GoMaD Newsletter #2 | The Cruiser

A project within a project with us having to custom design and make an 8-seater vehicle to transport 6 young men and Suann and I. This is the vehicle we will use for  our 3 month overlanding mission to Namibia, Zambia, and Botswana.

So, we started with the chassis of a FJ45 Land Cruiser and started to build it up from there.

For most of my adult life I have dreamed dreams and some I have relegated to fantasy as I did not believe I would ever be able to realize them. I’m a bakkie guy. When we had to plan to have an 8-seater vehicle that could be used for overlanding, I knew we had our work cut out for us to make that happen on a low budget. I needed a car that I could work on myself and service and teach the young men to service and maintain. The Landrover Defender 130, a very old one, was our best bet. Through just interesting events I met a guy who does customization of vehicles. We chatted and when he understood what I wished to do he said a Landy would not be ideal and that I needed a Land Cruiser. I said the entry price point was just too high for me, even for a 1980’s model. He showed me one that his son had started on, lost interest, and offered me to take over the project, cover what he has spent, and he will then continue customizing for what we wanted.

I’m an old school guy and have loved the old cruisers but parked that dream. Here the Lord, with no engineering from my side, or scripting, puts before me a vehicle that is my dream. The FJ 45 is that old jeep style front. This is a stripped-down basic machine that will be new at a budget that is impossible. Zoom into that first pic and see the dash.

This is the God of the universe stooping down and being Emanuel to frail humanity.