There have always been these cars that you see once and never forget. Sometimes its because of they way they are designed,: clean, perfect, dream-like. Other times its because they give a feeling of safety: big wheels, roll cages, extra lights, winches. And sometimes, only sometimes, its simply because you have never ever seen anything quite like it and probably never will again.
Thats when you really stop and admire every detail, every scratch, every stop light. You try to take it all in because once its gone, you only have the memory of how it looked and some pictures you can find on Google. But neither will ever be as good as the real thing.
A little while back I wrote about a modern day adventurer, our friend and fellow off roader Manfred Schweda and his unbelievable trips around the world for the last 6 years. We are told that the car doesnt matter and that its always the person behind the wheel that makes the difference. Which is true. Most of the time.
But sometimes, and mind you that happens on fairly rare occasions, the car takes a life and a personality of its own. Its the case of the six wheeled Defender 130 SW that has taken Manfred on over 75.000 kilometers of his journey and is still going strong.
Although an extremely long-base Rover, the 130 had the features of the Defender 90 (such as a tank under the front seat). All the modifications for Africa have been done at Foleys Land Rover, a company that has been preparing trucks for years all especially designed and upgraded for the African continent.
While in their garage, the rare model receives an extra long roof rack for carrying everything one would need on a very long journey. It is here that the car receives its most important modification, the 6x6 drive. This was all done by mounting an extra transfer box that allows for the power from the engine to be transferred to the third axle. Its an impressive system and one that any owner of a six wheeled vehicle would dream of. Because of its simple build that enables the driver to switch from 6x4 to 6x6 without, the system is virtually indestructible. Even though it appears to be a rather complex piece of machinery, Manfreds view of his Defender is a little bit different:
Now it is still as simple a machine as possible, once you know it you dont want another one. I know what is broken and how to get around it, what will break and what may break
Along with this piece also come sand ladders, hi lift and a roll bar. Because of its size as well as the payload and the distance of the journey, structural modifications have also been done to the car. The 130 received heavy duty suspensions as well as an ability to carry up to 160 liters in fuel, allowing Manfred to cover more than 1000 kilometers in the car. This was done by having three separate fuel tanks, one in the place of the 90 under-the-seat one, the second one where an average 110 SW and an extra one to boost the distance. But, as Manfred himself states:
One thing has to be said, after 5 years in Africa nothing works as it should, been even welding the chassis, an engine overhaul in Ghana, I need new tires now, portable mini compressor is gone, Engel fridge does not work anymore due to way too much shaking, all the cases on top had been ripped open, the cover was ripped apart by trees while i was busy concentrating on the road, and a lot of other things have been replaced some several times. But having said that I never had a transfer, gear box problem, the spare alternator broke irreparably while in the box, the old one repaired/cleaned because of mud at least 5 times.
After quite a bit of modifications, the unbelievable Land Rover finally headed, in the spring of 2005, towards Morocco where it has been ever since, exploring and discovering new and wonderful areas of the African continent.
Photos: courtesy Thisfabtrek.com
Extreme 4x4 are highly modified and custom built 4x4s. Some of them may look like other 4x4s but as you look closer you see interesting solutions. Others are obviously extreme 4x4s!
