SsangYong 4WD Club of Australia Inc.

NEWSLETTER No. 5

August 2011

OUR 2011 COMMITTEE

President: Marco Kuipers South Australia Marco

Vice President: Dave Heal Western Australia Qute

Secretary: Robert Kelly New South Wales rjk

Treasurer: Darren Read New South Wales kiwidread

Trip Coordinator: Darren Read New South Wales kiwidread

Member Representative: Graeme Mellor South Australia Grumpy

Member Representative: Jim Bakker Queensland JimB

Member Representative: VACANT

COMMITTEE MEETINGS

These are held bi-monthly throughout the year. The next meeting is scheduled for 11 October.

Minutes will be circulated to Club members for their information.

If you want to obtain more information about the Club, contact any committee member by means of our Forum. We recommend that new readers first register as a forum member. Forum membership is free. To become a club member, a completed application form and payment must be received by the Secretary.

Club events will be run by regional groups listed on the Forum. Members from other regions or states visiting any region will be very welcome to join the locals on a trip. Posting details of your intended visit may well be reason enough for a special trip to show you around. We are that welcoming.

NEW MEMBERS

Owners of SsangYong vehicles are welcome to come on one trip as a visitor to try us out, but are required to obey the instructions of the trip leader at all times. If you then join the Club, your membership fees covers affiliation, PL insurance and the cost of running our Forum. Even if you are not keen on driving your SsangYong in the dirt – as it was designed to do, your support of the Forum’s running costs by joining is worth it to you, for the handy tips provided by other members to help keep your SsangYong performing on road or off.

TRIP CALENDAR

1. Stockton Beach NSW. Start at Lavis Lane Service Station. Date: 22 May. Graeme Mellor’s visit to Newcastle. Contact: Darren Read - completed.

2. WA Trip 24 September. Contact Dave Heal.

3. Newnes Area NSW. Start at Zig Zag Railway 24 & 25 September. Contact Grant Quinlan.

4. Reillys Resort Qld. Start at Gold Coast Date: t.b.a. when Rob Kelly is next visiting Queensland. Contact: Jim Bakker

5. High Country Vic. Date: t.b.a. Contact Jason Bult

6. St. Albans NSW. Date t.b.a. Contact Christine Gilmore

PRESIDENT:

Marco Kuipers

VICE PRESIDENT:

Dave Heal

When I can, I will add technical articles as another new feature of our Newsletters. The topic in this edition is Diesel Gas.

What is Diesel-Gas?

Diesel-Gas is the supplementary injection of LPG into a Diesel motor. Note that it is supplementary, the Diesel motor still (mostly) runs on Diesel with the LPG providing a catalyst for the combustion process.

Why run Diesel-Gas?

Because you’ll get a cleaner burning motor with more power AND more economy!

More Power AND Economy?

Yes, that’s right. Particularly in a mechanically injected Diesel, only about 75% - 80% of the Diesel injected into it actually burns in the cylinder. The other 20% - 25% goes into the exhaust unburnt (or incompletely burnt would be a better way of putting it) and either burns in the catalytic convertor (if fitted) or comes out the back as black smoke or lines the exhaust with soot. A very small percentage also gets past the rings to dilute your sump oil with soot and Diesel.

By using LPG as a catalyst to help the combustion process, about 90% - 95% of the Diesel injected into the motor is now burned in the cylinder. This gives you a cleaner burning motor which will reduce the dilution of your oil with Diesel and soot. It will also give you more power and better Diesel economy.

Basically, you can run up to a third of your fuel as LPG. In other words, for every 100 litres of Diesel you use, you’d use 33 litres of LPG. However, using these levels of LPG, while giving more power runs the VERY real risk of pinging (pre-ignition of your fuel). This is VERY bad as it will eventually blow holes in your pistons or blow a conrod out the side of the block, either of which will ruin even a very good day! A Musso will ping on 29% - 30% LPG when the weather is hot and you are above about 300 metres over Sea Level. Otherwise, I’d still be running that mix…

Because of this, most Diesel-Gas setups run around 20% LPG as to Diesel. This is considered to be a safe level.

You will still use the same litres to go the same distance as before but 20% of them will be half the cost which will reduce your overall cost per litre by about 8% - 9%. And who wouldn’t like an 8% - 9% reduction in their fuel bill with better running and more power thrown in for free?

In the case of my Musso, my D-Gas setup runs about 17% LPG through the motor in normal running around town mode. When towing my 1650Kg caravan, because the motor boosts harder at lower revs, it’ll use about 23% LPG.

As can be seen by the Dyno sheet in my “Qute’s Musso Mods” thread on the Forum, I gained about 12% more power and 16% more torque. What isn’t shown is the consistent 20% better Diesel economy I also now get. The Diesel only Peak Torque is available to me a full 800 RPM lower on Diesel-Gas and, of course, my new Peak Torque value is much higher.

