There have been a lot of questions coming through Bronson’s Facebook and our slowverlanders Instagram page and a very common question is “What kind of gear do you carry and what do you need to get started?” I’ll go ahead and cover our vehicle and gear, but the “how do you get started?” That’s a whole different post, so stay tuned for that.
If you’ve been a follower from the beginning, you might remember that we started with an ambulance. After spending so much money getting it “road ready” and doing all the “bullet proofing,” suspension upgrades, solar and 4wd installations, the damn thing kept breaking down every 3,000 miles and would be incredibly costly for repairs. Like a minimum of $1500 USD and a couple of days of hotels since the ambulance was our home. We spent 6 months driving through and breaking down in Mexico and decided to drive all the way back up to the USA and sell it.
Enter…. Dusty the Mudslinger. It took us 3 years to come up with that name. Mudslinger is a 2003 Toyota Landcruiser UZJ100 series (gasoline- yeah, unfortunate, we know.) with upgraded Old Man Emu Extra Heavy Suspension, Mickey Thompson AT tires and re-geared to 4.88 for our weight and type of driving we do south of the border. We made it through the USA, Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Ecuador before finding our “perfect” overlanding vehicle. Though it was difficult to part with Dusty, the truth is, we didn’t need two vehicles. So we sold Dusty in Colombia and jumped at the chance to purchase Sid.
Sid is our third vehicle for traveling around the world. We sourced this vehicle in 2023 while on a trip to the Galapagos. Kaden had seen the listing posted on Expeditionmeister.com the day before we were due to fly to the Galapagos for a three week Christmas Vacation. We made contact with the owner in the UK, and to show we were serious, we bought our plane tickets to the UK that day. After our Galapagos vacation ended, we stored Dusty at a friend’s house, hopped on a plane and arrived in the UK, met with the owner, drove the vehicle, and went through all of the mechanics of the interior and how everything functioned. We had a mechanic check it out and give the all clear. That day we drove away with Sid, our 2013 Toyota LandCruiser Troop Carrier.
This is what we currently have as “stock.”
Sid’s specs
LandCruiser 78 Troop Carrier
1 ton (2400 Ibs payload)
1HZ Diesel engine (no electronics or emissions)
Manual transmission (upgraded from 80 series)
2 fuel tanks (1000 mile range)
Solid axles F/R
Locking differentials F/R
Manual locking hubs
Winch
Poptop with access to cab
Sleeps 3-4 adults (two up top, two down below)
Indoor and outdoor cooking options Quality interior camper build Low miles (<35,000 miles)
1 Webasto diesel air/water cabin heater for back
1 Webasto diesel air/water heater for cab/engine block
Water purification system Trabold bypass oil filter
Originally it only had two seats, we brought it back to the Manufacturer in Germany and had them install a third seat and replace the bench in the rear to accommodate a third passenger. This required a little re-configuring of the interior, but we didn’t lose much. Just one bench cabinet and the fridge had to be moved from where the third seat is now, to the center aisle. We now have an expedition vehicle that can get us through practically any terrain in any weather. I guess we’ll see how we do when we finally get to take it to Africa. Stay tuned.
If you want more information you can visit the manufacturer’s website.
https://www.toms-fahrzeugtechnik.de/en/worldcruiser-1