Mitsubishi 4WD Owners Club of WA Inc.

POSTAL ADDRESS:

Mitsubishi 4WD Owners Club of WA

PO Box 655

South Perth 6951

EMAIL ADDRESS

secretary@mitsubishi4wd.org.au

HOME PAGE:

www.mitsubishi4wd.org.au

MEETINGS:

1st Wednesday of every month, except January.

Commencing at 7:30pm

Manning Senior Citizen’s Centre

3 Downey Drive

Manning

Visitors welcome at all times.

NEW MEMBERS:

Visitors must participate in 2 club trips and 2 monthly meet-

ings before they can apply for membership. Visitors cannot

attend trips that are more than 3 days duration. Upon appli-

cation a potential new member must pay a $50 nomination

fee. In addition, membership fee is currently $100, which is

due each March. Membership fees for new members are

calculated pro-rata at the time the application is accepted by

the club Committee.

Editor

Quite a big issue this month. Lots of Trip flyers included. A big thanks to Pat for running these trips. It’s always a fun day

out with Pat! A thanks to Judith for her help editing and supplying

interesting stuff too

Check out the advert from ALLY TABLE it’s a really neat idea that might come in

handy out bush or even on a Picnic.

Please check through the past issues. If your picture was a POTY of the month

please email me if you haven’t already!!! Best Wishes for the Silly Season!

PJ—editor@mitsubishi4wd.org.au

2

Our thoughts and best wishes are with Louise Ryan in

her battle to beat cancer. We extend our love and sup-

port and hope she recovers very soon and has a won-

derful Christmas with her family.

Thanks to all those members who attended the club

stand at the Perth 4WD Show. Particular thanks to Ste-

phen Kalyniuk and Michael Gilbert for getting it up

and running and organising things. I understand the

show was a success in that our stand attracted a lot of

interest. That was evident by the good turn-up of visi-

tors to our December Meeting.

Unfortunately, the show producers, Premiere Events

once again were a bit slow providing appropriate ticket

access for members. I have passed on our concerns to

the Association in the hope that they make Premiere

Events aware of the issues before next year.

Thank you to Denise and the Social Committee

(Karen, Jan, Rosalie and Pasc) for organising a won-

derful Xmas Picnic. We appreciate all the effort that

was put into organising the event. I think most people

agree that an outdoor event in the park is more enjoya-

ble for both adults and kids. Thanks to Neil and Raele-

ne for their contributions and especially Neil for taking

on the Santa role this year. Neil arriving dressed as

Santa on the tail gate of Henry’s Triton with amber

roof light flashing got all the kids, and some adults,

very excited. Thank you to Glen for organising the

games that kept the little kids occupied and nearly gave

the big kids chance to be the first recipients of the

President’s

Report

December

2011

club’s defibrillator.

The club’s policy and procedures will be under review

over the next few Months by a small committee and

myself. If you have any issues with club procedures,

such as the way meetings are run, trip procedures or

anything at all to do with club policy, please send me

your concerns or ideas in the coming days so that they

can be considered.

Being affiliated with the WA 4WD Association, as a

club, we have a commitment to assist the Association

with the maintenance of the Karaakin Office and the

Black Cockatoo Society who occupy the property. It is

proposed that, to do our ‘bit’, we will hold a function

of some sort at that location in the coming year which

will incorporate a club effort to provide work in main-

taining the property.

Big congratulations to Tony Weldon for receiving a

DEC Outstanding Service Award for our club’s envi-

ronment work at the Leschenault Peninsula. The club

received an award in 2009, but this year, although our

club was also mentioned on the award, was directed to

Tony personally for his efforts in organising the work.

As a club we are privileged in having someone as dedi-

cated and enthusiastic as Tony to represent our club.

Behind every good man is an even better woman. In

Tony’s case, all this environmental achievement would

not be possible without the support and assistance from

Stella. We all thank you both for the mammoth effort

you put in.

Members are asked that if you have an idea for a

Guest Speaker to present at club meetings that you first

contact our Secretary John King before making any

arrangements. The presentation needs to be relevant to

our club’s activities. If approved by the Secretary, a

date and time limit will be provided for you to organise

your guest. It will be your responsibility to introduce

the guest to the club meeting.

