We bought our Camel Trophy Defender 110, ‘Barry’, six years ago through the Camel Trophy Club forum. Apparently it was used for publicity, training and maybe even pre-scout work for the 1997 Mongolia event.
We’ve added a few items since then, including twin batteries, roof tent, awning, fridge, water tank and pump, and we even used it as our wedding car (along with its sister vehicle, which featured on the cover of LRO’s June 2014 issue).
It’s been greenlaning in the Alps twice and off-roading in France’s Massif Central, and in 2014 we spent a month completing a 4270-mile tour of the Baltic, travelling through 12 countries and crossing 17 borders.
We had only two mechanical issues: the first was the transfer case, which began making noises. It made it home, but it’ll need rebuilding pretty soon. And despite fitting genuine fanbelts before we left, by day three it sounded as if there was a cage of canaries under the bonnet – cured rather unconventionally by placing a penny behind the belt tensioner, then applying some anti-slip belt spray.
Just before leaving, we took the opportunity to buy a Camel Trophy RIB (rigid inflatable boat). It was the prototype for the 2000 event, used to test the equipment for the final event in the South Pacific. We’ll refurbish the boat over the next couple of years and, who knows – we might even plan a trip that combines both the Defender and the RIB.
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Published in the April 2015 issue of Land Rover Owner. Download a digital issue, or order a back issue by calling 01858 438884.
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