BLACK GROWLER

IF YOU’RE GOING TO SWAP FROM A DOUBLE-CAB UTE TO A 4X4 WAGON, YOU MIGHT AS WELL GO WITH THE BEST AVAILABLE. BRUCE HAS DONE JUST THAT AND EQUIPPED HIS GR SPORT 300 WITH THE BEST GEAR ON THE MARKET

- MATT RAUDONIKIS

ONE of the many great things about Toyota LandCruisers is that no sooner than a new one hits the market, LC enthusiasts will be modifying them and making them their own. With so much heritage behind the LandCruiser badge, those who own them will always return to the marque when it comes time for a new off-roader.

That wasn’t quite the case for Bruce Stewart, the owner of this GR Sport. He’d come from 20 years of driving dual-cab utes but he grew up travelling in LandCruisers.

“I grew up camping and off-roading with my family in my old man’s 55 and 60 Series LandCruisers, which led me to always want one myself,” Bruce told us.

That time finally came with the launch of the 300 Series as his teenage kids had grown to a size that wasn’t ideal for the cramped back seat of a ute.

Bruce went for the most capable LandCruiser in the 300 Series range with the GR Sport offering triple locking diffs and the added articulation of the clever e-KDSS suspension … but the factory offerings weren’t enough for Bruce’s offroad trips and he had a long list of extras and modifications planned for it.

Starting with a vehicle that is arguably the pinnacle of 4x4 wagons available today, Bruce wasn’t about to fit any second-rate products to his Cruiser. An ARB Summit Mk2 bullbar sits up front with side rails running back to sliders also from ARB. A 12,000lb Warn EVO winch is nestled within the bullbar, while a pair of Supernova Infinite 8.5 LED driving lights sit up top along with a GME UHF antenna.

Underbody protection comes courtesy of a set of stainless-steel plates from Custom Offroad, with the four-piece set protecting under the radiator, sump, transmission and transfer case.

At the back of the Cruiser, a bar from The Cruiser Company not only protects the lower parts of the rear quarters but provides a mount to carry the 35-inch spare. On the other side of the rear bar is a box that holds recovery gear and the chainsaw.