loong lap prerequisites

traveler · Member

loong lap prerequisites

Possum3 · Guru

Welcome to GN's traveler, Spares to carry depends a lot on the roads you intend to travel, isolation, road surface type - condition of your vehicle/s - do you have adequate breakdown service with RACV or NRMA?
Certainly you need to have your vehicle/s serviced prior to departure, ensuring that you have planned any major services to be in a City or major centre.

Check out the swag of free information at www.caravancouncil.com.au/

Tony Bev · Guru

Welcome from me also, traveler

If you are not mechanically minded, then as Possum has already said, get a service on the vehicle, before setting off

I would be making sure that the tyres are in good condition, as well as the spare, and carry at least fan belts and radiator hoses

Grey Nomads are just normal folk, and most normal folk will try and assist, if you have a vehicle breakdown on the highway, but you have to ask for help
Sometimes, people are not able to assist, and you will have to go to a mechanical workshop

Be aware that when you travel away from the larger citys/towns, everything will be more expensive

The wildflower season in WA is from about August to September

Whenarewethere · Guru

A full service & tell them what you are doing. That's what I tell my mechanic & also when I get back with another service & ask the mechanic to go over the car with a fine tooth comb.

If the starter battery is 4 years old replace it.

Get a set of jumper leads & not rubbish ones.

Decent tyres.

TPMS (tyre pressure monitoring system), if you get a leaking tyre & can swap it before it is destroyed, less chance of an accident. Builders gloves to save knuckles winding up jack.

If going remote, a tyre repair kit & compressor.

Do not overload the vehicle. It is all too frighteningly easy to take far too much. Even after a few trips around Australia we are still finding things we do not need.

We did a spreadsheet weighing every single item down to phone power cables & we were over our payload. We were quite shocked as we really didn't have that much in the car.

Hat, face fly net & repellent, first aid kit & freeze spray for ticks.

Quarantine zones around Australia. It is simpler not to have any fruit & veg etc crossing the appropriate State borders & within some States, & even a cardboard box labelled with fruit can be an issue.

https://everythingcaravanandcamping.com/sites/default/files/images/Australian-Interstate-Quarantine-A-Travellers-Guide.pdf

Mike Harding · Guru

It largely depends upon the make/model of vehicle and its age you own.

If it's a recent (< 10 years) Holden, Toyota, Ford etc then nothing special.

If it's not one of the above than you may consider:

Water pump

Fan belt(s)

Bottom hose

Spark plugs/ignition coil

Filters

The list could go on.

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The only things I would really advise:

Air compressor with cables long enough to reach the battery from all wheels.

Tyre repair kit - plug type

One *really* good torch and a few cheap e-bay ones plus a head torch

Fan belt(s)

PLB (EPIRB)

Extending handle wrench with the correct socket for your wheelnuts or a 1m steel pipe to fit over the handle of the supplied wheelnut wrench - also do a practice wheel change at home before you leave.

Basic tools: knife, a few screwdrivers, pliers, adjustable spanner, hand axe, junior hacksaw

Spare fuses for caravan and car

A couple of cheap cigarette lighters (keep in a cool place, not the glovebox)

First Aid kit and snake bite bandages - learn how to do "pressure bandaging"

A roll of 2mm diameter galvanised wire (Bunnings)

Some cable ties - 200mm and 300mm (10+ of each)

A roll of strong string

A couple of rolls of Rescue Tape - it really does work!

A few short lengths (2m+) of electrical wire of 2.5mm csa

Jump leads - buy quality or don't bother

A capable credit card :)

Whenarewethere · Guru

We have two Olight h1r nova 600lm warm white head torches. Brilliant, last a very long time. We did buy extra batteries but have never needed them.

Jumper leads I made a set from welding cable & solid copper Utilux 200amp continuous rated clamps.

Compressor, replace the leads with heavier cable. Find out the compressor's duty cycle. Do not run it any longer than this. If the duty cycle is 50% then cycle 15 minutes on then 15 minutes off.

If there is no data on duty cycle best to assume 25%, so 10 minutes on then 30 minutes off.

Screw a computer fan to the side of it for additional forced cooling. They get dangerously hot.