The December meeting saw a presentation from Lau-

ren who is a Community Liaison Officer with the Can-

cer Council. Lauren spoke about the causes and preven-

tative measures for skin cancer. Her talk was very well

received with many questions being generated from the

members. The Cancer Council operate on money re-

ceived from fund raising, business operations and gov-

ernment grants. In return the provide community

awareness programs like the talk presented to the club,

fund research into cancer cures and provide support for

cancer patients. The club presented Lauren with a $300

donation. This money was raised from a quiz night at

Big Valley and the proceeds from the raffle draw at the

December meeting. Thank you to all those who contrib-

uted.

The next AGM is not until March, however, because

we do not have a January meeting it should be men-

tioned that there’s a number of vacancies coming up on

our committee. Traditionally the committee positions

were discussed over a campfire during the New Years

Even camping trip at Denmark and later years at Wal-

pole. However, because the club has grown in recent

years we now have two full trips over the xmas break

and AGM nominations no longer get resolved. So I ask

you to think about what you can contribute to the club

by selecting a position on the committee and put your

name up when nominations are called in February.

Immediately following the March AGM will be the

usual club meeting. However, this coming year we will

introduce a Planning Meeting format where all club

members will have the opportunity to voice their rec-

ommendations on what the club should achieve in the

coming year. You may have some ideas for social

events, day trips, camping trips, guest speakers or any-

thing else that comes to mind. You don’t necessarily

have to commit yourself to organising anything, but the

ideas may inspire others to get involved.

In the meantime, for those not going to the Duke of

Orleans trip, I wish each and every one a wonderful

Christmas and look forward to seeing you all in the

New Year.

Martin -President

5

Well, being a boy I have always been interested in

cars and have always had the bug to modify them to better suit my needs – the hunt for performance, bet-ter fuel economy, reliability, off road ability and a comfortable home away from home when the camping opportunities beckon. My landcruiser was born in 1989, the last of a long line of 60 series cruisers. Most likely the oldest vehicle in the club – any takers for the title? When I first bought the cruiser home the kids were only little and it was so big they called it REX, short for Tyrannosaurus rex! On a recent trip to Julimar, Paul (Ex-Presidento) thought we should rename REX as ‘Ethel’ instead as it reminded him of ‘homely, gen-tle, homemade apple pie on the window sill’ sort of old girl, kind of car like the elephant matriarch – she is slow but keeps on plodding along. She has even been called ‘the tardis’ on occasions because of what materializes out of her. In the eleven years I have owned Rex, it has had quite a few modifications and additions. This is more of a hobby with the added advantage of enabling my other interests of camping, fishing, exploring outback historic places, getting the kids outdoors and of course the campfire cooking, socializing and beers. The main modifications have really been aimed at comfortable touring. As I don’t like towing and try to

keep things simple, even a tent is a luxury. In follow-ing this theme, I prefer to sleep out under the stars in my swag, if it is a bit dewy the awning comes out and if it is a bit wet the awning sides come out. Next is the tent if I am camping for more the 3 nights or so. My idea of a holiday is to park up on a nice secluded beach, set up my camp and just sit, fish, swim, read, walk, sleep and maybe a beer or two. My solar power setup of 2 solar panels on gas struts and 3 batteries

means I can stay as long as I like without worrying about flat batteries. The ‘go where I want to’ aspect has been enabled by a 50mm suspension lift, 33” wheels, Tough Dog foam cell shockies, extended greasable shackles and front sway bar disconnects. No lockers yet! Outside is adorned with a roobar, spotties, radio and phone antennas, roof rack with tilt up twin solar pan-els, Maxtrax, LED floodlights all round, mounting lo-cations for 2 extra spare wheels and 4 x 20 litre jerry cans for long distance travel. It also has a 65 litre sub tank and custom rock sliders.

