We all had plenty of extra time on our hands during the early stages of the initial nationwide lockdown that was put in place by the government as part of the non-pharmaceutical interventions designed to stop the spread of COVID-19. I’m sure you will look back in years to come and remember exactly what you were doing during those early stages of the pandemic that rocked and continues to rock the world.
Some people lost their jobs and loved ones, some people camped in their gardens, and others forged ahead with the ideas that they had simply not had the time to put into action.
One such example of executing such an idea was the birth of a company called Unique Off-Road Concepts. Albeit it wasn’t a completely new idea but one that had been festering for a few years but hadn’t been actioned upon.
The latest project for Unique Off-Road Concepts was to convert a Land Cruiser 79 4.5 V8 Diesel int a 6×6 vehicle
Unique Off-Road Concepts (UOC) started at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The company is equally owned and run by Dale Hughes and David Deneker.
Dale Hughes explains: “After doing the development from my own pocket along with a mate of mine we made the first test vehicle on an old Toyota Land Cruiser 80 series that I had available to test the principles with about five years ago and that car has been doing ongoing testing and driving since then.”
“At this time there were only two other people doing a bolt on reduction box to OEM axles – Tibus (Germany) and Marks 4wd (Australia). The second vehicle was a Land Cruiser 79 series – also one I had around to test the beginnings of the Central Tyre-inflation System (CTIS) as the first vehicle had me having to jump out to pump the tyres when doing serious off-roading, which was a hack.”
“Both of these vehicles were old and although all worked well, we had not taken the plunge and done it on the current vehicles which would take considerably more investment i.e. that of a new car.”
“At the beginning of COVID-19 we had an enquiry that would give us the ability to kill two birds with one stone. A customer that would pay for a six-wheeler. We took it on and opened the company officially as UOC4x4 TA UOC.”
Possible applications include but are not limited to the military, police, exploration, tour operators, search and rescue, emergency medical services, farming, mining, extreme condition travellers, sport enthusiasts and ambulance operators
“We had to develop the six-wheel drive gearbox along with the axles and give it portals and CTIS. This took at least five companies in Australia to do, and it took them five years. We did it in eight months and it works. Its first trip was up to Johannesburg to get onto a truck for the customer in Zambia. No problems occurred and it’s still all good. Which was a great relief as you can imagine. A brief scope of work included cutting the original chassis and building a new one suited to extra axle design and the manufacture of a six-wheeler gearbox. It needed perfect CTIS and electronic control with presets (unique on the Land Cruiser). We also had to design a trayback and canopies that are modular and can transform for different applications, converted the vehicle to a four-link suspension with coil over shocks (unique on the 79 series Land Cruiser), changed the braking system to military quality, adapted the handbrake to run at the transfer case so as to multiply break force and produced a power system able to charge from solar and mains and an alternator with smart charging ability.”
“Other adaptations included changing the rims to our own designed and locally built CTIS-ready type design and built a replacement front bumper with integrated lights as well as designed and built a roof rack. We fully soundproofed the vehicle and replaced the whole sound system. Added a winch to front and rear of the vehicle, designed and manufactured a hot and cold water system with 60L water on board, and added fuel tanks that gave the vehicle 250L of diesel.”
“All this work was bespoke and had to be designed and built locally as there was nothing that could be bought off the shelf except the radio and the winches and a few small things, but the lion’s share is all designed and manufactured locally.”
The 6×6 power supply to the rear axle is via a driveshaft which runs through the centre axle with a connecting flange that powers a propshaft to the rear axle
“We thought local is best for two reasons: Firstly, the time crunch, and secondly to showcase that we have a wealth of good manufacturing heads in South Africa.”
“During this time we also managed to do the development on what will be the first Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon made in SA on the same portal principle and with CTIS.”
Portal axles are an off-road technology for the serious off-road enthusiast!
“With higher ground clearance and improved reliability, this robust technology will turn any off-road drive into an adventure! Traditionally used for military, farming and construction applications, Unique Off-Road Concepts proudly brings this to the 4×4 market.”
How Portal Axles work
“The standard axle found on a bakkie or SUV runs straight into the wheel. For vehicles with large wheels that need to perform under extreme conditions, this design places too much pressure on the axles and CV joints. Military and commercial vehicles started using portal axles to remedy this problem and now off-roaders are enjoying the benefits too.”