It makes the Musso a MUCH more pleasant drive as I do not have to work so hard to achieve a reasonable level of performance. It is almost like stepping from a Diesel to a petrol powered vehicle, or a Diesel to a Turbo Diesel…

The Diesel-Gas people reckon it has the same effect on a Common Rail Diesel (CRD) but I have never experienced a CRD with LPG so can’t comment on that point.

Would I fit it again if I changed vehicles? Hell, Yeah!

SECRETARY’S REPORT:

I am currently holding the Treasurer’s records until an opportunity for a face to face meeting with our new Treasurer, Darren Read can be arranged.

Committee Minutes were sent out to all financial members and it was pleasing to get some feedback. Kenr’s suggestions have been added to our Committee agenda.

Incoming correspondence from fellow clubs affiliated with FWDSA came in both electronic and Aussie Post newsletters. I have circulated the electronic versions to our financial members who are located in South Australia for their information.

In the last Newsletter, I mentioned the insurance cover we can obtain from our National Insurance Scheme which is provided by Four Wheel Drive Australia. Members can check out this service at this URL: http://www.anfwdc.asn.au While you’re there, have a look at Dave’s ute doing a water crossing in the Marquee running across the top of the home page. In another role, I administer the FWDA website, so there’s an opportunity for all to see our vehicles up there from time to time, provided you send me some good close up shots of your truck in action.

Rob Kelly

EDITOR’S REPORT: This Newsletter has been enlarged to provide more information for our members. Our Vice President Dave Heal, has written the first technical article about diesel gas installations. There is also the first of a series of two articles on driving tips. Items of interest from Four Wheel Drive South Australia have been included for the first time as well.

The cold weather may have affected us as there have been no trips other than the Stockton Beach Trip in May. Trip reports and photos in the newsletter are always interesting. Please send information to me by the Forum’s PM service. I am always hungry for news.

Rob Kelly

TREASURER:

With the recent retirement of our Treasurer there will be no report this time. We will miss Christine’s social notes about what’s happening. But our Club gear is available for sale from the Secretary.

MEMBER PROFILE

Name: Robert Kelly (Forum name: rjk) Club Secretary

Location: Hunter Valley NSW

Age: too young to sit back

Job: Retired, but regular business mentor

Vehicle: Rexton RX 270 xdi Poor salesmanship put us off buying a Land Rover Discovery 3, so we went back into the market with an open mind and liked our first drive of the Rexton. We were given an unrestricted test drive which impressed, but the deal was lousy. However the Rexton fitted our requirements and another dealer offered a great deal on a Limited – it was the end of a run of four Pajeros over 20 years of good service.

How much more have you spent on modifications since you bought your Rexton? Nothing, I had long ago reached the conclusion that if it wasn’t equipped to do the job, then why buy it.

What 4WD experience did you have before Rex? I went through nasho and the CMF in the RAASC and got my G11 licence to drive Chev Blitz 4x4, GMC 6x6, DUKW and MB Jeep. I worked in the mining industry and drove Land Rovers, Nissans, Toyotas and Fords. By chance I joined a 4WD club 24 years ago after meeting an old engineering colleague who was the President of the Port Hunter 4x4 Club and we both happened to own Pajeros. I found that Mitsubishi makes one of the best 4WD tourers anywhere. But when it came to hard work, The landys were the best. Nissan was very nearly as good as the Landy though. I still have a Land Rover in the shed for serious work. I’m not going to tell you how long I’ve been driving fourbys but it’s long enough to know that getting home is what it’s all about.

How much 4WDing have you done in Rex? Not as much as I would have liked to. It has only taken us around the NSW Barrington Tops, the Victorian High Country, Queensland’s Lamington

Ranges, the outback in both NSW & Queensland and regular caravan tows to visit family at Broken Hill. And of course, the last two SsangYong 4WD Club Gatherings.

Has your Rexton ever let you down? Never. It is a very reliable and solidly built truck with a bit of luxury added. So far it has travelled around 169,000km and runs very well.

Will you sell the Rexton? No reason to think about it until there’s a new model Rexton to consider!

What got you into recreational four wheel driving? I had always regarded 4x4s as work tools. My son was in senior high school and worked nights & weekends at Coles. He saved every dollar he earned. I asked him what he was going to spend his money on. He horrified me when he told me he wanted to buy a clapped out Suzuki 4x4 and hot it up. We had a surplus G60 Patrol at work and I managed to buy it on his behalf. When he went bush as a new school teacher, my wife said to me as he drove away,”what are we going to do without the old butterbox?” So her Car went in on a short wheelbase Pajero and the next step was into my engineer colleague’s 4WD club where I am still an active member. And now I am this Club’s Secretary.

Rob Kelly

SEARCHING FOR NEWS FROM MEMBERS

At an earlier committee meeting Dave, as Vice President, was asked if he could provide regular technical articles on topics from his broad knowledge and experience and it has commenced in this edition. Apart from the mechanical side of things he also has other tips to offer us as well.

