Chips, No Stake. Journey to the Centre of the Simpson Desert

[Lost1?]

So SteveMC181 sent out the call, who is interested in doing a trip to the Simpson Dessert GEO Centre. To which two other takers put their hand up to say we are keen to have a crack, myself (with my good mate Sam as jockey) and Cookie64. Over the next week this trip had its share of challenges, with one or two pleasant surprises. This trip was to prove challenging The plan was to meet up at Mt Dare around lunch time on the 14th May, then head out to Old Andado and set up camp to commence the trip. The best laid plans do not always go according to schedule.

Day 1
My mate and I arrived way later than we thought due to road conditions along the way and a slight detour taking longer than expected. We parked up and went into the Mt Dare pub to wait what we thought was the arrival of Steve and Cookie. Unsure if we were late but ahead of them or late and behind them on the road.

After sitting at Mt Dare for a few hours the decision was made to refuel and push on early the next morning to Old Andado. Whilst fueling at the bowser one of the Mt Dare staff asked were you looking for a couple of blokes who are going to the Simpson in a white Patrol? We then knew we had missed Steve and Cookie. After a quick discussion it was decided to slowly push on into the evening to avoid cattle and make Old Andado after dark.

We arrived at Old Andado around 2030hrs that night to find Steve and Cookie relaxing with a drink by the campfire. Happy in the knowledge we hadn't blown the trip before it had started. Our late arrival made for some light hearted banter about what we were going to do next if we hadn't arrived the next morning or if I didn't find Steve or Cookie at Old Andado whilst we had a relaxing sip or two, while enjoying some great company.

Day 2
We were fed and watered early before having a look around the old homestead that was left in exactly the condition it was when Molly Clark left the property. This was a reminder of the old homesteads that remained on properties owned by relatives when I lived in the country as a child. From there we moved on to the Acacia Peuce tree grove nearby and pushed on to the start of the Madigan Line. Before turning south onto the Coulson track and pushing south for around 40km to a star dropper marker. This is where the off track part of the trip began. We were extremely cautious at first, being very aware of the risk of staking tyres when off track. It was then that we struck the first hurdle. Cookie had begun to experience overheating issues with his transmission and decided to head south down the Coulson to the nearest workshop. Cookie later confirmed he spent some time clearing his trans cooler of spinifex before continuing on to Mungeranie to inspect his vehicle. We had travelled for 2.5km off track and close to 200km on track for the day.

 

[stevemc181]

Yep, a bit of a confusing start, but we got there in the end, Just! Looking forward to the rest of the write up

We’re (Rob and Myself) currently camped at Willow Springs in the Flinders, heading off to Coffin Bay tomorrow. Looks like we departed Birdsville just in the nick of time.

 

[Lost1?]

Good to hear your both enjoying the rest of your trip Steve. It was a great trip and thank you. I appreciate everything you did to organise this trip and what happened along the way. Cheers.

 

[cookie64]

Gutted,
It was to be the 4x4 trip of all the trips I have recently done, glad to have met all of you in person and share a quiet tipple if only for one night.

For me, after doing a wheel and tyre on the last Old Ghan Track only 2 weeks before, I had 2 new tyres fitted to the front, a Toyota Dealer Service - that's a totally different disappointing story, buying and fitting a new air filter myself, prepping enough meals to stay out there for a couple of weeks plus having canned food spares, buying a full years worth of Satellite air time, carrying 2 full spare tyres + carcass, I thought I was prepared for everything.

I even had a couple of bottles of very special Red Wine to celebrate Geo Surveys & then Geo Centre, so to discover that both @Lost1? & Sam enjoyed a glass of Red I was really looking forward to sharing it.

All was going well until the very first Off Track Dune, on what was quite an ordinary run up, the 4x4 fell flat, reversed down deflated the tyres some more (20PSI cold) and tried again, this time it went into limp going up with X-Mas lights appearing on the dash, I let it sit and cool for a while with the bonnet up and then tried starting but the A/T Overtemp light was still on, let it cool a little longer and eventually it disappeared.

