Price: £35 000

Those of you in the know will recognise this is an exceptionally low price. That's because we have our wedding coming up and are looking for a fairly quick sale. Certainly this is a lot less than what we spent on buying the truck and having her customised, let alone with all the gear thrown in. Mechanically and functionally the truck is in great condition, and as it is now, would be able to accomplish an overland trip anywhere with ease.

We have done a lot of work recently to ensure she looks perfect cosmetically (touching up scratches from brushing past trees while in the bush, etc), and have replaced the worn tyres, giving you 6 tyres in excellent condition, ready to rock!

I am open to all serious offers. If you have questions or would like more information, please email me, Steve, at info@overlandcamperforsale.com or call on +44 (0)79 2812 0110

• Is there enough space behind the seats to convert into additional seating for the kids?
  Dependant on the size of the kids. I think it would be a tight fit. I think this is where you would have the biggest problem with our truck being a potential buy for you.


• Is the 2nd double bed large enough to sleep the kids? could it be enlarged?
  Not knowing the size of the kids I'm not sure, but it could be enlarged. This would require a fair amount of work though.


• Is there space on the roof which could be converted into a pop-up tent with access from within?
  Yes to both - you could access through the skylight, or convert one of the skylights to a hatch with a pull down ladder perhaps. There is ample space on the roof for a tent.


• Have you had any mechanical problems on route?
  Amazingly not really at all - we had one problem with the fuel pump getting corroded from taking on terrible fuel from Nigeria through to Angola (the whole west coast part of central africa is terrible for fuel - mostly from barrels on the side of the road, lots of water in and other heavy sediment) - we had it refurbished professionally in South Africa and now it's working perfectly. Also our alternator went in Angola, we replaced it with a new Bosch one in South Africa. We've been on the road coming up the east coast a year now since we left South Africa and everything has been working absolutely perfectly. Speaking to other overlanders everyone is amazed at how reliable it is, but then it was practically brand new when we got it (only 2500 miles on the clock).


• Are parts easily available for the engine?
  Yes - it's a Cummins engine - practically every tractor and generator in Africa and indeed the world is a Cummins engine. Cummins (American manufacturer) is one of the most prolific diesel engines in the world. That's one of the biggest reasons I bought the truck. If it had a Leyland engine I would never have bought it.


• what is the cruising speed on tar?
  100kph


• Who did the conversion for you?
  East Anglia Horsebox Company in England.


• Did your mounting brackets work?
  Mounting brackets work perfectly.


• What is your fuel consumption?
  Fuel consumption is very dependent on driving conditions. If you drive at a steady 80kph on good tar roads, you can expect to get just under 5km per litre. If you drive at top speed (100kph) all the time (something I am prone to do on boring roads!), you'll get closer to 4km per litre. If you're driving in mud or sand, you'll get much worse figures, as I'm sure you're aware. These consumption figures are decent for an overland truck.


• Does it need an HGV licence to drive?
  Yes it does need an HGV licence (it weighs about 9 tonnes).


• Does it require the use of tachograph?
  No it doesn't require a tacho (registered as Private HGV).


• How much did you pay for your Carnet for all of Africa and what was the country that decided the amount?
  For the carnet there is a long answer, and a short answer... the short answer is Egypt decided the final cost of the carnet, which was £8000. This was because the RAC allowed me to value my truck at £1000 for the carnet, and Egypt requires 800% of the value of the vehicle as surety on the carnet.
  The long winded answer is this: Most European countries allow you to pay 10% of the value of your carnet as surety deposit, whereas England requires you pay the full amount (100% of the surety deposit) The truck is currently registered in the UK, so if you keep it registered there you'll have to get the carnet from England too. This can get very expensive as certain countries in Africa require more surety than others. Most countries in Africa require 150% of the value of the vehicle as surety; Kenya requires 200% and Egypt requires 800%!!!!
  If we put down the full value of our truck on the carnet, the surety would have crippled us. With our truck worth £55000, the carnet value would have been £440 000, which is impossible (for me anyway!) There is an insurance option where you pay 10% of the surety as an insurance premium, and when you return you get back half of the premium. I had issues with that though because the insurance premium on that would have been £44 000, and you only get back £22 000!? Impossible to reconcile a non refundable payment of £22 000 just to travel in Africa!
  Anyway, the long and the short of it is that the RAC will allow you to grossly under-value the vehicle (I think they know it's all just beaurocratic red-tape, so go the extra mile to help get you on the road - thank you Paul Gowen at the RAC!) During the first year of our trip we valued the truck at £3500 and put down £7000 as surety - allowing us to get into every country except Egypt. When we got a year into the trip we decided we wanted to continue through Egypt, so contacted the RAC and asked if we could change the value to £1000, to which they readily agreed (again, thank you Paul Gowen!). So as it is now we've got £8000 down on the carnet for our truck - a much easier figure to live with!
  Using the insurance option you would end up just paying £800 premium for the carnet, and getting back £400 when you return from your trip.


• Can the truck tackle sub-zero temperatures? (more like -20 degrees)
  Not at the moment. Here's the positives for the truck in the sub-zero department:
  • Floor is made of 25mm marine ply with slate-effect lino tiles on top.
  • Walls and ceiling are 1.6mm ali with 25mm Jeblite insulation and 3.6mm polyester covered ply interior.
  • There is also a 2 speed blown air central heating system.
  • The fresh water tank and batteries are internal to the truck, so minimal insulation would be required there.
  However, the waste water tank is external to the truck, and you may want to look at underfloor heating if you're going into polar conditions.


• Where will the truck be located when you return to the UK?
  In Southampton.