New member, another troopy

cweight

Observer
Hello All,

Just joined and thought I'd introduce myself and our Troopy. It's a long story, so this posting will just be a quick overview, and I'll fill in the details over time. Lotsa pictures to come.


Black Rock Desert, Nevada, September 2010

Our Troopy is a 1998 HZJ75, which we bought in Australia in 2002. Of course, it came with the 1HZ engine and dual diesel tanks, but it was otherwise bare bones empty. Only 70k kilometers.

We spent about one month in Sydney, kitting it out - beefed up the suspension, installed a rear ARB locker, added second battery, outside shower, front bull bar and winch, rear bumper with dual tire carrier, full-length roof rack, and roof-top tent. Inside, added a very small bench seat, a cargo barrier, an Engel 45, two 55 liter water tanks, and lotsa shelves and pockets, nooks and crannies for stashing stuff.


Namibia, July 2009

We spent about 10 months in Australia. Up the east coast all the way to Cape York, down to and all around the center, including the Simpson Desert, back up north to Darwin, and then across the top to Broome, then down the Canning Stock Route to Perth, and across the bottom to Melbourne, where we parked and headed over to Tasmania. The Troopy stayed in Melbourne, while we headed back to the States.

Two years later, I shipped Troopy to Cape Town and it spent the next five years in Africa, and we went back and forth when time permitted. The first trip was 5 months in South Africa, Lesotho, Namibia, Botswana, and Zambia. The second was similar. The third took us through South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania, Rwanda, Congo, Uganda, and Kenya. The idea was to drive on through to Europe, but I got a job offer I couldn't pass up, so the fourth trip was from Kenya back down to Namibia (which is a much better place to stash a vehicle). The fifth was what was starting to become the 'usual circuit' of Namibia, Botswana, and Zambia. The sixth and last was just desert Namibia, because with a seven-month old, we opted to stay out of the malarial zone.


Changing a shredded tire (yes, very dangerous - mea culpa)


Zander wants to help.

Troopy was then shipped to Seattle, where it landed about two months ago. We headed down the coast to California, across through Lassen and then spent most of our time poking around the Black Rock Desert area.


High Rock Canyon, Nevada


Ever since we returned, if you ask Zander "where are you going?", he says "desert!". That's my boy!

I only have one year in the States with this Troopy (it is still registered in Victoria, Australia) and then one year in Canada. After that, we'll hopefully be ready for the Alaska to Argentina portion of this journey.

I plan to use this year in the States to modify Troopy to something more appropriate for 3-person, non-desert travel. I will probably convert it to a BushCamper-style or perhaps a Pop-Top. Perhaps turbo it, finally get the Hi-Lift sorted out, etc. I'll have lots of questions for the collective wisdom.

Thanks for all the great tips and stories I have found on the forum thus far.

Cheers,
Chris, Karin, and Zander.

 
Last edited:

eli

Observer
another troopy . . .

Sir You have a Beautiful Family . . . and Your rig is Very Cool . . .

Thx for the pics. keep them coming:costumed-smiley-007
 

gjackson

FRGS
Very cool trips, and very cool truck. Do you have a web site with trip details? Or could you post some up here?

cheers
 

1leglance

2007 Expedition Trophy Champion, Overland Certifie
Very cool and welcome,
Of course there are a ton of questions we have for you like...are you a US citzn and importing it temp?
Will you have to return the rig to Oz before departure or can you run around the Americas before returning?

If you check out these threads for cool euro builds on troopies
http://expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=44464&highlight=allrad
http://expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=41535&highlight=allrad
http://expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=26731&highlight=allrad
http://expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=15200&highlight=allrad
 

cweight

Observer
Thanks all. We don't have a website, but I plan to detail things on this forum. One thread on vehicle, build-up, choices, etc. One thread on the travel itself.

It will take some time, though... I know how you guys are about photos :) and the early stuff is all on slides that I haven't scanned in. I hope to make it worth the wait.

Cheers,
Chris.
 

cweight

Observer
1leglance, our posts crossed... yup, US citizen and only have it in the States for one year, then to Canada for one year. Then head down to Argentina, the slow way. From there, I dunno. Probably ship to Europe - Iceland, circle the Mediterranean, and head into North Africa. It might eventually make it back to Oz - would love to spend more time out in Western Australia, but no hurry. It is registered in Victoria, and as long as I keep paying the yearly registration fee, they keep sending me the registration sticker. There are other places, besides Oz, where it could be sold. Canada in December 2012, US in 2022 :) Recent changes in the EU mean that it cannot be (newly) registered in the EU proper, but I suspect there are plenty of countries in/near Europe where it can still be sold/registered.
 

CanuckMariner/Nomad

Love having fun 😊 in the 🌞 by the ⛵ and the ⏳
Welcome to the forum as we all drool :drool:eek:ver your troopy and your outrageous trips! Here, you will find a plethora of info on places to go, people to travel with (all good) and kool mods for your rig. Enjoy the forum and say hello if you make it to Calgary one year and I am still here (spend a lot of time in the SW Deserts):costumed-smiley-007
 

goodwoodweirdo

Adventurer
Recent changes in the EU mean that it cannot be (newly) registered in the EU proper, but I suspect there are plenty of countries in/near Europe where it can still be sold/registered.

Hi, Firstly lovely troopie.... if you decide to registrar it in Europe, do it in the UK. You need a resident and address (eg get a mate to do it)…. He can sort out the paperwork in a day or two….

I’m importing a Aussie troopie (ex Christian 2aroundtheworld) living in Belgium its proving to be a long process, I need the OK from Brussels it can go on the road, its been 2 months and been told to expect to wait another 6-8 months for an answer !!! they haven’t even inspected it yet, just confirmation its appropriate to use on Belgium roads.

To give you an idea of costs:
Importation tax: European vehicle value x 10% + €100 for the paperwork x 21% on the total.
Custom chassis number inspection €0.20 yep 20 cents !
Full technical inspection €110
Number plate and associated paperwork €100

Waiting patiently….

Matt
:ylsmoke:
 

cweight

Observer
Latest EU importation rules

Now this is interesting. How recently did you guys do this importation to the EU?

Last summer, in Iceland, we met a German couple who had a Troopy that had been kitted out by Innovation Campers/. Very sweet setup. He was very clear that the EU rules had recently changed and that existing vehicles were 'grandfathered' but that new vehicles could not be imported/registered. He said there was a master EU-wide list of grandfathered vehicles and his was on it. He was very involved in the North Africa expedition scene, so I trusted he had his facts straight. Now I am wondering if this is a Germany-only rule.

Thanks much,
Chris.
 

goodwoodweirdo

Adventurer
Now this is interesting. How recently did you guys do this importation to the EU?

Last summer, in Iceland, we met a German couple who had a Troopy that had been kitted out by Innovation Campers/. Very sweet setup. He was very clear that the EU rules had recently changed and that existing vehicles were 'grandfathered' but that new vehicles could not be imported/registered. He said there was a master EU-wide list of grandfathered vehicles and his was on it. He was very involved in the North Africa expedition scene, so I trusted he had his facts straight. Now I am wondering if this is a Germany-only rule.

Thanks much,
Chris.

He's referring to brand new vehicles supplied from Toyota. they don’t meet the new emissions rules. 2010 model year…. Its not applicable to your car. Germany is very strict on importing cars which were not supplied locally… the UK is the best, even more so if its RHD. You’ll need to add a fog light, with switch on the dash. Your headlights are OK and most importantly, the UK don’t require a EU Certificate of Conformity if manufactured before 2005.

If the Belgium authorities reject my car, then I’ll give it to my parents to import into the UK… the reason I didn’t do this in the first place was simply to have my papers in my name and not to drive back t the UK every year for its technical inspection. Don’t try registration it in Spain.. as a temporary resident this is a nightmare. Just ask if you need any information for the UK…


In the meantime, my car is parked up…. Waiting for a stupid piece of paperwork…. All holiday plans with it are postponed… I’m slowly working through the list of to-do’s….

On a positive note, our plan was to drive down to Gambia over Christmas and leave the car there for future holidays, now we can go North Cape next spring and still Gambia this time next year.


Good luck with your travels

Matt
:ylsmoke:
 

cweight

Observer
Thanks, this is really good info. I don't plan to register it myself in Europe, but the fact that someone else can register it makes it much more likely that I could sell it in Europe.

Cheers,
Chris.
 

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