Para Rubber comes through again

It seemed like there used to be a Para Rubber shop in every suburb, but nowadays their ranks have thinned. Nevertheless, they're still a great source of rubbery and foamy things for 4WDs. My latest purchase was some ribbed rubber sheet cut from a bulk roll and I used it to make treads for the sills of the Wrangler and for the built-in steps on the rock sliders. I'm really happy with the result. The helpful Para guy, who turned out to be the store owner, gave me two useful pieces of advice; thoroughly clean the surface of the rubber you're going to glue with methylated spirit, and use a water resistant contact adhesive. He stocked Bostik's Super Contact. I bought some and it seems to be holding well but there may well be other products that do as well or better. Suggestions welcome in the comments section.

Paris today; here … not for months and months

Range Rover’s Evoque is about to be launched at the Paris Motor Show but don’t expect it here until about the second half of next year. A Land Rover spokesman told 4wdNewz that the company’s still planning production and shipping of the New Zealand models. But maybe we're not being disadvantaged, as even the Poms aren't getting it until much the same time. Evoque is the smallest, lightest, most fuel efficient Range Rover and its mission is to attract new customers to the brand. It’s being offered in both four-wheel-drive and (choke, splutter, gag) two-wheel-drive. 

UPDATE: Land Rover boss Phil Popham said at the Paris show that pricing will start at around £35,000, or about $76,000 in our currency (see also the Comments, below).

Another of the old Land Rover ads – this one is from 1954 and among other features promotes "improved all-weather sealing". Yeah, well …
Idle thought: what would 1954 buyers make of the Evoque (above)?

Another Kiwi footprint in 4x4 cyberspace

So you're a web designer and you're also a 4WD enthusiast. Seems like a perfect combo for another 4WD site … which is exactly what we now have at 4x4 Stuff.  It's the work of Dunedin's Ben King and provides a largely South Island perspective in words, photos and videos. There's a forum, too. Ben told 4wdNewz, "I have always owned a 4x4, currently HJ60 Land Cruiser. I'm into more exploring than hard core 4x4 and because I am a web designer, I thought I better make something." 

Army's hand-me-downs = off-roader's good kit

Dodged the homeless, the noon-hour drunks and off-duty adult entertainment workers on Auckland's Karangahape Road today to check out the big Kiwi Disposals surplus store. Man, do these guys have a bunch of good stuff for off-roaders, from clothing (by no means all of it camouflaged, although the colour selection is predictably military) to storage cases and serviceable jerry cans. Only incredible willpower stopped me from buying all sorts of well priced stuff. Tip of the day: as much as we all love 4WD equipment shops, it's worth keeping an eye on the local war surplus outlet.

End of track around next corner for vehicle CDs

Ford's decision to drop CD changers from next year and to then phase out single-slot CD players spells the beginning of the end of the track for another vehicular entertainment system. The rest of the industry will surely follow in this MP3-obsessed world where playing CDs in a vehicle has as much appeal as an eight-track tape. Back when I started writing about 4WDs in the early 1990s, CD players/changers and off-loading were largely incompatible. The bumps on the earthly tracks caused the digital tracks to jump and skip and make horrible noises.  But it wasn't long before the engineers had it under control and you would race along a badly rutted track without losing a beat.

I quite liked CDs for off-road entertainment. Four-wheel-driving is not all adrenalin-pumping action and it was nice, in the boring bits, to have something to listen to when even National Radio's signal faded into the static. Having been caught out once or twice, I always made copies of my CDs, so if they got scratched, dropped into the water or whatever, it didn't matter. Even when an early Kia Sportage swallowed one and refused to give it back. Guess it's time to give up my standing as one of the last 10 people in New Zealand without an MP3 device. I wonder what they'll fit into the space freed up by deleting the CD changer/player mechanisms?