Congratulations on being selected for Auszookers Zook Owner of the Month!How does it feel being honoured with the nomination for Z.O.O.M. 2016?Very surprised. I am the least technical person on this forum. I ask questions that some consider stupid, fortunately most are too polite to say it out aloud. And I have a tourer-4WD, made for camping, rather than a pure 4WD.
Camping at Douglas Hot Springs, NT. Bullbars make great clothes horses
So tell us about yourself. Who are you, What's the meaning to your username, Where do you live, and what do you do for a living?My name is Stuart and thanks to 'The Simpsons' a lot of us get disco stu. disco/discomute/drdiscostu It has been my internet handle for at least 10 years, long before I was looking at buying a zook. Of course being on a 4WD forum, people are often thinking it is related to a Discovery in some way, either I am an owner or a fan. I am neither.
I first signed up to this forum when I lived in Airlie Beach. I soon moved to Darwin for four years where I bought my zook. In February I moved to Melbourne.
I am a Property Manager/Real Estate Agent normally, but since moving to Melbourne I have been trying to get out of it. So currently a house husband, which isn't a bad gig. Though by the time this I posted, most likely something else...
How did you get started in Suzuki's & how many have you owned?Actually this forum turned me into a Suzuki fan, rather than the other way around. My first car was a Falcon sedan, anyway my wife and I were moving to Darwin, and it was clear we would need a 4WD to make the most of it. I think I worked out we had about $22,000 to spend, and could push it to $25,000. But I had a work car, so there was a catch: it would be her work car. And she didn't want some 80 series landcruiser. It had to look reasonable and be drive-able, and easy to park in hospital carparks.
As I have mentioned, I am very technically inept, though I love to learn. I started researching all sorts of 4WD's. It soon became pretty clear that there was only one option available to us. The NGV really is in a class of its own. Although I was initially attracted to the Diesel model, my research indicated that the most reliable was the 2.4 litre model. It's famous block-cracking issue wasn't well known back then, or at least I missed it.
We were lucky enough to have a trip to Broome planned where we hired a NGV that really gave us a good idea of what it was like. Once we got back I started shopping around and found a three year old one for $18,000, though it was unmodified.
Getting to know the car in Broome
How long did it take you to build your zook to what it is today?I bought the car in August 2013. The last modification was April 2015 just before the Gibb trip that I did.
Full list is:
AT tyres
ARB Bull Bar
Tow point
Suzuki Queensland Metal Bash Plate
Dobinson 40mm lift
Stock roof rack
Safari Snorkel
Diff breathers
The first day I bought it, as yet unchanged
Any changes in store for your Suzuki?"Movies aren't finished, they are abandonded. And you have to make your peace with that" David Fincher
I think the same applies to our cars. I don't know if I will ever get around to it, but I would really like to add a front recovery point for the snatch strap. It was impossible in Darwin, but now I am in Melbourne I am sure I could sort it. I just need to get my butt into gear. And I am driving at night a lot more, so some good LED's. And once I've done that, I am sure I will come up with more ideas...
What has been your best modification?A tow point so I can have a boat? Haha okay that probably doesn't count.
I once catapulted over a burnt tree that had fallen across the road. All it did was blow out one tyre. However a large thick branch was sticking up and it got jammed between the road and my metal bash plate, and I dragged the tree about a metre. So I will nominate that, as it would have been a much longer and more expensive day without it.
Image
First trip we went on, before any of the modifications. The stock plastic plastic bash plate fell off
What has been your worst modification?I have to say the Dobinson 40mm lift. Don't get me wrong, the 40mm makes a huge difference, I just wouldn't go with Dobinson. It has caused me issues twice. Once, the sway bar came off when my wife was between Katherine and Darwin. And when we were at the top of Mitchell Plateau, the shocks in the front blew. It was a very, very long drive back home. I also wasn't impressed that the warranty only covered the parts, and I had to pay again to get it installed.
The last trip before I got the suspension raised
The first kakadu trip after I had it done. It makes such a huge difference, it feels so good, it's a shame I've had so much trouble with it
If you could have anybody else's zook, who's would it be and why?Zooks4life has the best NGV in my opinion, so I would nominate his.
Or something with coily's as I feel I am missing out on a lot of jokes.
What has been your best 4wding trip?Oh wow good question. The way to Mitchell Falls from Darwin was one of the best things ever. El Questro was amazing, both the campsites and the gorges. Terrible condition of the road, and the technical issues we had, makes it hard to nominate it. Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)
I guess then it would be my trip to Jim Jim. It is an extremely interesting 4WD track, it is amazing how much the environment changes in such a short amount of time. It is pretty G-rated apart from a very deep water crossing. A good one to do in a hire car
Up at Mitchell Falls, before shocks blew, when I was still very much in love with her
If you could go to any place in the world to wheel, where would that be?If money was no object, I would say Africa. More realistically, the west coast of Australia. The gorges of the Gibb are pretty amazing, I would love to go back and see the parts we had to abandon.
Who are you closest to in the auszooker's community?Marko “The Amateur” is the only one I have hung out with regularly, as we were both based in Darwin.
Tell us what the wheeling is like in your area?As I said I am more of a 'remote camper' than I am a wheeler. Darwin has absolutely amazing camping. It doesn't have a huge range though, due to the population. Bendigo is bigger than Darwin. So having been there 4 years I have pretty much been everywhere you can go with a long weekend. Now I'm in Melbourne I will definitely miss the predictable weather but Kakadu was 3.5 hours away from Darwin, and there is a LOT to do within 3.5 hours of Melbourne.
Darwin is also interesting in that I feel tourism NT doesn't do a great job putting information about camping and 4WD tracks online. You can live up there for years and never know about Butterfly Gorge. Which is why I started my website, which is a good segue into...
The best thing about camping in Darwin is the predictable weather, it makes it so easy to plan things
What other toys/hobbies do you put a lot of time into?My website / blog is
http://www.tidesandtrails.com You can also follow me on instagram: tidesandtrails
I started it for a few reasons, firstly I was keeping a fishing journal and was loving being able to go back and read it, and I wanted to do the same for my camping. Secondly I thought it could be a good resource for anyone wanting to see places in the NT that can't navigate the clunky official site. Thirdly, one day... one day I will get paid to fish and camp and write about it... still dreamin'
Other than that: weightlifting, basketball, reading, writing.
What is it about the auszookers that brings you back for more?I get a problem with the car:
- I google it
- If I can't get an answer, I will post here and hope someone responds
- If it takes longer than 30 seconds, I will post here and hope someone responds
- If I get an easy answer, I will post here in cases someone thinks otherwise
(And generally someone = gwagensteve)
Actually I consider myself one of the success stories for the website. I have come in with utterly zero knowledge and now have a car that exactly matches what I was after. It's just a good community. And getting legitimate information about cars is quite difficult. For blokes, cars are like 'lifting weights' or 'picking up chicks'. Everyone thinks they are an expert.
What about the auszookers forum would you like to see changed?I wish more people would post their camping/fishing trips in the "Pics, trips & travel" forum. It is mostly a 4WD only section, okay that makes sense, but if I ruled the world, I would get more people to put their general outdoor escapades in there.
Now for the million dollar question, who do you select to be the next Z.O.O.M. & why?Henno
Now I have answered this, you owe me a million dollars, right?
My rig at Bynoe Harbour. The boat has sold now I'm in Melbourne
Another sunset shot