Cresting the first dune I had a serious decision to make, and given Steve couldn't get back up the dune, it was a big decision, for me it was about not being a burden on the team should the fault develop into something bigger ruining the trip for all. The other thought pattern was, if it totally went pear shaped how the hell do I get it out of there given that neither Mt Dare or Birdsville Auto offer recoveries north of French Line. So unfortunately for me, it was one of the hardest decisions to pull out and travel alone for 5 hours down, a non-existent at times, Colson Track until I could find a big enough clearing to stop for the night.

At first light, looking down the radiato,r I could see a bit of grass which was predictably from the Colson as there was nothing obvious the day before, unbolting the underbody protection, a pile of seed & grass was at the very bottom and had worked its' way between the Auto Trans Cooler and the radiator hence blocking air flow, 2 hours later I had removed enough to fill a 20kg bag and moving the 4x4 again I found more, I then bolted everything back together and called VKS737 to let them know I was now solo heading the rest of the way to meet the French Line and head out to Birdsville as they at least have a full workshop with mechanic. I suspect the grass and seeds weren't only from this trip as the grass was relatively low.

At least from there the vehicle now performed beautifully as usual with no limp or warning lights to be seen and after clearing the SA Simpson Desert I found a spot for the night on the K1 / French / QAA junction. I made it into Birdsville the next day with a bit of relief that there appeared to be nothing wrong with the A/T now. Quick shower and fresh clothes at the caravan park I now was clear of the spinifex seeds pricking me every now & then as they were in the clothes that I was wearing when I cleared the crap out from under the 4x4.

Next day about 100Km out of Birdsville the dash lit up again, this time the ABS and Traction Control lights, under the 4x4 again but couldn't find anything obvious, all ABS Sensors seemed to be OK and nothing out of place. I cautiously made it into Mungerannie and caught up with Phil, who at 10am in the morning thrust a UDL into my hands and pulled the ring top. It looks like he may have found a buyer so if anyone wants to catch up with Phil best make it sooner rather than later. He mentioned that he has seen ABS warnings many times on the track but I should be OK, after 50Km out of Mungerannie the lights went out never to be seen again.

On the final leg, I left Parachilna Gorge at 4am (couldn't get back to sleep), at around 6am a rather largish Kangaroo hopped out from the bush right into my bullbar, fortunately I drive a bit slower at dawn & dusk so the damage was minimal - broken spotlight mount.

At home I pulled the front off and found, more seeds and grass, and that the left front bullbar bash plate was loose, broken bracket, pulled that apart and then saw minor cracks in the main mounts that attach it to the chassis rails, off they came and sent them off to be properly welded. Then I noticed where the roo hit the light it sent it back into the grille cracking it as well - it could have been worse.

So this was a memorable trip for me but not for the reasons I was hoping for.

Still I met some cracking good blokes with a great team spirit, Steve was checking up over the Sat phone that I was OK, what a great testament to great travelling companions and gutted that I missed out on sharing the whole trip with you guys.

Cheers

Cookie

 

[discomatt]

That’s a crappy outcome, on the up side, the next trip will be better
So what caused the ABS to have a hissy fit?
More than likely due to the trans overheat would be my guess
Or the last mechanic got confused and put a LR part

 

[Lost1?]

I have to agree Cookie, when things don't go to plan on a regular trip it can be inconvenient. But when things go pear shaped when remote country it takes on a whole different perspective. As I was soon to find out.

 

[cookie64]

That’s a crappy outcome, on the up side, the next trip will be better
So what caused the ABS to have a hissy fit?
More than likely due to the trans overheat would be my guess
Or the last mechanic got confused and put a LR part

Not sure yet, once I finish sorting out the front end I intend to remove each wheel and check the ABS sensors properly and clean them up, it may be something silly like a dirty plug / socket on one of the sensors.