Camping accessories include a Polaris 2.5 x 2.5m awning with 3 zip-on sides in case the weather turns bad. A custom built drawer system with a 40litre slide out Engel fridge, cargo barrier and lots of little pokey places to hide other stuff. The back seats have been removed to free up space for tools, spare parts, tent, water (on tap at the rear), swag, shower and other necessities. My navigation setup sounds impressive with 4 GPS’s. A Garmin, a Magellan, Tom Tom and Oziexplorer run-ning on a 10 inch notebook with an external touch screen monitor. The truth is I keep upgrading but can’t move the old gear out of the car! My most recent addition has been a reversing cam-era, I figured after backing into two trees that it was about time – it is plumbed into the monitor. 8

“So, the old brain started ticking away,

ticking, ticking…...Determined to intercool

the turbo’d engine I decided to make my

own system.”

Well, I suppose that at some time I must mention the power house under the old girls bonnet! Technology it is not, “it sounds like a truck” says Michael. The main thing is that she has done 335,000 kms and the engine has not been touched yet and it hasn’t let me down. But, I must admit I had a little fiddle under the bonnet – an improvement. She came standard with a factory turbo diesel with a four speed auto driving the wheels. Being convinced that intercooling is the way to go I searched high and low for an ‘off the shelf’ kit – to no avail. So, the old brain started tick-ing away, ticking, ticking…. Determined to intercool the turbo’d engine I decided to make my own system. After much measuring I sourced an air to air intercooler and set to work. I made up my own kit and one weekend installed it… the hardest bit was cutting the hole in the bonnet – no going back after the first cut! The end product produced the goods with a fan forc-ing air through it when going gets hard on the sand, the turbo boost increased to 9.5 pounds and the fuel rail adjusted up for more fuel if needed. I am pleased with the result – a faster elephant now! Also to compliment all of this is a GME radio, inbuilt Max Air compressor, 600 watt inverter and a Sony sound system. All in all over the years I have slowly developed a comfortable, reliable touring wagon that takes me where I want to go. See you out there! Glenn Bignell

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The club Christmas party was held at Manning Park, Spearwood on Sunday 4th Dec. Some forty five members, six guests and nineteen children enjoyed a happy occasion with super communal food, games and prizes, highlighted by the attendance of Father Christmas to the delight of the children. A special thank you goes to Father Christmas for his timely arrival and his generosity in sparing the time in his busy season to give out the presents to the excited children.

Further thanks go to Neil and Rayleen, and Glen for all their efforts on providing the entertaining games which were entered into with gusto by the children.

Thanks go also to the ladies of the Social Committee; Karen, Pasc, Jan and Rosalie and to their spouses for assist-ing in setting up and later staying to tidy up leaving the park in pristine condition. Weather was kind and everyone had a good time. Denise Belcher,, S.C Chairperson.

POTY ENTRY FOR DEC. 2011

Taken on the Harvey Hills Climb

day Trip in August by John H.

Well Done!

Left: 4 Chefs workin hard!

Big Valley Nov 2011

15

Notes - General Meeting 7/12/11

Environment Officer

1. Working bees. The next working bees will be held

on the following dates. McBEG (Wungong Regional

Park)18 March,17 June, 19 August. McLEG

(Leschenault Peninsula Conservation Park) 18-20 May,

12-14 October

2. Old Homestead in Wungong RP. Our DEC friend

Tony Eddleston has asked us to do a survey of the re-

mains of the historical homestead to see if we can clean

up the site and put up information boards &c. Stella

has put in a lot of work researching the homestead and

has talked to a number of interested people so there

may even be an archaeological dig on the area. Some

of the local councils are also interested. The Club’s

Committee has agreed to support this project and it is

hoped that a few Club members together with DEC

staff and representatives of the councils will visit the

site in early to mid January to assess the situation. This

project will further raise the already high profile of the

Club.

3. Regional Park Community Advisory Committees.

DEC are asking for expressions of interest for positions

on these committees which cover a range of local and

outer Perth parks. Please contact me if you are inter-

ested environment@mitsubishi4wd.org.au - if you are

interested.

