It had to be a real adventure, and so there had to only be one route, traversing the continent of Africa, from north to south. The choice of off-roader was perhaps a little more surprising, as the journey was completed by Nissan Patrol
Words and photography: Rene Bauer
Having previously criss-crossed Australia in a Nissan Patrol, I had always had this dream about a ‘real’ expedition – to have to dig myself out of mud, to be dirty, camp in the bush and maybe also feel fear of fierce locals or wild animals. Itches like this need to be scratched and so a plan was made; my partner, Andrea, and I would cross Africa, from north to south.
The first question, however, was what vehicle to use; Land Rover, Land Cruiser or stick with the Nissan Patrol that we knew so well? After looking at prices, we quickly realised that it had to be a Nissan Patrol, so we bought a black SWB Nissan Patrol 2.8-litre TD.
We spent the following 15 months building, repairing, and welding. First, out with the back seats and in with a bespoke drawer system. The production bumpers went, as well as the side steps and we started planning the replacement parts. As my brother-in-law is a fabulous welder, he offered to manufacture reinforced bumpers, roof rack, swing-away doors for jerry cans and a spare wheel. Happily we agreed… what we didn’t know was that he is a pedantic, precise welder who took six months to make all those parts.
Not everyone who buys a 4×4 wants to keep it looking like any other that rolls off the production line, similarly not every 4×4 turns a wheel in anger off-road. These days it’s just as common to see a suited-and-booted city gent behind the wheel of a Defender, as it is a tweed-obsessed farmer tending to his sheep. Indeed, the respected utilitarian Land Rover has turned into a must-have for a whole range of enthusiasts, who don’t mind an automatic boost to their street cred, too. 
If you visit the Natural History Museum this summer, there’s an exhibition called Mammoths, and the promotional poster shows a small inquisitive child standing before the massive, imperious beast, wide-eyed in wonder, but with just a touch of cautious apprehension. Standing on my drive beside our test Mercedes-Benz G 350 BlueTEC, I too felt that child-like awe. It’s hard to really understand quite why this thing isn’t extinct. And with an on the road price of a staggering £106,150 for a vehicle we intended taking off the road, there was a cautious nature to control my natural enthusiasm as well.
After celebrating the Toyota’s RAV4’s 20th birthday, our columnist remembers the Suzuki X-90 and asks, will there ever be another small off-roader?
The new Nissan X-Trail will be in UK showrooms from July. The model, which will be available in both two and four-wheel drive and in the familiar Nissan trim levels of Visia, Acenta, n-tec and Tekna. We have commented before on the fact that the new X-Trail is a significant departure in looks from the present version, which has a good following from enthusiasts, including this magazine. The latest version looks like a Qashqai to us, although we have yet to see it in the metal. It is also sad, perhaps, to comment that Nissan expect the biggest selling version to be the 2WD Visia model. Prices for the remaining models start at £24,795 for the Acenta, the n-tec starts at £27,295 and the top of the range Tekna which is a hefty £29,295. The 4×4 models are also available with the XTRONIC CVT transmission, while the other 4WD models have the latest version of the familiar ALL MODE 4×4-I system. Every model in the range is available with the seven-seater option; the extra row of seats adding £700 to the price.
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