“The axle tube of a portal axle sits above the centre of the wheel hub. Connecting this tube with the wheel is a hub that contains reduction gears. Small gears are driven by the axle, and these gears in turn rotate a larger gear that turns the wheel. By transferring the torque in this way from a small axle to a large gear in the hub, the axle torque can be increased by around 200%, while keeping the stress on the axle low.”
“All this work was bespoke and had to be designed and built locally as there was nothing that could be bought off the shelf except the radio and the winches and a few small things, but the lion’s share is all designed and manufactured locally.”
“These key benefits minimise breakdowns and dramatically enhance your vehicles performance
allowing you to enjoy those grade five trails with no fuss and all the power.”
“To top it all off, with the ability to install a CTIS you could have control over the air pressure in each tyre individually, allowing you to navigate a variety of different terrains with maximum manoeuvrability.
Benefits of Portal Axles
• Ability to fit 35” tyres without losing torque by adjusting gear ratio’s inside the portals
• Combined +-167mm (just over 6”) lift (with portals and 35s)
• Central Tyre-inflation System (CTIS) incorporated
• Optional fitment of CTIS. Our portals are designed so that CTIS can be installed at a later stage without any modifications, only additions required
• Increased ground clearance – a set of portal axles will raise your whole vehicle, including diffs and axles by about 118mm (just over 4”) while your diffs and axles remain in the standard manufacturers positions relative to the chassis and / or bodywork, i.e. no change in driveshaft, cv joint, steering column, or suspension part angles
• Pressure reduction on the drivetrain – the portal axle gears reduce the torque on the drivetrain which reduces the load and the pressure of increased tyre size
• Handling vs suspension lift – portal axles increase the off-road capability of a vehicle because they maintain the manufacturers original suspension geometry
Benefits of CTIS
• Continuous vehicle movement while inflating or deflating, you no longer have to get out of your vehicle to change tyre pressures
• Increased traction and mobility over a variety of terrains
• Fully automatic system
• Small leakage compensation and correction
• Management of individual tyre pressures
• Automatic inflation of tyres depending on vehicle speed
Benefits of driving with the correct tyre pressures
• Improved handling
• Improved vehicle stability
• Increased fuel efficiency
• Increase tyre life
• Decreased driveline wear
Our Portal Axles and Drive Systems
“We developed our first set of portal axles in 2015 for an 80 series Toyota Land Cruiser with which we performed vigorous testing off-road and on-road. The second set included the use of “O”-ring sealing on all jointed surfaces as well as the integration of a CTIS.”
Amongst other things Unique Off-Road Concepts designs and machine its own components
“Our latest project was the design and build of a 6×6 Land Cruiser 79 4.5 V8 Diesel which amongst other things entailed the design, fabrication and installation of the following: Central differential with an inter axle differential lock fitted with a limited slip; axle casings for central and rear axle; axle portals and side shafts with internal integrated ABS system and CTIS; axles fitted with six pot calliper power brake, braking system; power brake supply – including callipers, brake pads and brake discs; rear end chassis welded into final location; 5-link suspension fitted with coil over dampers; reinforced front axle; bumpers, trayback with drawers and canopies; and a off the grid power solution.”
Sheetmetal and fabrication is also carried out by Unique Off-Road Concepts
6×6 central differential and drivetrain:
• The 6×6 power supply to the rear axle is via a driveshaft which runs through the centre axle with a connecting flange that powers a propshaft to the rear axle
• The central differential casing is built from aluminium. The advantage is that it’s light weight and provides efficient heat transfer
• The central differential is fitted with a limited slip
• The central differential houses an inter axle differential fitted with an independent limited slip unit. Thus, no operator input is required for when in an off-road environment as the limited slip units will divert the power to the wheels with best traction
Possible applications include but are not limited to the military, police, exploration, tour operators, search and rescue, emergency medical services, farming, mining, extreme condition travellers, sport enthusiasts and ambulance operators.
For more information contact Unique Off-Road Concepts on TEL: +27 78 484 1575 or visit https://www.uoc4x4.co.za
