For those working and travelling in rural areas that might get caught in bad winter weather, Cardiff-based survival gear specialists, BCB International Ltd, has developed this winter emergency kit. Included is a solid fire lighting and cooking fuel made from ethanol, called FireDragon, which can be lit in wet and extreme weather conditions. The kit is claimed to enable individuals to stay warm, hydrated, as well as be seen and heard when the conditions really turn nasty.
Website: www.goodkit.co.uk
This month we have a seriously useful gift as our subscription offer. Clothing and footwear company, Dickies, has a well-earned reputation so you know immediately that these boots are quality. 
The guys at Famous Four, independent Land Rover parts specialist, are celebrating an impressive 25 years in the business, with their new £150,000 workshop. Richard Varrall and co-director Martin Stebbings said the new six-bay building was necessary as they were ‘full to capacity’. Famous Four now employs some 15 people, and ships thousands of parts every week, with an impressive 50 per cent going overseas. In total, the company’s website now lists over 7500 items that are available for Land Rovers from 1948 to the present day. They are currently completing a nut and bolt restoration of an ultra rare Range Rover Velar, which will be good to see when it is finished. So if you are looking for a particular Land Rover part, call 01507 609444 or go to 
Also from Gigglepin this month is this replacement circlip for a Warn 8274 winch. The standard Warn 8274 brake is held on by a circlip on the end of the mainshaft, and it’s one that is famous for breaking – normally at the worst possible moment. Gigglepin tells us that this circlip has previously only been available as part of the Warn Brake Service Kit. Gigglepin 4×4 can now supply both the early and late types of mainshaft circlip – individually – at the bargain price of only £6.50 (plus VAT). An essential part of any winch spares kit. 
Gigglepin has just launched this special offer for the kit required to service and rebuild the brake assembly on a Warn 8274 or GP80 Series winch. This includes a pair of HD brake shoes, spring, spacer, 21 stainless steel ball bearings, three Belleville spring washers (not required on the early Warn 8274) and two square woodruff keys. Gigglepin claims that bought direct from Warn all these parts would add up to over £115, buy direct from them for only £60 (plus VAT).
We had a Mercedes-Benz ML63 AMG in our recent 4×4 Of The Year test (4×4, 
After our annual 4×4 Of The Year test in the last issue, we turn our attention to the pick-up market. With models from China, Korea, Japan (and Japan via the USA) this is a small, but highly competitive selection of 4x4s, and it’s a market enjoying some growth. From the adjoining table, you can see that since 2009, UK pick-up registrations have risen significantly, and this year looks like being particularly strong. Now all these pick-ups have important characteristics in common; all diesel powered, all double cab, and all but one with selectable 4WD. They do, however, have very different characteristics and achieve the common aim of carrying four passengers, significant payload, and being able to tow, in very different ways. Prices too, vary widely. We have reported the manufacturer’s claimed basic prices, which all exclude VAT (since in most cases, this is reclaimable), and that means the most expensive model here, the VW Amarok, is close to twice the cost of the cheapest, the Great Wall Steed. For vehicles that are so matched in their main raison d’etre, this is a significant difference. Is it worth that extra expense?
Oh, sure, we laughed at the Jimny when it appeared in 1998, far too small to be a useful SUV, too puny and low-slung to be a competent off-roader, surely it was nothing more than a nippy, traffic-dodging, easy-park city car, a little kinky in the styling department but hardly more desirable than a Mini…
Bob Cooke – contributor
It wasn’t all that long ago that the name ‘rhino’ was pretty much synonymous with ‘Suzuki’ – the all-conquering little SJ made the rhino symbol its own, a fitting reference to the little Suzuki’s rugged and adventurous nature. It seemed fitting, therefore, that we should involve our long-term Grand Vitara in a more recent rhino-related event, a tough off-road challenge aimed at raising money for conservation projects in Africa. 
Not everything has gone to plan lately. I spent a week preparing the car and loading it up for a green lane session in North Yorkshire with some friends. Having not done very much laning at all outside Wales, I was looking forward to a change of scenery. Sadly, only three miles into the 160-mile journey there, it all went wrong. There was a clank, a bang and the front left wheel locked up. Fortunately, it was wet and the wheel was on a white line at the time, so I slowed down with rather less drama than I might have. Reversing freed off the wheel and I could limp home. I hurled everything into the Volkswagen Golf Mk2 I owned at the time and headed north, feeling somewhat depressed.