How do you test six of the most capable turbo-diesel 6-cylindar 4WD utes? Easy, take them to the Aussie Outback for a week driving some of the most torturous tracks between Adelaide and Alice Springs! Which ute will be crowned 2007 4WD Action’s Ute of the Year?    

Brendan gives us a look at some hard-as-nails custom rigs that would be just as comfortable heading up to the Top End as they would be straddling diff-crunching boulders. Running no less than 37in mud-terrains you have to see this super-tourer ‘go-anywhere’ Nissan GU. We also take a look at what happens when an IT professional swaps a soldering iron for a welder when we look at his modified Jeep Cherokee Sport plus we look at a tough no-frills Toyota Prado.

Ramsay shows us how to save some bucks and buy a top second-hand Daihatsu Rocky plus we put install a cruise-control system on the cheap. We go through the ABC’s of towing a camper-trailer and put sand anchors to the test.

We talk tech with brakes and fourbie first-aid. I get stuck into Project Rangie and dump a massive 4.6L Rover V8 under the hood. Between you and me, it sounds like a beast! And we join the crew who are responsible for project SCAT and watch on as they swap the old leaf suspension from some coil springs.

We have some great travel stories to get you dreaming of your next adventure as we follow Dick Eussen as he tackles the Top End during the wet season. We continue the ‘Long Trip in a Shorty’ series from the beaches of the south-west to the Nullarbor.  

For all those that crave their hardcore 4WDing fix, we have all the coverage from the biggest competition event in the 4WD calendar, the Tough Dog Tuff Truck Challenge. See how our bush mechanic Roothy drove the ‘Project SCAT’ over the grueling three day event.