John and Ann

Thanks Beejay for your contribution. You have been extremely helpful. It would seem that GCM does not actually exist, rather when people mention GCM, they arrive at the value by adding GVM and rated tow capacity. This appears to lead one to falsely conclude that a 200 Series actually has a manufacturers specified GCM. As to the question about a weighbridge in WA, I have not used one as yet. When one was needed by the suspension installer, I assume kit was near Osborne Park or the installers own certified scales.

Hi all, Thanks Brian for your contribution. It is a thorny issue mostly misunderstood, but, with potentially grave financial consequences. I am still gathering information and the ground appears to be very unstable under foot. My understanding of kerb weight is that it only includes a nominal amount of fuel in the tank(s), not a full load, usually this is around 10% of the actual fuel capacity. I just looked at my license papers after the GVM upgrade and it states Tare of 2,623kg (I have no idea how much fuel was in the tank at the time) and GVM of 3,800kg. The vehicle does not have a GCM rating and the tow rating placard remains at 3,500kg, 350kg on the tow ball. A reasonable person would conclude that the total combined rating of my vehicle is now 7,300kg in reality it is probably more like 3,150kg on the van axles and 3,800kg (which must include the 350kg on the tow ball) for the vehicle a total of 6,950kg. Complex I agree but I think quite likely compliant. I spoke to Lovell's about GCM, they said that it did not increase, "ummm, I think" (their words not mine??). So no joy there. The only thing I can be sure of is that no matter what I read there is never a GCM mentioned or specified. As to ADR's the vehicle's manufacturer is responsible for nominating ratings that apply to the vehicle, these ratings must be backed up by a rigid testing regime in order for them to obtain approval to attach a compliance plate that nominates those ratings. In the case of an off the line vehicle the manufacturer is obviously Toyota. With GVM upgrades (certainly for Lovells, perhaps others as well) it becomes interesting in that if the upgrade is done prior to first registration then Lovell's become the vehicle manufacturer for the purposes of ratings and the rating is a nationally compliant rating, if on the other hand you upgrade an already registered vehcile as I did the the installer becomes the vehicle manufacturer for the purpose of ratings, but the rating is a state only rating, meaning if it were to be sold interstate it may or may not be rated to 3,800kg, and would have to be recomplianced, my understanding is that Lovell's kits are not post first registration compliant in all states. The later is evident on my vehicle as the compliance plate has been issued by the installer, not Lovell's or Toyota. The one thing that I have not yet considered is weight distribution in my vehicle. I will need to visit a weigh bridge to ensure I am compliant and is on my need to do list. Beware, just because a GVM upgrade has been done it does not mean that you can just load up an head off. Take a look at the tyre placard it will nominate the rating at each axle, this will (or should) be checked if you are pulled over for an inspection. In my case the front axle is rated at 1,800kg and the rear 2,000kg, I have no idea where I stand with this? Oh by the way, my Sahara has KDSS so you can be sure that a current GXL will need similar consideration. Keep the information flowing, thanks, I don't fancy being at risk of a claim should the unforeseen occur. :thumbsup:

Hi to all, Chris is right that we should not get excited about GVM, concerned would be the way I would describe my own circumstance, this may not apply to others. Chris is also right about GCM, it does not increase by the corresponding increase in the GVM. The real issue is that the ball weight of the van gets added to the vehicle payload and that is where it gets tight. In my case I have a Sahara which has a kerb weight of 2675kg's, 45 kg's more than a GXL. I have added the second fuel tank at 70litres, bull bar, winch, drawer set, 4wd recovery, repair and maintenance gear, auxilliary batteries (I have a duel set in the rear), Waeco fridge for coldies and other drinks and then add the two of us (we are light weights) with some general luggage. Now add the ball weight of the van and I am 5kg's over the GVM of a 3580kg GVM upgrade. Therefore in my circumstance the Lovells upgrade is essential and not optional. I don't even have a roof rack full of gear or rear wheel carrier with an additional spare, no chance now I don't think. I found out what our caravan spec's are today, Tare of 3100kg's, ATM of 3500kg's, so I have a payload capacity of 400kg's in the van and working backwards there is a further payload capacity in the vehicle of 45kg's in the vehicle (there goes the option to take the mother in-law for a spin), a similar setup in GXL would increase the vehicle payload spare to 85kg's. These figures are based on GCM, not GVM alone. Granted our van is on the heavy side, it was amongst the heavy weights on the Kedron score board. On the other hand maybe I've got it all wrong and there is nothing to loose any sleep over, others that I have spoken to seem to agree though, I would be happy to be wrong as it is going to be tight. :helpsmilie: Regards John

Thanks Mal and Kerry, Only a couple of sleeps to go now. I think I'm all shopped out, If I don't have it by now it can't be that essential, besides I'm stranded, ARB Nundah has my 200 Series Sahara fitting the sub tank Toyota should have fitted in the factory... Grrrr

Hi again John, Forgot to give the detail of the ratings for a Lovell's upgrade. My GVM is now a very reasonable 3800kg's up healthy 500kg's from factory specification, I'm sure all other GVM upgrade kits offer only a 280kg increase to 3580kg's because they are certified only up to the factory axle ratings whereas the Lovell's upgrade is certified to increase the axle ratings as well, therefore you get the extra 220kg's which covers a big chunk of the 350kg's ball weight that my van will drop on the hitch. I had air bags fitted at the same time as a bit of insurance, but have not had the new van on yet, that happens Thursday. Into the bargain you get almost a 2" lift, the vehicle sits flat and the ride is sweet.

