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. 2014?
Thanks, pretty awesome! i get along well with rich (who nominated me) zooks and 4wding is my life! so im happy to share that part of my life with you all
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?
well im Phil from Hobart tassie! I live with my wifey, our daughter, long dog and our collection of zooks and parts!
my user name comes from a old fusion car audio alien dole thing that we took wheeling when we were kids, its name was a play on the snake racing name!
i have a back ground in mechanics and fabrication, but due to a back injury i now work in a call center!
How did you get started in Suzuki's & how many have you owned?
when i was 17 simon one of my best mates had a zook and i fell in love with it! i just had to have one, so i bought my first zook, it was an abortion of a thing comparison to what i have/build now but back then it was awesome
Since then i have owned about 10 zooks I'd say? Ranging from a attempted tuff truck build that failed miserably due to my lack of any real experience, and me thinking i was far better than i realistically was.
A cool coily, super swampers GTI powered etc, this one went though a few motors, got driven all up the east coast of Australia but got parted out, it was a cool zook, with a martuti cab etc
Richy my super budget build, 1ltr, welded diffs, cut all the things and put on the cheapest tires you can find! not a single straight panel, but oh so much fun.
My maruti, that i love to bits, they say if you can park your car and walk away without feeling the need to look back you have the wrong car... Well every day i look out my loungroom door and smile when i see it! I'd say i am doing it right!
My jimny, daily, touring rig, this was a "i wont modify this car" and for the most part its pretty much stock, except the engine conversion, lift, tires, duel battery's, front bar, winch, lights, fridge mounts etc.. kinda stock
I had the all time famous pintara-ed 1ltr. That was a bit of a fun project that got smashed into in my drive way! All buy a kid with no insurance, who was 17 so got off scott free! I even had to pay the clean up billl!
I also have built a suzuki specific camper trailer for my jimny from scratch, that i towed all up the east coast of Australia last march!
I have also help or taken the lead on a few other people builds!
I have a function over form build style and some one telling me i cant do something is more than likely going to push me to do it even more!
How long did it take you to build your zook to what it is today?
My MG410 build was something that was always on the cards, being 6'1, fitting in a zook ute cab was never a option for me, i simply needed the extra room. I always wanted the extra wheel base for a tray to actualy put things in! And a bit more stability/ride quality,
l love the maruti utes, unfortunately it took me many years to actually own one! The build its self only took around 12 months, however i had most parts already and it is still on going!
Any changes in store for your Suzuki?
A few in mind/on the go, 6.5:1 transfer gears (currently 4.1:1) vit floater rear diff is already shortened, just need to get some tanshi axels and fit it all up! And I'd like to get a rear disconnect before my comp this year..
What has been your best modification?
Oh so many. Power steering followed buy gearing. The same rules apply for all zooks.
What has been your worse modification?
umm, thinking at 20 i knew it all and could take on a comp build. Wasted so much money and effort to come out with junk that never even moved!
If you could have anybody else's zook, who's would it be and why?
Gwagon's hedgepig, that zook (other than the lack of room in the cab) is a work of art. Its function over form, and the way it all comes together makes it close to perfection. l have taken so much inspiration from Steve's build's. I have a lot to thank him for
Or tanshi's Lj. Also a work of art and a real think outside the box kind of build.
What has been your best 4wding trip?
Oh so many. My last trip to the west coast of tassie comes to mind. l punished my car and drove everything. Some things i didn't even think were drivable, my car was nearly faultless and made me very proud of what i had built.
If you could go to any place in the world to wheel, where would that be?
I'd love to do the vic high country hard tour with the vic club, or the coffs harbour trip with that crew. Maybe in a year or so i might do both!
Who are you closest to in the auszooker's community?
I'd have to say either gricey or quinny (superduki or dmfelix) they are both groomsmen in my wedding in 7 weeks if that counts. l was quinnys navigator for his first comp last year also.
Oh and my wedding cars, as you can imagine, are zooks!
Tell us what the wheeling is like in your area?
Plenty of it, not the best in the world. Mostly clay and mud, but some small rocky stuff. as a bonus we get snow wheeling a few times every year!
the good tassie wheeling is on the west coast, thats just a few hours up the road! i try to do one west coast trip a year! i got 2 in last year though What other toys/hobbies do you put a lot of time into?
4wding/building 4wds and gaming are my 2 main hobbies, i have also taken sort of a lead roll in running the kellevie challenge (the once a year comp my club holds) so that may take up a whole chunk of my time, but as a bonus i hope to see the event grow with some serious competition and people pushing the limits of there individual rigs.
l also have a bit to do with Motorsport in tassie, as a cams official, i do flat towing and general event running
What is it about the auszookers that brings you back for more?
l like the forum, love reading what other people have built. l use it as inspiration and a good supply of information when ever i need it!
What about the auszookers forum would you like to see changed?
The school girl bitchyness but tbh most of that is gone
Now for the million dollar question, who do you select to be the next Z.O.O.M. & why?
Superduki or Simon, he was the one that got me into all this mess!!