I tend to tread cautiously and have mechanical sympathy for my 4x4, so when the AT Overtemp came up I stopped, I found out that the Auto Trans are sealed so you can't pull out the dipstick and check the levels or smell if the oil is starting to burn or confirm that it is OK so a big limitation with modern transmissions.

Don't get me started on the last Toyota Service, I am now looking at doing my own servicing now that I have the room, as I have found stuff they simply didn't do but charged for!

cheers

 

[discomatt]

All modern transmissions are sealed and according to manufacturers are sealed for life and don't require servicing, thats a joke , if you want it to last more than 200-250,000km in any 4wd that does any "arduous " work they must be serviced every 70-90,000km
Now yours has got hot it would have caused the oil to started to break down , a full flush would be advisable IMO

 

[rob_macca67]

Not sure yet, once I finish sorting out the front end I intend to remove each wheel and check the ABS sensors properly and clean them up, it may be something silly like a dirty plug / socket on one of the sensors.

I tend to tread cautiously and have mechanical sympathy for my 4x4, so when the AT Overtemp came up I stopped, I found out that the Auto Trans are sealed so you can't pull out the dipstick and check the levels or smell if the oil is starting to burn or confirm that it is OK so a big limitation with modern transmissions.

Don't get me started on the last Toyota Service, I am now looking at doing my own servicing now that I have the room, as I have found stuff they simply didn't do but charged for!

cheers

Sorry for not knowing... but curious to what Toyota you have? Landcruiser 100's by any chance??

also... owing a manual myself, I'm curious as to whether you drive the Auto in "D" or lock it in a gear when driving off-track in this sort of conditions?

 

[rob_macca67]

Gutted,
It was to be the 4x4 trip of all the trips I have recently done, glad to have met all of you in person and share a quiet tipple if only for one night.

For me, after doing a wheel and tyre on the last Old Ghan Track only 2 weeks before, I had 2 new tyres fitted to the front, a Toyota Dealer Service - that's a totally different disappointing story, buying and fitting a new air filter myself, prepping enough meals to stay out there for a couple of weeks plus having canned food spares, buying a full years worth of Satellite air time, carrying 2 full spare tyres + carcass, I thought I was prepared for everything.

I even had a couple of bottles of very special Red Wine to celebrate Geo Surveys & then Geo Centre, so to discover that both @Lost1? & Sam enjoyed a glass of Red I was really looking forward to sharing it.

All was going well until the very first Off Track Dune, on what was quite an ordinary run up, the 4x4 fell flat, reversed down deflated the tyres some more (20PSI cold) and tried again, this time it went into limp going up with X-Mas lights appearing on the dash, I let it sit and cool for a while with the bonnet up and then tried starting but the A/T Overtemp light was still on, let it cool a little longer and eventually it disappeared.

Cresting the first dune I had a serious decision to make, and given Steve couldn't get back up the dune, it was a big decision, for me it was about not being a burden on the team should the fault develop into something bigger ruining the trip for all. The other thought pattern was, if it totally went pear shaped how the hell do I get it out of there given that neither Mt Dare or Birdsville Auto offer recoveries north of French Line. So unfortunately for me, it was one of the hardest decisions to pull out and travel alone for 5 hours down, a non-existent at times, Colson Track until I could find a big enough clearing to stop for the night.

At first light, looking down the radiato,r I could see a bit of grass which was predictably from the Colson as there was nothing obvious the day before, unbolting the underbody protection, a pile of seed & grass was at the very bottom and had worked its' way between the Auto Trans Cooler and the radiator hence blocking air flow, 2 hours later I had removed enough to fill a 20kg bag and moving the 4x4 again I found more, I then bolted everything back together and called VKS737 to let them know I was now solo heading the rest of the way to meet the French Line and head out to Birdsville as they at least have a full workshop with mechanic. I suspect the grass and seeds weren't only from this trip as the grass was relatively low.

