Mrs Lynn Astill

Hi Sue, We hope to leave Brissie on Oct 24 and head for Port Augusta and across the Nullarbor to the southern corner. Will let you know where we are down the track. Regards Chris

Thanks for your replies folks. Can I assume that the fridge and exhaust vents on the drivers side are not a dust ingress issue? Regards Chris

Hi John, Basically what Merv said, but being a chicken, I would come up inside the cupboards if possible. Regards Chris

I have wrapped gladwrap around the flyscreen several times and then put it back in the door. Only time will tell, I guess.

Hi Merv, I have just installed lpg and CO alarms in the van so that I can close off the door vent when in the stix. Legal ramifications may be dubious. Regards Chris

Hi all, Leaving in a month for all points west and busy getting everything sorted and ready. Just wondering what everyone does to keep the dust out of the fridge and exhaust vents when travelling on the dirt. I was considering vinyl and velcro, but not sure how effective it would be. I have put two thicknesses of airconditioning filter in the other vents. Looking forward to your responses. Regards Chris

Just spent yesterday moving all the wooden blocks on ours so the draws cant move around. Hope it works, leaving for parts unknown in 5 weeks. Guess I will find out soon enough....lol

Hi all, Colin, would you mind providing a pic of your fix for this. We are departing shortly for places unknown and would prefer the drawers didn't fly open...lol Thanks Chris

Gday Rob, We have been down this track too. Water is the first as you have said. The spare wheel is 35 kg if I recall and we elected to keep both, just in case...lol. We did change the batteries over to lithium which was a 50kg gain, but about 4 grand. We actually weighed everything we had in the van and then rationalised accordingly. I moved the jerry can holders to the rear to get some weight of the towball and they will be empty unless going into the 'sticks'. Also ditched the jockey wheel and only use the trailermate jack now, which is 15 kg. Another thing that had to go was the front loader washing machine and plumbing which is about 55kg. We bought a small plastic twin tub (available for under $150) which works ok and is about 13kg. Just have to take it outside and wash outside (uses less water and power too). Anyway, good luck. I think 50% of vans on the road are probably overweight, but it's the insurance that scares me.... Regards Chris

Hi John and Danny, We have a 2010 200 series GXL. Toyota have stated that they did not have a stated GCM for our vehicle. The GCM is a combination of the GVM and towing capacity which in our case is 7300kg. It's a good story and I have it in writing, so that's my excuse. Lol. Strangely enough, I have noticed that the current model has a stated GCM of 6850kg. Anyway, I like my version better. :-) Regards Chris

Gday all. We hope to be setting out indefinitely in October after a couple of false starts due to health issues. I was wondering what everyone does regarding 'dump points' when free-camping for extended periods. Is it just a case of dig a hole in an appropriate spot? We will not use chemicals as we will have an SOG system on the dunny. On another note, we propose to point the car west from Brissy hoping to be in the Kimberley in May next year. Any advice on the best route? Look forward to your thoughts. Thanks Chris

Hi all, I will also be very interested to see how this goes. My understanding was that Transport Department inspectors couldn't care less about these certifications etc from engineers since changes to the federal transport acts came into being in 2011/12 (???). I would really love to be wrong about this. Good luck. Regards Chris

Hi Cathy, I had a similar problem with my vacum sealer although mine is a fresh Shield brand. It has a foam filter at the back, you need to make sure the lid of the filter housing is sealed correctly I fixed mine by pushing the lid down tight then using sticky tape to seal around the lid. Mine now workes like a charm. Hope this helps.......cheers Lynn

Hi Colin, Your trip sounds like a wonderful idea. Lynn and I are planning to wonder westward around that time next year and would like to express our interest in being part of the convoy. Regards Chris

Hi all, I am currently waiting for delivery of 2 x 180ah lithium batteries from ev-power in WA. Expensive at $3200 delivered, but the weight saving of 50kg and about 50% more power was hard to pass up as we are planning a year or two away starting early to mid next year. Our van has all Xantrex equipment which appears compatible with the lithium batteries with a few setup changes. I am expecting delivery next Wednesday so will let you know how it goes if you like. Please note that I also purchased their battery management device which is a must. Regards Chris

Hi Alan, I put a pioneer DVD in the dash of our gxl. I was told that the Toyota camera is only 5 volt and as such it will not work with any other hardware on the market so a new camera was reqd also. Hope this helps.

If I recall, the 200 series owners manual says to tow in S5 only. Regards Chris

Hi Bill and Wendy. I was told by a Hayman Reece Agency recently to run my airbags as low as possible when towing as they fight against the WDH. We have the Lovell's suspension upgrade. Regards Chris

I have also had dealings with Joe of McHitch and can confirm what Gazza has said. Good service and a good bloke. Regards Chris

Couldn't agree more. We had some issues that the Tom and the boys went out of their way on. I would say that they are without parallel in the caravan industry as far as after sales service is concerned. Regards Chris

Hi Geoff and Pam, I have learnt a bit more since my earlier post and believe that the following is the case (in QLD anyway). The ball weight is definitely included in the GVM of the tow vehicle and the increased GVM (via upgrade) does increase the GCM of the setup. The way I understand it is that the GCM is the sum of the car manufacturer's stated GVM plus the manufacturer's stated towing capacity. However, Toyota do not have a stated GVM for the 200 Series, therefore the overall GCM is the Car's gvm plus it's stated towing capacity. In my case that is 3800kg (Lovells's GVM upgrade) plus the stated towing capacity of 3500kg. Total GCM = 7300kg. Hope this helps. Regards Chris

Hi all, In response to the bad fuel issue, we are with RACQ for our 200 series and I asked them specifically that question. Their answer was that if it is not specifically excluded in the policy T's and C's, the it is covered. I looked at the T's and C's as pointed out by them and it is NOT excluded. Please note that I do NOT have this in writing ..... Regards Chris

Hi Colin, We hope to be up that way early next year, so we would love to know its whereabouts also. Thanks in anticipation regards Chris

Thanks John, I have ordered the covers from the US; looking forward to leaving the hatches open... Regards Chris

Hi John, I am very interested in these vent covers. Is it safe enough to stand on the roof to fit them or is another method advised?? Kind regards Chris