4. Outstanding Service Award. In 2009, the Club was

awarded this honour which recognised the work mem-

bers put in at Leschenault Peninsula. Last Friday I was

given a personal OSA for my “continuing commitment

and encouragement for the Mitsubishi 4WD Club, and

the Leschenault Environment Group, now in its 10th

year”. It was quite a surprise when I received the invi-

tation and was delighted to be there with Stella and a

few members. But the Award would never have hap-

pened if it hadn’t been for the support and help of so

many of you. In particular of course, my wife Stella

has been a very special “encourager” of the work I

have undertaken. Our Presidents, especially Martin

and Paul, and the Committee members over the years,

have backed me up strongly but so have all those mem-

bers who have had the commitment to the Club and

understood both the need for what we do and why we

do it. When the Club’s Award was presented, I had the

opportunity to give three reasons to the staff and guests

why we are

involved and these reasons still apply. Firstly, it is by

building the relationships with DEC staff that we are

able to drive to areas which might otherwise be closed

off. Secondly, in WA we have a great part of the Crea-

tion and we should care for it, repair the damage done

by feral drivers and others who don’t care, and leave a

positive heritage for the future. The third reason is to

support the DEC guys on the ground who are under-

staffed, have to deal with the incredible amounts of

rubbish dumped by visitors to the parks and also repair

the damage done the deliberate and stupid actions of a

few “ferals” who don’t care about the parks, the staff

and other visitors. We have seen some appalling dam-

age in our two parks.

So thanks to all of you who have come to our

Mitsubishi club Leschenault Environment Group

(McLEG) and Byford/Wungong McBEG working bees

and camps. For those of you who can but haven’t

helped the Club & DEC previously, please think again

and join us for our next working bees.

Tony Weldon

John K, Tony & Stella W, Paul R, Keith P.

17

CONGRATULATI ONSCONGRATULATI ONSCONGRATULATI ONS TONY ON YOUR D.E.C. TONY ON YOUR D.E.C. TONY ON YOUR D.E.C.

OUTSTANDI NG SERVI CE OUTSTANDI NG SERVI CE OUTSTANDI NG SERVI CE AWARD 2011AWARD 2011AWARD 2011

Tony Weldon being presented his Outstanding Service

Award by D.E.C’s Director Parks and Visitor

Services Peter Sharp.

Meeting:

Time:

Distance: 350 km

Fuel: Full tank ex Perth.

Convoy Limit: 12 vehicles

Trip Stand: Easy/Medium

Equipment: Standard club req,UHF radio,

First Aid kit

Provisions: Mornos and Packed Lunch.

Take plenty of water

Trip Leader: Pat O’D

Register: fugsleprechaun@hotmail.com

Not available on the web, contact Leader

Not available on the web, contact Leader

GNANGARA TRIP - 27th Nov

Very noisy dirt Bikes and dust yuk … who's idea was

it to meet here! Bumpy track, trip note leader has

hard time typing on iPad and driving at the same

time. 6 Kids in Ricks car playing with compressor

switches, Rick had to stop, check all wheels still at-

tached to the car. Only 15 minutes into the trip and

trip leader needs to stop and check maps where is he

taking us?? Does he know?? Oh dear 30 minutes into

the trip and Peter Cole has a suspected flat tyre for-

tunately all good. Pat takes us on every detour possi-

ble to make sure we are off the main limestone track.

10:30 play time, feel like I am back at school! BIG

open sand pit good place to train Guests in sand

driving. 11:00 stomachs rumbling we stop for morn-

ing tea trip leader very precise with instructions 11:

30 we move on! 12:15 Steve, frantic dash through

the scrub, longest pit stop ever. Some nice wildflow-

ers along the way. Pat "Little bit of water here I'm

going to go for it but I think I will go straight down"

quoted our fearless leader. But later and in true

Pat style as we are driving along getting very hungry

Ooops where did

that come from?? “Rick... have you….

chipped the Cruiser?”

(Continued on page 24)

As we are not having much success with volun-

teers for Day Trips I have decided to revert to

the ballot system as used a couple of years ago.

