heavy-duty steering arm. Damian also flicked his 35-inch BF
Goodrich Mud Terrain KM2s in favour of softer 35-inch Nitto
Trail Grapplers M/Ts, which wrap around 16x8-inch Dynamic
steel rims with -25 offset.
“For a shorty, it’s not too bad. Normally with short
wheelbases you feel everything,” he said. “The new tyres are
softer, much softer. They mould better, where the KM2s were
more of a soft balloon.”
In fact, it was a previous trip to Alcorns – where we were
headed for this drive – when Damian decided the change was
inevitable. “The last time we were here it was too muddy, so it
made me go from KM2s to these Nittos.”
In the past few months, Damian’s Defender has also
received a Glind hot-water system, Front Runner glass
gullwing windows and custom Recaro specialist M seats.
“I just got these seats done a couple of days ago,” he told us
as we rode shotgun. “The standard seats aren’t the greatest,
so these offer more comfort and support. I got them custom-
made. I liked the look of the originals, but I just didn’t like
the comfort levels.”
Damian admitted there will probably always be things to
update and change, but he’s pretty content with where things
sit at the moment. If anything, he might look at getting it
regeared.
“The only other thing I can think of doing is possibly
getting it regeared,” Damian added. “But it drives 35s fine, so
it’s not a necessity.”
Off-road, the Defender
benefi ts from the soft
suspension set-up.Customised Recaro
specialist M seats blend
comfort and support.46 http://www.4X4australia.com.auCUSTOM DEFENDER V FJ V WRANGLER