4×4 Magazine Australia — November 2017

THE THREE CUSTOMS FRONT UP TO A WET, SLIPPERY AND DIFFICULT HILL-CLIMB.

WHAT’S IT GOT?

ALCORNS CHALLENGE

ALCORNS Track in Cobaw, Victoria, was the ideal setting to

push each shorty to its limits, with a variety of challenging

terrain – plus it was a wet winter’s day, so the track was

slippery and sections were highly difficult. In fact, Damian

learned the limitations of his Defender here during one of his

first visits to this region of the Macedon Ranges.

“Alcorns made me go from 33s to 35s,” he told us. “The first

time I did it, I couldn’t get past because I didn’t have enough

clearance, so that’s what generated my mind to go to 35s. That

track makes me modify!”

As we rode shotgun with Damian, the comfort provided

by the new long-travel shocks and coils was instantly

recognisable. In combination with the front and rear lockers,

CVs and axles, as well as the new Nittos, this shorty has

incredible off-road credence.

As the non-stop banter filtered through the

communications, I swapped into Sav’s four-inch lifted FJ and

we traced our way to the base of a challenging hill climb.

With tyres set at 12psi, the FJ’s soft suspension soaked up the

juts and ruts with aplomb. “The suspension is so soft; it just

absorbs all the bumps,” Sav added.

The incredible work the DBOR team put into Eric’s

Wrangler Rubicon was evident when we went for a run

through the rough stuff. The improved suspension courtesy

of the front and rear axles and air lockers meant the 10th

Anniversary shorty danced through the tamer stuff with ease.

After traversing relatively simple tracks, we soon arrived at

the base of the challenging hill climb up Alcorns, where we’d

inevitably spend the majority of the day – “200 metres in two

hours,” Damian would later say.

Upon arrival at the gnarly-looking climb, Bill from DBOR

admitted: “A standard Rubicon could do this track easy, but

it’s now a mess so you can’t do it. I used to do customer drive-

days out here and do a whole loop.”

The lads prepared their rigs, planned the best route to

tackle the hill’s obstacles, and prepared to mount the arduous

climb, which wasn’t helped by the fact the track was wet,

sloppy and traction was hard to come by.

The banter reached its crescendo when Sav almost put the

FJ on its side on his first (and only) attempt at the climb –

ARB FRONT BAR WITH WARN WINCH

37-INCH PITBULL ROCKERS

SYNERGY ADJUSTABLE UPPER AND LOWER

CONTROL ARMS (F/R)

RIGID INDUSTRIES LED LIGHT BAR

ALL COMPONENTS FOR GEOMETRY

CORRECTION

CUSTOM-MADE DRAWER SYSTEM

JW SPEAKER HEADLIGHTS

17-INCH METHOD 101 BEADLOCKS

INJEN COLD AIR INTAKE & SNORKEL

SMITTYBILT XRC GEN 2 REAR BAR

TERAFLEX DANA 60S WITH ARB AIR

LOCKERS (F/R)

DBOR FLAT FLARES

DBOR WILD 4.5-INCH LIFT KIT

BUMP STOPS

BRAKE UPGRADE

HIGH STEER CONVERSION

SYNERGY 4.5-INCH LIFT WITH FOX REMOTE

RESERVOIR SHOCKS

SWAY BAR DISCONNECTS

2016 LWB JEEP

WRANGLER

PETER ZAMPIEROLLO

56 http://www.4X4australia.com.au

CUSTOM DEFENDER V FJ V WRANGLER