This time however I will draw names from two

categories; experienced and inexperienced and

will put one member from each category togeth-

er so the young gun can learn from the old stag-

er. Rather than put any pair together I will at-

tempt to chose them by region (north, central,

south) so they do not have a great distance to

travel to either discuss a venue or do a pre-trip.

I will get this sorted shortly and will phone

each of the respective “winners” to discuss.

We have records of many earlier trips and by

going back through trip notes in the ,magazine

you could possibly find a suitable run and no

doubt the original Trip Leader will be willing to

assist with route details, etc. I also have many

of these, especially if they were plotted on Ozi

Explorer.

As an aside, Pat O’Dowd intends to run all trips

in the 4WD Days Out of Perth book and will no

doubt appreciate assistance. This would be an

ideal opportunity for inexperienced members to

become involved in running a trip. If you have

an interest in either of these proposals please

contact me.

Keith Trip coordinator

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we hear "I'm stuck" but it was not the mud or sand

but tree Mulch … what the! However he was not the

only one to give it a go, Rick also got stuck. 12:15

we hit the road again. 1:30 on the dot lunch

break. 2:15 on the dirt again. Pat relinquished his

trip leader responsibility to Michael in order look for

"the hill". Eventually Pat did find it so we spent some

time "playing!" Pats usual sense of adventure took

over when he attempted the hill in reverse! No he

didn't quite make it but10 points for trying. 4

o'clock and we were airing up for the drive back to

Perth on the bitumen road. Marion Gilbert

History Report December Club officials met with Tony Eddleston ( D.E.C.)

in Oct and a proposal was put forward that the club might undertake work in 2012 around the homestead ruin in the Upper Wungong Valley. The Management Committee has agreed that the Environment Officer proceed with an investiga-tion of what might be required and how this might be resourced.

It is likely that a survey of the homestead site

would be undertaken, rubbish removed, restora-tion work done where possible, story boards made and set up strategically and other relevant signage. The significant trees will also need to be photographed and GPS recorded. The ruins have not yet been heritage listed on the Municipal data-base and the likelihood of this happening de-pends on evidence to support any application by the City of Armadale.

The environment work done by the Club to re-

vegetate the disused crop dusting airstrip has been successful and the Club will continue to maintain this area within the Regional Park. Bro-ken fencing, rubbish including car bodies has been removed and maintenance of the area around the airstrip above Byford town will be on-going.

In a previous newsletter I stated that the pioneer

owners of the property under discussion were the Hall family. I learned recently that I had been wrongly informed through a misunderstanding of the exact location of this ruin. The current infor-mation about the ruin has been verified by Hugh Carder of the City of Armadale who is responsible for heritage issues and Margaret Bruns who has lived at the neighbouring Wungong Farm south of the highway for over fifty years. 25

The location was first purchased by William

Lacey Gibbs. He moved to the Darkan area the following year after selling the property to Wil-liam Butcher Senior. The property remained in the Butcher family until after the First World War. The original home, believed to have been built in 1854, was close to the brook and built of pit sawn timber and mud from the property. There was a water wheel. The farming activities included horse breeding, dairying, butter, fruit and vegeta-bles sold at the Perth Market. The property during its establishment was used as a depot for trans-porting sandalwood between Williams and Perth

The property was sold in 1926 to (Roy) James

Rawlinson Drummond. Further research is pend-ing. Interesting info; there are four reserves in Wungong Regional Park: Jarrahdale State Forest (part), Wungong Valley, Churchman's Bushland, Armadale Settlers Common (Shire of Armadale)and Bungendore Park (Shire of Armadale). Fur-ther information can be found on this link*. The Club is undertaking work in the first two areas and there are other groups associated with the other areas and working with the City of Arma-dale. Stella Weldon, Club historian http://www.roleybushcare.com/bush-topics/109-new-aboriginal-names-for-regional-parks.html

Support Your Club! Order now!

Prices:

Polo Shirt $35.00 each

Jacket $70.00 each

Cap $15.00 each

Vest $40.00 each

Name Badge $15.00 each

Car Sticker $ 1.00 each

Download an Order Form from the members page

of the Club website or contact Helen Kingston on

08 92492242

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