Hi John, All landcruisers benefit from suspension upgrade, more so if you spend time off the black top. With the 200 it is more about GVM which is where all of us that travel come unstuck, there is very little load capacity spare particularly if you are towing a bigger van. If considering a suspension upgrade Lovell's is the best option as it increases GVM way more than the other suppliers. Good luck and have a great Christmas

Headed back to Brisbane tonight, our turn for the excitement to start, only 4 sleeps to go until we pick up our ATV2 on Thursday. Ann comes over on Wednesday, but I will have plenty to keep me busy till then, getting the last of the essential supplies. :biggrin:

A Very Merry Christmas to all. May the festive season bring you all great joy and that the coming New Year brings health, happiness and an overwhelming desire to travel. :drunk: Travel with care, arrive safely and most of all enjoy the journey.

Thanks Ann, Yeah I'm sure you are right it has been a very dry winter indeed. I'm in Perth for the weekend and the sun is shining and I'm loving it, back to Brisbane Sunday night and then onto the 4 sleeps countdown for delivery Thursday :smile:

Yeah roger that :thumbsup: I left sunny Perth behind a week ago to come visit during the last few weeks of my van build. I'm over the rain already and still have a week and a bit to go then off to Cairns :laugh: . I think I had better go buy some waders!!!

Hi Mal and Kerry Good news, I will probably see you there as I will be lurking around during the build of our ATV which is chassis one of the three you saw waiting to be started, roll on Christmas. :thumbsup: Will be a good present for all :beer:

Congratulations Richard enjoy your new van, excellent way to spoil yourself. :thumbsup:

Hi Pete, Yeah they do use a little oil (I use a couple of litres or so between services), but, aside from that they are a dream ride. this is my fourth in about 12 years and is the best ever. Drives like a AWD car, a very fast and powerful AWD car at that. :thumbsup:

Thanks all, I spoke with Stan again today and yes they no longer fit the 3.5t hitch due to rating for off-road. This means that a 1000 lb WDH is required though but as has been said better to drive with confidence so am happy with outcome. BTW December deliveries are still on track so will be spend the festive season in our new van somewhere in Queensland doing a short shake down run before heading back to Perth. Cheers all and thanks :thumbsup:

Hi all, Has anyone had the debate with Kedron over their fitting 3.5t McHitch's to their vans? According to what I have read from McHitch these hitches are only rated to 3.0t off-road which will for my ATV2 on order be under rated (potential insurance problem), I need (as most people would) the full 3.5t rating off-road, I don't see it is likely I will offload 500kgs when I go off-road while travelling around. I did ask about the option to fit a 6t hitch which needs then a 1000kg WDH but they said, no they fit 3.5t as this is the tow rating of my cruiser. Whilst that might be true on-road it is not when off-road. :helpsmilie:

Hi Bryan, Safari would always be my choice :thumbsup: best fitted by reputable installer to ensure cut panelwork has paintwork well treated to prevent future rust problems and that the all snorkel pipework is well sealed against ingress of water.

Hi Bill, Geez that must have hurt (the back pocket), hope you enjoy the ride, I'm sure you will :thumbsup:

Hi Glen, FYI Sidewinder have a similar unit to Redarc which caters for different battery (chemistries) types and is rated at 30A charge http://www.sidewinder.com.au/page168aa.html, the price is a more affordable $249.95.

Hi all, Generally the principle of bigger is better for DC wiring is correct, however, when it comes to your vehicle and RV battery system, not all batteries are equal. Things that might be considered when looking at the RV battery system charging and maintenance are: Vehicle batteries are generally WET (Lead Acid), for cranking power. RV batteries as supplied by Kedron are probably AGM, for deep cycle use. Batteries of different chemistry WET, AGM, GEL and the like require a different charge voltage for optimal charging. Batteries of different chemistry should not as a rule be grouped due to their specific charge cycle needs. Charge voltage applied by the regulator is determined by the average voltage state of the battery group, not the individual state of any one battery. Charging your RV batteries via the Anderson plug groups your RV batteries with the vehicle batteries, therefore, potentially grouping batteries of dissimilar chemistry. Charging your RV batteries via the Anderson plug unless done via a DC-DC charger may be at the expense of optimal charge of you vehicle batteries. As an example, most vehicle dual battery systems will not start charging your auxiliary battery until your engine battery(s) has reached a pre-determined state of charge. Think of the RV battery group as an auxiliary battery for the vehicle. As a general rule if a battery in a battery group needs to be relaced than all should be replaced at the same time. When looking at our vehicle and RV DC charging I will likely use the REDARC unit, but there are others about. All the best :thumbsup:

Hi Mal and Kerry, I have asked for our van to be ready for pick just before they close for Christmas as I will drive across with my two boys via Great Central Road and Plenty Highway, Ann will fly over to meet up with us there, we have plans to spend Christmas and New Years somewhere around Brisbane/Gold Coast/Sunshine Coast before the boys fly back home to work at Kununurra and we start the long steady shakedown drive home to Perth. We are planning a couple of trips to the factory before delivery to sort through some of the finer details and extras which are plentiful. Stan has been great, they are all very accommodating. It all seems such a long time away, I am becoming quite impatient as well as excited :thumbsup:

Hi All, GVM upgrades are an interesting topic! It is important to understand that a GVM upgrade only increases the GVM and hence payload capacity of the vehicle. It does not increase the vehicle GCM or tow capacity, which are the important numbers when considering the weight of your caravan. As has been said there are I believe only options available for a couple of Toyota's and Nissan variants that don't include the 100 Series. In truth you probably don't need to consider an upgrade for a 100 Series, but, if you have a 200 Series and are contemplating bullbar, winch, roof rack, drawers, rear wheel carrier and fuel tank upgrades you probably have no choice, you might squeeze in under GVM for your trip with careful packing, but stop have a biggh lunch, buy a few groceries or take on another passenger and you could go over, it really is that touch and go. However, BEWARE, if you load your vehicle to use the capacity of an upgraded GVM (some upgrades are 500kg) then that additional weight in the vehicle must come off the vehicle tow capacity to remain withing the GCM rating. Put simply you are moving where you can put the extra 200-500kgs by going for a GVM upgrade, you do not get an over all increase in what you can carry vehicle and caravan combined. GVM upgrade benefits a vehcile that either tows nothing or tows something well under the rated tow capacity of the vehicle, setting aside the advantages inherent in a suspension upgrade (that is another issue). This link may help "Watch Your Weight" If you are looking for serious tow capacity for your cruiser 100 or 200 Series you might need to consider conversion to a 6 wheeler :smile: BTW, we have an ATV2 on order for a December delivery as well :thumbsup:

Great to see, the video was gr8, brilliant production :thumbsup:

Hi Mayzee, Great clip on YouTube, looks like fun :thumbsup:

Hi Bill, I'm with Jason and Tony, suspension modification that includes GVM upgrade and air bags would be first on the list of must do's, from there the world is your oyster, depends on the depth of your pockets :laugh: If you want power and better fuel economy go for chip and exhaust I have Taipan XP 3" exhaust and DP Chip but would go for Steinbaeur chip kit and may yet change my own. Naturally you will need a snorkel, Safari is the most obvious choice. Once all that is done you will probably be needing greater range from your 200 series than the 90 litre factory tank will give you, so rear wheel carrier and long range fuel tank. A good bullbar is a must, hard to go past ARB here and if you plan on really getting out there you can't go past a warn winch. Now that you have the frame on the front you have a place for your UHF aerial and spot/driving light, if you have the cash go for Lightforce 240HID, expensive but worth every cent. You will need somewhere to store some of your vehicle essentials so a good drawer set is next on the list, Im going to investigate putting sealed gel batteries in the side spaces either side of the drawers to provide auxiliary power with a jump start solonoid and DC-DC Charger probably from Redarc to give me total isolation of the auxiliary system, to this I will connect the Anderson connector socket for the caravan. And the "list" goes on: Manually selected diff locks, front and back. Autolockers are OK as well but manual air operated lockers give you more options, when stuck Two wheel drive conversion for some better fuel economy. Roof rack with awning If you have OEM navigation, you can use this to display caravan reverse camera with a few simple vehicle mods. To enhance the OEM navigation system experience so you passenger can use all functions as well as view reverse camera whilst in motion (as if you were parked), check out the Pretigious Society's Navigation/Video Enhancement out of the US. To ensure you know what is going on in the engine bay, you might even check out the nifty and very useful ScanGuage it plugs into your vehicle network and provides all manner of useful information, if you do this first you will be able to map the impact of each of you mods on engine performance yourself. After all that is done: Check your vehicle recovery points. When you need to replace the treads consider changing to Cooper Tyres I read that it might be possible to upgrade tow capacity and GCM by 300kgs, this would be real handy as the cruiser is "almost" too light in weight and tow capacities for seious long term nomadic adventure. Satellite phone, check the new and soon to be released InmarSat ISatPhone Pro, you can get a pre-paid SIM, the recharges are good for 720 days, and while your looking at that, don't forget to consider applying for the Federal Government 50% subsidy through DBCDE. OK, well that pretty well covers my wish list, I have some of the above done but still have a long way to go before December when I go pick up my new ATV2. Good luck Bill, enjoy the build :thumbsup:

Hi Eric, We have been running Coopers on our Landcruisers for about the last 10 years, they are a brilliant long wearing tyre and can thoroughly recommend them. :thumbsup: