Overland with Kids

Last photo shows original 2nd row seats intact before we attacked the vehicle. For children’s comfort and safety, we replaced  2nd row seats with high back reclining trakker seats (1st piccy) from Exmoor Trim and purchased Britax hi-liner seats (4th piccy) from Halfords which will do the children in any car up to age 12 (they recline too and have cup holders - oooooohhh!).  We tinted rear windows (so people can’t see in using a DIY window film kit - again from Halfords) and added exterior grilles from Safari-Equip using secure Nylock nuts (can’t be undone from outside). We have added security when vehicle stationary for long periods. We also added a full length dog grill (directly behind 2nd row seats) which will act as a cargo barrier for now to keep luggage secure and to hopefully stop anything hitting the children during any impact. We can move the dog grill backwards (to enable 2nd row seats to recline/tilt) or remove when required - but need to work on this further (work in progress) so we don’t have to unload/change cargo load to accommodate recline needs.

We have yet to fit Engel fridge (middle of 2nd row seat - to prevent in-car kid fights, keep food & drinks cool and fresh and accessible while on-road without having to leave vehicle ). Still need spilt charge system and we need to start thinking about proper storage options for equipment in rear - our 1st camping trip determined that loading the rear of the vehicle without any order and proper placement equals hell. 1st camping trip also determined that a roomy ground tent for a reasonable period is good for the kids and any friends/relatives - so we should not just rely on a roof tent as we first imagined - plus we want to bring 4 x bikes.

Replacing the 2nd row seats was our first ever ‘maiden’ task on the Land Rover - we had no vehicle experience whatsoever. These pictures show dismantling and replacement process (and us invisibly scratching our heads! and then turning to Landyzone for hellllllllllppppppp!!!!!!!!)

Vehicle Preparation