Suspension on the CSR

[Rick D Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close Rick D]

Hi all,
New on this forum so hope I'm not going over old ground.

Just purchased a 150 series 2010 Prado GX diesel from WA which was used by WA Water in Carnarvon. Vehicle in good condition but has original suspension. Only done around 59,000km.

I am planning for two Prado 150 series to travel down the Canning Stock Route in August. Trip will be from Adelaide up to Billiluna and then south to Willuna and back home via Norseman and back across the Nullabor. Reason for this route is limited time available from work and recommendation that southern route is best option for sand dune direction and sun.

We are looking at doing the trip as quick as possible in around 10-12 days on the CSR part of the journey. We will not be stopping in a single location (on this trip anyway) for more than overnight. However we will have a couple of 1/4 day stops to check the vehicles at a couple of locations.

My question is based on my concerns with suspension. There has been some of threads relating to suspension problems and others on various sites where suspension failure has been a major issue. I am currently running standard suspension and would like to know the likelihood and probability of suspension failure on this trip.

If suspension failure is a high chance, then I will may need to postpone the trip for a year or so. Sure this is an open ended question but would appreciate your thoughts.

Thanks
Rick

[AJ120 Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close AJ120]

A fast trip down the CSR on stock suspension in a vehicle that by necessity will be heavily loaded, I would say suspension problems would be likely! The CSR is not a track to tackle either quickly or on a tight budget.

Cheers Andrew

[sleeky5 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close sleeky5]

Having done the trip north to south last year in my 120 with a King's/Bilstein suspension, I certainly wouldn't attempt doing it in 10-12 days regardless of the setup you have. We took 23 days, making sure we saw most things. I would suggest that you would likely suffer some failure by driving it as hard as you are indicating. The corrugations alone are the worst I have seen, and even with tyres down to 18lb speeds of more than 40km/hr could cause serious damage. In saying that it was the best trip I have done and would certainly do it again in the future.

Regards Neil

[Rick D Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close Rick D]

Thanks for your response and will review our plans . Thanks Andrew & Neil.

[404pug Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close 404pug]

Ditto re. the time on the CSR. Aim for 100-120 km per day so take about 20 days including a rest day or 2. You will break the car on a 12 day trip, be totally buggered yourself and see nothing as it is a drive which requires a lot of concentration. At the very minimum replace the shocks with good aftermarket ones but better still spend the $1500-$1800 on a good suspension set up. A set of polyair airbags will help. You will have a lot weight and the corrugations are killers. You may have to stop every hour or so in some parts to allow the shocks to cool [ which may stop them failing altogether]. It is a great trip and not to be rushed. It is tough but enjoyable. Take your time, enjoy it and you wont break your car. Neil