At least from there the vehicle now performed beautifully as usual with no limp or warning lights to be seen and after clearing the SA Simpson Desert I found a spot for the night on the K1 / French / QAA junction. I made it into Birdsville the next day with a bit of relief that there appeared to be nothing wrong with the A/T now. Quick shower and fresh clothes at the caravan park I now was clear of the spinifex seeds pricking me every now & then as they were in the clothes that I was wearing when I cleared the crap out from under the 4x4.

Next day about 100Km out of Birdsville the dash lit up again, this time the ABS and Traction Control lights, under the 4x4 again but couldn't find anything obvious, all ABS Sensors seemed to be OK and nothing out of place. I cautiously made it into Mungerannie and caught up with Phil, who at 10am in the morning thrust a UDL into my hands and pulled the ring top. It looks like he may have found a buyer so if anyone wants to catch up with Phil best make it sooner rather than later. He mentioned that he has seen ABS warnings many times on the track but I should be OK, after 50Km out of Mungerannie the lights went out never to be seen again.

On the final leg, I left Parachilna Gorge at 4am (couldn't get back to sleep), at around 6am a rather largish Kangaroo hopped out from the bush right into my bullbar, fortunately I drive a bit slower at dawn & dusk so the damage was minimal - broken spotlight mount.

At home I pulled the front off and found, more seeds and grass, and that the left front bullbar bash plate was loose, broken bracket, pulled that apart and then saw minor cracks in the main mounts that attach it to the chassis rails, off they came and sent them off to be properly welded. Then I noticed where the roo hit the light it sent it back into the grille cracking it as well - it could have been worse.

So this was a memorable trip for me but not for the reasons I was hoping for.

Still I met some cracking good blokes with a great team spirit, Steve was checking up over the Sat phone that I was OK, what a great testament to great travelling companions and gutted that I missed out on sharing the whole trip with you guys.

Cheers

Cookie

Having been out that way last year I can understand your concerns regarding whether to continue off-track or not...

We travelled all the way down the Colson to just nth of the abandoned Colson oil well where we then turned eastwards along the non-existent E/W Shot-line to the Geo-Ctr. I couldn't believe the state of the Colson track but it had been some 17yrs since I last drove the Colson track though... (btw: Did u the burnt out Ute on the eastern side of the Colson track when u headed south?)

When we turned eastwards and went over and down the 1st steep dune, I remember there was a sense of nervousness realising that if anything was to happen to your vehicles, that it would be next to impossible to get them out... but it was a trip and a experience of a lifetime though & I'm glad I did it

 

[cookie64]

Sorry for not knowing... but curious to what Toyota you have? Landcruiser 100's by any chance??

also... owing a manual myself, I'm curious as to whether you drive the Auto in "D" or lock it in a gear when driving off-track in this sort of conditions?

It's a 200 series GX, I typically leave it in Drive unless it is a really steep dune then I might lock it in a lower gear but have never really needed to even up Flats Track it has never struggled, I am confident it was just the lack of airflow at the rear of the cooler.

Having been out that way last year I can understand your concerns regarding whether to continue off-track or not...

We travelled all the way down the Colson to just nth of the abandoned Colson oil well where we then turned eastwards along the non-existent E/W Shot-line to the Geo-Ctr. I couldn't believe the state of the Colson track but it had been some 17yrs since I last drove the Colson track though... (btw: Did u the burnt out Ute on the eastern side of the Colson track when u headed south?)

When we turned eastwards and went over and down the 1st steep dune, I remember there was a sense of nervousness realising that if anything was to happen to your vehicles, that it would be next to impossible to get them out... but it was a trip and a experience of a lifetime though & I'm glad I did it

Yeah part of me wanted to go but I thought it would be so selfish should something go wrong - it's a hard call

No didn't see it, hopefully they recovered it as there is nothing worse than for example, the CSR or Talawana where people see it as a rite of passage to leave their burn't out vehicles littering the outback.

