RV FEATURE
Entering the 4x4 course at Springs, Chris was immediately confronted with a water crossing and a sharp right-hand turn.
The next obstacle was a gully in the dirt, a deep gouge that a wellequipped 4WD would make look easy. But with about 3000kg of caravan on the back, correct wheel placement becomes even more critical. As the crowd of Vision customers watched, Chris approached the obstacle … and became promptly stuck.
But, again, it was about demonstrating the capabilities of the van. This was where the Elysium’ s Garmin Connect 50 system, which includes a portable tablet that shows the real-time attitude and angle of the van, its suspension settings and much more, came into play. A spotter( in this case Lucas, the owner of Springs 4x4 Park) could relay that data to Chris in the driver’ s seat,
providing direction as to the van’ s lean and positioning. Was a wheel about to pop up, or slide down an embankment, did he need to tilt the van left, or maybe right? All of this data gave Chris the confidence to proceed with the obstacle … though in the end, the raw muscle of the tow vehicle, all that torque and tension on the driveline, and the technical insight from the Garmin, were not enough to see him through. A snatch was needed – kinetic rope to the rescue. For the onlookers, it was another opportunity to learn about safe vehicle recovery from someone who knows a thing or two.
58 \