Toyota FJ Cruiser

Vehicle

• Australian-spec FJ Cruiser with crawl control and 159L long range fuel tank

External - Tyres and Suspension

• BF Goodrich TA/KO2 All-Terrain tyres 265/70/17
• OME BP51 shocks with remote reservoir and adjustable compression and rebound
• OME 2" lift
• Terrain Tamer heavy duty upper and lower control arms

External - Protection

• ARB Deluxe bull bar
• ARB bash plates
• ARB diff breathers
• Safari snorkel

External - Recovery

• Warn Evo 9500lb synthetic winch with Bluetooth remote
• MaxTrax

External - Lighting

• Upgraded LED fog lights
• Lazerlamps Sentinel 7" Elite Spotlights
• Supercheap LED light bar
• NovSight 3" LED floodlights
• Awning LED strip lights

External - Other

• Rear wheel tray
• Rhino backbone
• Rhino heavy duty load bars
• Alu-Cab Gen 3 Rooftop Tent
• Alu-Cab 270 Shadow Awn
• Quickpitch quick ensuite
• Bandi rear door antenna mount>

Engine Bay

• ARB diff breathers
• Glind marine heat exchanger
• 12V 10L pressure sensing water pump
• ARB single air compressor
• ARB pressure module
• ARB 4L air tank
• Custom electrical distribution boxes and additional fuse boxes

Internal - Storage

• Custom rear drawers

Internal - Electrical

• 12V Direct 200AH slimline LiFePO4 battery
• Redarc 1240D DCDC charger
• ePro Battery monitor
• Redarc 2000W pure sine wave inverter
• Safiery 1850W induction cooktop

Comms

• GME UHF Radio with general use whip antenna
• Cel-Fi Go mobile phone signal extender
• Starlink
• GME EPIRB personal locator beacon
• Hema HX2 Navigator
• Hema HX1 and HX2 maps for iPhone

Internal - Water

• Frontrunner 40L water tank
• 12V 10L pressure sensing water pump
• John Guest plumbing
• Carbon water filter
• Guzzle H2O Stealth5 water filter with UV
• 4xAdventures shower system

Internal - Other

• Wetsuit seat covers

Documenting The Build of the FJ

Ths FJ Cruiser build has been captured in the following series of videos. As the FJ is a smaller, more compact 4WD, I found it difficult to accept the off-the-shelf offerings of many companies, who found it too troublesome to cater for the FJ cruiser. As an example, most manufacturers of rear drawers will take their standard set of drawers with side rails and thick chunky wood with huge gaps either side and, as long as it fits, call it suitable for the FJ. In my opinion, this is simply inefficient use of space and can be done a much better way. Hence, I have custom built the whole fitout in an effort to make it the most efficient use of space as well as to cater precisely for my needs. I think the end result is fantastic!

FJ Cruiser Touring/Overlanding Build

This is a brief look at the culmination of 2+ years of gradual modifications to my FJ Cruiser with the aim of making it the most efficient and hassle-free touring/overlanding vehicle possible.

Built-in Hot Water Shower System

A new twist to an old design. This may well be the perfect setup!
Over the years, I have experimented with many different hot water and shower systems. Overlanding/Touring has certain challenges when it comes to water usage. I designed and built this hot water and shower system to be extremely quick to set up ~1 min), heat water instantly and to not waste a single drop of water with trying to get the temperature right. As a bonus, it doesn't take up any room at all in the 4WD.

Lockdown Rebuild - Part 1

Engine bay electrical work, electronic rust protection, new tail lights

Lockdown Rebuild - Part 2

Electrical System, LiFePO4 battery, DCDC Charger, Battery Monitor

Lockdown Rebuild - Part 3

Electrical system, floor, water tank, plumbing

Lockdown Rebuild - Part 4

Custom rear drawers

Lockdown Rebuild - Part 5

Custom Drawers, Inverter, Induction Cooking

FJ Cruiser Touring/Overlanding Build - Long-term review

This video has been 6 years in the making. in 2017, I completed the bulk of the touring build and have been travelling extensively all across Australia for the past 6 years, in all kinds of terrain. I have one 150,000km+ with this setup and it is time to review how all of these modifications have been performing. What have I learnt over this time? What has worked, what has not worked? Would I make the same choices again today?

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THANK YOU FOR BEING AWESOME!

Overland travel to remote places can be extremely rewarding, however it is also a serious undertaking, especially when you throw filmmaking into the picture. The conditions are often harsh, and we are always limited by the space we have and the weight we can carry.

Every piece of equipment is thoroughly considered and tested before a trip. For any piece of equipment to qualify, it should be:

• - lightweight
• - simple to use
• - reliable to the extreme
• - serve multiple purposes or be otherwise indispensable to serve our requirements

The gear that comes with us trip after trip is the gear that has passed all of these requirements and makes life on the road easier and more comfortable for us. I will stand by this equipment wholeheartedly because I rely upon it every day of every trip.