Yeah, it is back on my list of must do's, next time I will be pulling everything apart and checking it thoroughly and being even more prepared if that's possible.

cheers

 

[deepop]

Bad luck Cookie - good decision though, don't risk it. You'll get there, it's not going away.

 

[rob_macca67]

It's a 200 series GX, I typically leave it in Drive unless it is a really steep dune then I might lock it in a lower gear but have never really needed to even up Flats Track it has never struggled, I am confident it was just the lack of airflow at the rear of the cooler.



Yeah part of me wanted to go but I thought it would be so selfish should something go wrong - it's a hard call

No didn't see it, hopefully they recovered it as there is nothing worse than for example, the CSR or Talawana where people see it as a rite of passage to leave their burn't out vehicles littering the outback.

Yeah, it is back on my list of must do's, next time I will be pulling everything apart and checking it thoroughly and being even more prepared if that's possible.

cheers

Hey Cookie...
I forgot to ask.... do u have any way of monitoring the Auto-Trans Temps by any chance?

 

[stevemc181]

Made it home last night, what an awesome adventure. Will post up a trip report when time allows and Lost1 fills in the details on the trials and tribulations when things go pear shaped a long way from anywhere.

 

[cookie64]

Hey Cookie...
I forgot to ask.... do u have any way of monitoring the Auto-Trans Temps by any chance?

Looking into it with a custom setting on the Scangauge

 

[Lost1?]

Day 3
Dawned a clear, sunny day. Discussion around the camp fire the night before had briefly touched on the extent of tyre repairs expected over the next few days. As we ate and packed up to start the day there was an air of anticipation surrounding the off track phase of our trip. A quick check of the ute and we started the day with SteveMC taking the lead. We began working our way along a GPX route to an old fuel dump from the exploration teams that worked through the region back in the 1960's.

The terrain was slow going. Idling in 1st or 2nd low range on the flatter terrain as we carefully picked our way around potential stakes. While the sand was generally pretty firm, when cresting dunes the second vehicle over would sometimes need to find an alternate path to reach the other side as the initial path became chewed up. By now my tyre pressures were down to 16lb front, 18lb rear hot. Arriving at the marker that depicted the old fuel dump, I was very surprised to see how well the remnant old drums and other items that clearly marked the location had survived. Walking the area you could piece together the general layout of the camp from the items that were left laying on the ground in the immediate area.

After lunch I took the lead and we pressed on toward the first Geo marker. As we crossed the dunes a decision was made to go off the GPX track we were following to reduce distance travelled between key waypoints. The day ended short of the first Geo marker as it was time to find a camp site. We found a clear spot in a swale that had some dead timber close by for a camp fire to keep us warm during the chilly nights. We had travelled about 48km cross country for the day, nil tyres staked. During some campfire banter that evening we began to discuss how surprised we were that the tyres had survived a full day of cross country without damage.

 

[Lost1?]

I haven't transferred my photo's yet. I got back last Sunday and went straight to work on Monday. When I load the pics to my computer I will start loading some in.

 

[Lost1?]

Day 4
Steve took the lead in the morning and we started working toward Geo Marker hill. We started following the gpx before deciding to blaze our own trail. Reaching this feature was our first significant milestone. It felt.good to mark our first achievement that was a key part of this trip. Next the Geo Cemtre of.the Simpson.

I took the lead and later that day Steve called over the UHF to tell me I was blowing smoke fairly consistently. At that time I thought the new air filter I had fitted before the trip had become clogged and was drawing oil through the PCV. It couldn't be the brand new turbo I fitted before the trip, I thought at the time.

We pressed on toward the Geo centre. Steve was keen to camp on the Geo centre, but I was becoming concerned about my ute and wanted to do some track side maintenance. I called Steve and we set up camp about 5km short at around 6.00pm. I pulled the air cleaner and tapped out a fair amount of dust. Then tried to blow the air filter out using my compressor. Afterwards we sat around the campfire and marvelled that we had not yet had to repair a single tyre after travelling about 55km.

