Bushranger (4WD)

Photograph of the Australian made "Bush Ranger", February 2006

The Bushranger (also known as Bushrangie) is an Australian 4wd buggy made by John E Davis Motor Works derived from the British Dakar but is considerably different, although both use Range Rover parts. Options like roofs, front and rear butterfly doors and canvas doors and roofs were available as well. Little is known about the vehicle as it is shadowed by the Dakar. Red Bull also have a Bushranger as a promotional vehicle.

The Dakar and the Bushranger are basically a scrapped Range Rover; chassis has been removed behind the rear wheels, a roll cage added and a fibre-glass shell body placed over the top. The interior is usually that of a Range Rover, or a Land Rover Discovery, and the engine and gearbox is also Range Rover or Land Rover, however a few mild to wild engines have been used.

Bushrangers in kit-form

In kit form, where one buys the shell, and the roll cage from either manufacturer, one must then purchase a donor vehicle – usually a full chassised Range Rover (from wrecking or scrapping motor vehicle yards). Initially the donor vehicle is pulled down to a 'bare bones' rolling chassis, and then the process of putting the kit together starts. Timewise, it can take anywhere from a few months to a couple years, all depending on how much time, effort, and money one has.


Last updated on 7 May 2014 at 04:19.