Hi Folks, first time member here, quick introduction of myself, Im a mechanic, run my own workshop, 32 this year with a wife and 2 kids (4 & 1 1/2) and just picked up our very own 2003 Champagne Mica Prado 120 GXL V6 a few weeks ago. Always loved 120 Prado's and always said I would get one and once the family grew to 2 kids it was time.
Plans for it include a 3 month Australian holiday and some beach fishing, 4wding and used as a run about for the wife, so it is going to be a comprimised buildup to keep it comfortable but usable and capable of some more serious stuff.
So, Prado came has 160k when we got it, impecable service history, owned by Ex Collingwood/Brisbane player Craig Starcevich and then I got it off a guy in Bunbury who took really good care of it. Beige interior aswell which I must say has grown on me.
It came with:
Side steps
Roof racks
Tow bar
Tint
Half decent HT tyres
First mods are basic stuff at this stage such as recovery gear & little bits n pieces, so far I have picked up:
Mean Mother basic recovery kit
Mean Mother foldable shovel
Haigh Dr Air Pro flow 150lpm compressor
TRED recovery tracks, bag etc
Purchased but not received or installed yet a Autosafe cargo barrier (ask for James at Auto safe, great help, great deal, very professional)
We are on the lookout for a roof cage & genuine Toyota bullbar, floor mats, rear cargo mat, dash mat, canvas bag for items on the roof cage, seat covers.
All these items are going towards our 3 month trip around the bottom of Oz taking in SA, Country NSW, NSW coast, maybe Canberra, Gold Coast for a few weeks as a base to more travelling to Townsville, Cairns etc. Becasue of the kids being so young we are going to be staying in motels/hotels etc so no camping so all the extra survival gear is not required as of yet.
Next big mods once full weight of everything we are taking is known is a probable Bilstein/Lovells or Kings Springs upgrade & poly air bags. Maybe even stretch the budget to include 4 new AT tyres, we dont intend on doing any serious 4wding on our trip, just some beach stuff, but once we get back and these current tyres will be close to replacement stage by that time I will probabaly upgrade then unless I find something good on Gumtree.
Ill get some photos up tonight from my home computer which has all the photos of the car.
Im really stoked to be taking this adventure with my family, so happy with my Prado, and look forward to jumping on PP and updating things, giving advice, tips etc where I can help using my mechanical background and doing this rig buildup and even a trip report.
Thanks for reading.
John
Plans for it include a 3 month Australian holiday and some beach fishing, 4wding and used as a run about for the wife, so it is going to be a comprimised buildup to keep it comfortable but usable and capable of some more serious stuff.
So, Prado came has 160k when we got it, impecable service history, owned by Ex Collingwood/Brisbane player Craig Starcevich and then I got it off a guy in Bunbury who took really good care of it. Beige interior aswell which I must say has grown on me.
It came with:
Side steps
Roof racks
Tow bar
Tint
Half decent HT tyres
First mods are basic stuff at this stage such as recovery gear & little bits n pieces, so far I have picked up:
Mean Mother basic recovery kit
Mean Mother foldable shovel
Haigh Dr Air Pro flow 150lpm compressor
TRED recovery tracks, bag etc
Purchased but not received or installed yet a Autosafe cargo barrier (ask for James at Auto safe, great help, great deal, very professional)
We are on the lookout for a roof cage & genuine Toyota bullbar, floor mats, rear cargo mat, dash mat, canvas bag for items on the roof cage, seat covers.
All these items are going towards our 3 month trip around the bottom of Oz taking in SA, Country NSW, NSW coast, maybe Canberra, Gold Coast for a few weeks as a base to more travelling to Townsville, Cairns etc. Becasue of the kids being so young we are going to be staying in motels/hotels etc so no camping so all the extra survival gear is not required as of yet.
Next big mods once full weight of everything we are taking is known is a probable Bilstein/Lovells or Kings Springs upgrade & poly air bags. Maybe even stretch the budget to include 4 new AT tyres, we dont intend on doing any serious 4wding on our trip, just some beach stuff, but once we get back and these current tyres will be close to replacement stage by that time I will probabaly upgrade then unless I find something good on Gumtree.
Ill get some photos up tonight from my home computer which has all the photos of the car.
Im really stoked to be taking this adventure with my family, so happy with my Prado, and look forward to jumping on PP and updating things, giving advice, tips etc where I can help using my mechanical background and doing this rig buildup and even a trip report.
Thanks for reading.
John
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