I could actually slide underneath the axles, so thats what I did to release the straps and lever the wood out from around the wheels. There were a number of spider webs in the container and truck, so I had to be careful as something nasty may have hitched a ride!
I’d brought two helpers along with me, plus my Discovery loaded with tools and fuel to get the truck reassembled and fuelled ready to run. We elected the skinniest of us to squeeze into the drivers seat, I then pushed her single handedly out of the container and onto the ramp. The driver was now piloting a heavy Land Cruiser down a steep ramp with very poor braking, as the truck was still a non runner at this point.
Fortunately the driver piloted her perfectly down the ramp and managed to bring her to a halt without colliding into anything.
This left the RTT to unstrap and place back on top where she belonged, the forklift made easy work of getting it back up there.
I then brought the Discovery into the warehouse and began getting the truck running.
We added 40L of fuel to the main tank and let it settle while we got busy bolting the RTT down, mounting the rear number plate and reconnecting the batteries.
It was then time to fire her up, I cycled the ignition 3 times to prime the fuel system then gave her a go. She fired first time and immediately settled to a smooth idle, I was very chuffed. She hadn’t been driven since Feb 2014, or ran since Feb 2015 when the tanks were drained, Toyota ruggedness and simple but strong designed meant the she’d started as though nothing had happened. I tested that she moved back and forth, and that the brakes worked, with that I declared her fit to hit the road for the first time in the UK.
We packed up the tools and gear and headed out of the warehouse, taking Wanda out into the daylight of a beautifully warm summers day, the kind of weather thats she's used to.
Once signed out Wanda entered out into the busy streets of East London for the first time, on route to the MOT station in Romford. She drove really well, it was a bit strange driving her along roads that I never expected to see through her windscreen, we’re used to seeing the Australian bush when piloting Wanda. She did get some funny looks when people clocked the South Australian license plates!
In the queue at the MOT station.
She passed just needing a light bulb and a tweak on the handbrake.
Then it was time to stretch her legs and head home, via a fuel station to add some fuel to the sub tank. During the journey I tested the AC which was working as good as ever, and ran on the sub tank for a few miles to keep everything lubricated.
Once home the reassembly could start (five spiders were dispatched during this):
So a massive thanks to everyone that has helped ship our great Cruiser half way around the world, its now time for her to start the next chapter of her adventures.
Next step, the DVLA.
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