A great advantage of being a club member is that within our group, most of us have special skills and experiences which we can all share. The Club’s a store of knowledge from our members will always be greater than any individual has on their own. Club members are encouraged to write on topics where they can offer others some of their expertise and experiences gained during their travels.

Here’s an example from Dave Heal:

Safe(r) On-Road Driving Tips.

As some of you may know, in a previous life, I was an advanced Motorcycle Rider Instructor. In other words, I presented post-licence training to motorcyclists.

Based on my experience, the following are some tips to make you safer on the road.

There are 4 basic things that YOU can do to make yourself safer on the road.

1) Use your Vision effectively 2) Drive to the conditions 3) Have a safe following distance 4) Use the S.A.F.E. method of cornering

Do NOT get confused between Legal and Safe Driving! Just because you are driving Legally does NOT mean you are driving safely! Conversely, just because you are driving Illegally does NOT mean you are driving unsafely, however if you are driving Illegally, you’ll get booked at some stage…

I’ll address the first tip in this edition of our club’s newsletter. The other 3 tips will be covered in future editions.

1) VISION

What do I mean by using your vision effectively? I mean that you “SCAN” the road ahead, behind and to your sides so you know EVERYTHING that is going on around you.

When driving, your eyes should never fixate on something for more than one second AT THE MOST. You should be looking up the road ahead (both in your lane and any other lanes), checking the road surface ahead of you as well as checking your rear vision mirrors, your dash gauges and anything that is happening to the sides of you. This should give you enough warning of changing conditions or where the idiots are around you for you to have plenty of time to react and/or take evasive action.

Checking to the sides includes how far you can see down a side street/road. If you can see several hundred metres down a side road as you approach, you probably do not need to slow down. On the other hand, if your view down the side street is blocked by vegetation or a fence or a wall or a building and you can’t see down that side-street as you approach it, you need to slow down on your approach to the intersection so you can stop if another vehicle suddenly appears from that side street.

How many times have you checked your rear vision mirrors, seen a vehicle behind you, but it has disappeared the next time you check? You say to yourself “I wonder where the hell he went!” If that happens to you, you are NOT checking your mirrors often enough…

How do you set up your mirrors for maximum vision? The interior mirror should be set up so it is level and the centre of the mirror looks straight behind you. In other words, the centre of a vehicle directly behind you should be reflected in the centre of your mirror. In a flat area, the horizon should be in the middle of your mirror (top to bottom).

Your door mirrors should be set up so you can see the sides of your vehicle in the inner-most part of the mirror. The horizon should be in the middle (top to bottom). And you should be able to see what you need to WITHOUT moving in your seat! Setting them up this way will give you the widest possible rear view while also allowing you to use all 3 mirrors to see what is directly behind you.

At night, do not out-drive your headlights. This means that you need to drive at a speed where you can stop within the distance you can see. If you can see 50 metres in front of you but will take 70 metres to stop (including your Reaction Time) at the speed you are travelling, that means you’ll stop 15 metres AFTER you hit the kangaroo/wombat/person that is now 55 metres in front of you…

In Part 2 next time, we’ll look at Driving to the Conditions.

TRIP REPORT:

STOCKTON BEACH May 2011

The drivers’ names and a note about where they enjoyed these areas has not been supplied, however it is good to see that new people have joined with our club members for the Stockton Trip. If not Club members yet, visitors are invited to join the Club and continue to enjoy our trips and camaraderie’.

Code of Conduct – Off Road Driving

1. Obey the laws and regulations for Recreational Vehicles that apply

to public lands. 2. Respect the cultural, heritage and environmental values of

public/private land, by obeying restrictions that may apply. 3. Respect our flora and fauna. Stop and look, but never disturb. 4. Keep to formed vehicle tracks. 5. Keep the environment clean. Carry your own, and any other,

rubbish out. 6. Keep your vehicle mechanically sound and clean to reduce the

environmental impact. 7. Adopt minimal impact camping and driving practices. 8. Seek permission before driving on private land. Do not disturb

livestock or watering points, leave gates as found. 9. Take adequate water, food, fuel, basic spares and a first aid kit on

trips. In remote areas travel with another vehicle and have Royal Flying Doctor Service, or equivalent emergency contact by radio or satellite.

10. Plan ahead and lodge trip details with a responsible person. 11. Enjoy your recreation and respect the rights of others. 12. Support four-wheel drive touring as a legitimate family

activity. 13. Consider joining an affiliated four-wheel drive Club.

THIS CODE SUPPORTS THE NATIONAL

RECREATIONAL FOUR WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLE POLICY.

Produced by Four Wheel Drive Australia in the interest of promoting responsible recreational vehicle use.

For advice and assistance in meeting the requirements of this Code of Conduct contact the Public Relations Officer, ANFWDC PO Box 79, CANBERRA ACT 2601

Copyright holder

Australian National Four Wheel Drive Council Inc., August 2010