4WD Gear

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Tyre Pressure Monitoring

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Water

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Lighting

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Camping Gear

Lighting

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Knives, axes and other tools

• BPS Knives

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Camera Gear

Cameras

• Sony A7 IV
• Canon 70D
• Panasonic GH4
• Panasonic GH5
• Panasonic GH5s
• DJI Mavic Pro drone
• GoPros - various generations
• DJI Action 4
• Blackvue 4K Dashcam
• DJI Insta360
• Trap Camera
• iPhone 10

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Lenses

• Sony 16-35mm GMII FE2.8 G Master Lens
• Speedbooster XL
• Canon 16-35mm f2.8 zoom Lens
• Canon 70-200mm telephono lens
• Panasonic 12-35mm M4/3 zoom lense
• Panasonic 35-100mm M4/3 zoom lense

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Mics

• Rode NTG4+ - Broadcast quality shotgun mic
• Rode Stereo Videomic X - Broadcast quality stereo mic
• Rode Viceomic NTG - Broadcast quality mini shotgun mic
• Rode VideoMicro II - Mini shotgun mic
• Rode Stereo Videomic Pro - Stereo shotgun mic
• Rode Wireless Go II - Wireless Lavelier mics5

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Tripods and stands

• iFootage carbon fibre tripod
• Yellowstone tripod
• Joby mini flexible tripod
• Various selfie sticks
• 3.6m telescopic poles

The Original 4XA Overland Shower

What is it?

There's something magical about having the luxury of a proper hot shower out in the middle of nowhere. The 4XA Overland Shower was borne out of a desire to create the best possible shower experience, whilst making the most efficient use of the most precious resource you have when you're overlanding in remote areas - water.

The shower system is designed to be integrated into your vehicle, resulting in zero set-up/pack away, zero use of space within your vehicle and instant hot-water without waiting to heat and mix hot/cold water. Most importantly, the water is at the perfect temperature from the moment the first drop leaves the tap until the moment you shut it off. No more wasting water, waiting for it to heat up. No more mixing water in buckets until you reach the right temperature.

The shower system comes as a DIY kit, with comprehensive instructions for those that are handy and wish to customise their installation.

The shower system can also be pre-built, with minimal plug and play required from you, for those that simply want to install it in a few minutes and then use it straight away.

Why is this better than anything else?

Completely customisable - you can locate the components where it most suits you. You can have a simple set up (water -> hot water system -> shower) or a complex set up (variety of inputs and outputs, variety of heating technologies, extend the hot water system use beyond just showering).

Integrated into your vehicle, leaving you more room inside your vehicle.

You can have a choice of heating technologies - depending on the amount of space you do/don't have.

The water usage can be full stream - just like your home shower, or the faintest of trickles, or anything in between.

Who is it for?

Anyone who simply wants the best showering experience in the bush, without the hassle of setting up all the components of a traditional gas shower system.

It is for you if you:

• - Want a great showering experience with zero setup
• - Tend to be on the move every day or two
• - Want the efficiency of water use this shower system offers
• - Want the benefit of not needing to set up anything

Who is it not for?

It may be less suitable for you if you:

• - Tend to camp in one spot for several days/week
• - Want to set up your shower away from the vehicle
• - Want to leave your camp and shower all set up and go for day trips

Find Out More About It Here

Built-in Hot Water Shower System

A new twist to an old design. This may well be the perfect setup!

Over the years, I have experimented with many different hot water and shower systems. Overlanding/Touring has certain challenges when it comes to water usage. I designed and built this hot water and shower system to be extremely quick to set up ~1 min), heat water instantly and to not waste a single drop of water with trying to get the temperature right. As a bonus, it doesn't take up any room at all in the 4WD.

Built-in Hot Water Shower System FAQ

Due to the huge response to my built-in hot water shower system video, I thought I would post a video to answer all of the Frequently Asked Questions. In this video, I talk about how the system works, what components to get, what not to get, how to choose the correct pump, temper valve, plumbing, as well as how to build the system. Hopefully this video answers all of the questions everyone has had.

Coming Soon: DIY Kits

• - DIY Basic Kit

All the parts and instructions to assemble yourself. This option is great if you love doing your vehicle mods yourself or if you wish to further customise the hot water and shower system.

• - Pre-assembled with Heat Exchanger Kit

This kit contains all the plumbing, pre-assembled in a sealed box with a temperature control. This unit acts as the central hub for the hot water/shower system. It contains two inputs and two outputs (IN from water soure, OUT to heat exchanger, IN from heat exchanger, OUT to shower). The temperature is controlled on the unit. All you need to do is to connect the supplied 12V pump between your water tank and the 4XA Overland Shower and connect the heat exchanger. When you want a shower, simply plug in the shower hose and you're good to go! No setup time at all.



• - Pre-assembled with 6L electric heater

This kit contains all the plumbing, pre-assembled in a sealed box with a temperature control. This is identical to the above kit except instead of a heat exchanger, the heating device is a 6L 12V electric hot water heater. This option is fantastic if you don't want to plumb in a heat exchanger or don't have room for one in your engine bay. The added benefit of an electric hot water heater is you always have hot water available - at the flick of a switch. The plumbing is the same as the above kit. When you want a shower, simply plug in your shower hose and you're good to go!



• - Pre-assembled with 10L electric heater

This kit contains all the plumbing, pre-assembled in a sealed box with a temperature control. Identical to the above kit except this kit includes a larger 10L electric hot water heater - perfect if you have a family all needing plenty of hot water.



• - Optional components

Additional components to further customise your hot water/shower system like the ability to select additional input sources such as onboard tank or external source, additional output locations, recirculation, and routing of water through pumps, filters, etc.

These DIY kits are currently in the development stage. If you are interested in obtaining a kit before their official release, please contact me via the contact page.

Receive a 10% discount off any OLight product (except products already on sale) when you use this link and the following discount code: 4XA10

Receive a 20% discount off ALL NovSIGHT products, when you use this link and the following discount code: 4XADVENTURES

Receive a 10% discount on Not Lost Australia camping gear, when you use this link and the following discount code: 4xAdventures10

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