Australian 4WD Action – July 2019

An alloy canopy isn’t the only way to

build an incredible ute – take a look at

these insane tub setups!

NEXT-LEVEL TUB

There’s a lot to be said for fiberglass ute canopies. For one, they look

great on vehicles – being built to match the bodylines and paintwork

of the ute. They also provide instant, lockable secure space away

from prying eyes, keeping your camping gear and your tools nicely

secure. You can even wire up the tailgate and side-windows to lock

and unlock with your vehicle’s central locking, so getting into the

back of the ute or securing it is literally as easy as the push of a

button. There are a dozen different manufacturers of fibreglass

canopies in Oz, each offering their own slightly different version.

One of the major downsides to a ute tub setup is that you’ve got an

awful lot of sheetmetal just waiting to be dented on that tough

weekend away with the boys. The lower rear quarter panels of a

ute tub unfortunately stick out like dog’s balls, so if you want to

keep your shiny tub looking shiny, the solution is a steel rear

protection bar. These typically double as a spare wheel carrier

(more on that in a moment), and provide a substantial amount of

protection to the rear of the vehicle. A common modification

involves building rear brushbars – steel protection that extends

forward from the rear bar, up and around the wheel arch, joining

onto the rear of the sliders.

Mounting spare tyres on the rear of a ute tub means the need for

swing-away carriers, just like with a wagon. Most under-tray spare

wheel carriers will only fit up to a 265/75R16 tyre, so if you’re

stepping up in tyre size, a swing-away carrier is the best option.

Numerous barwork manufacturers offer model-specific options

for rear wheel carriers that match the lines of the ute-tub nicely.

A fibreglass canopy isn’t the only option for enclosing the rear

of a ute tub. Jake the owner of this Navara has built a metal

frame that bolts to the top lip of the ute tub, and then had it

trimmed up in canvas. The benefit to this is he’s now got an

ultra heavy-duty frame to mount a rooftop tent onto. Not all

fibreglass canopies are built strong enough to without heavy

roof loads – they need to be optionally braced back down to

the tub. This is a neat setup that can be done at home

surprisingly cheaply, if you’re part-way handy on the welder

and your missus has an industrial sewing machine.

SETUPS

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