Day5
We set off for the Geo centre with Steve in the lead. Working our way east to west. This forced me to work my vehicle harder than I would like. But so far everything was holding together. Two dunes before the Geo centre and my ute began to lose power. Oh F@#$. With limited range on my UHF I lost communication with Steve. I now had a bigger issue. With or without Steve, could I get back to a track and be recovered. The unknown had a second order effect. I needed a nervous crap.

10 minutes later I was dropping tyre pressures to minimise strain on the drive line. I was now at 12 lbs front and 14 lds rear hot tyre pressures off track. A deep breath and I send the ute over the dune. I could not get a visual on Steve and had no comms. What to do next? I cleared the dune crest and stopped a short distance down the dune. I then told my mate Sam we will walk to the top of the dune and walk in opposite directions to obtain visual on Steve. Whilst maintaining visual contact between us, emphasising we cannot become visually separated away from the vehicle. At the top of the dune I sight Steve in the Patrol. Then run back to the vehicle and call him on the UHF.

Steve then put me as the lead vehicle after that little escapade. We crested the next two dunes and reached the final marker point. Geo Centre of the Simpson Desert. After some photo's, banter and attaching a statement sign to the feature we fill in the visitor book and are on our way. We follow the gpx trail to the west at first but then decide we need to limp my stricken vehicle over dunes to the east to reduce the strain on my ute. As I idle along in low range my mind starts to race. What if I can't get back to the nearest track to recover my vehicle. Which way do we go to reach the nearest town for repairs. I message my daughter using my zoleo. Then use SteveMC sat phone to call her. I talk her through what to look for in the garage as I want her to send my old turbo to Birdsville so we can repair my ute. She does a great job finding and describing the turbo with dump pipe attached. She confirms she will post the turbo to Birdsville post office. A great result. Now to limp my ute to somewhere we can recover the vehicle. Whilst this is happening Steve is an absolute trooper. Driving through my James Bond like smokescreen for the rest of the day. After a day of driving between idle and 1400rpm we pull up in a Gidgee stand that provides great firewood for the evenings festivities and cooking. The bush mechanic in me decides to disconnect the turbo wastegate actuator to attempt to minimise the strain on the turbo. When I check end float the compressor wheel moves about 3-4mm. The turbo is in bad shape. I am beginning to think will we nurse this vehicle out of here? Or am I going to be coming back to recover my ute in 6 months time. It was during the evenings banter that the name of this thread was decided. After 5 days without staking a tyre Chips, No Stake was to be the name of this thread. That night I did not rest easy. The unknown causing me to toss and turn nervously throughout the night.

Day6
The day dawns and I am focused on how to nurse my ute to a location where I can recover my vehicle. Again we break away from the GPX track to reduce the distance travelled. Picking our way through lower lying features and gidgee stands. This increased the anxiety levels as we try to dodge fallen hardwood that could potentially stake tyres. The decisioin to travel east had now taken us into low lying terrain that is difficult to navigate. During the course of the day I would smash both side steps whilst idling along in first or second gear in low range. At the end of the day we hit a sisemic line near a stand of gidgee near an old oil well. We had successfully navigated another 55ish km day off track without staking a tyre. My ute had survived, but we were at risk of running out of oil before we hit the French line.

Over the last two days I had become hyper sensitive to what was happening to my ute. Maintaining focus on the job of nursing the ute to the nearest track was mentally tiring. However internally, I was becoming more positive I could nurse my ute back to the French Line. Fortunately we had another day where we covered greater than 50km.

 

[stevemc181]

Yep, losing communications for 1/2hr or so was a bit worrying, but we managed to track back and saw your tracks at the same time we saw you waving from the dune.
I figured if we didn’t find you, that we’d meet in a few kms at the centre. That was the plan formulating in my mind anyway.

 

[Lost1?]

Yep that was plan C.