The Montero and its Mods

We put quite a bit of thought and time into researching, test driving, and weighing the pros and cons of many different vehicles.  We started with the usual suspects such as the 60, 80 and 100 series Toyota Land Cruisers.  We were also close to buying a 4Runner and Land Rover Discovery.  The truck that was very nearly the vehicle of choice was the Lexus GX470.  Then just before trading in Kaytie's Mazda 6 for a GX, something that we had never really considered before popped up on Craigslist.

A 2002 Mitsubishi Montero.  It caught our eye initially because it was about 1/3 of the purchase price of the other vehicles we were considering.  Then as we researched further, we realized that we had been overlooking a very capable and well-tested platform.  When we picked it up, it was fresh from the mall and soccer field parking lot, complete with Cheerios under the back seat.

Of course, it needed many modifications to prepare for our journey.  (In reality, it would probably do just fine in completely stock form but that's not nearly as much fun.)  There are lot's of great reasons to do the following modifications, but the main reason we wanted them was cause they make the Montero look awesome.



-1.5" lift from OME with new wheels and tires.  The more aggressive stance eliminates the Soccer Mom look and that is what's most important, but the stiffer springs and wider track will also provide more stability and the added height will increase the clearance over obstacles.

-We also had a small roof rack and brush guard fabricated.  The rack has its obvious utility and the brush guard is for deflecting deer, or whatever animals they have down there (kangaroos?).  It would be a bummer if something like that ended our trip prematurely.

In the interior we wanted to create a few of the comforts of home, seeing as we would be living in the Montero for the next few months.  We started with a 12v fridge/freezer and ended up building everything else around that.  Christian designed a sleeping platform that folds up for easy access to the fridge and allows for storage of all our other gear.

Once we had a fridge we needed some way to power it, so Christian wired up an auxiliary battery.  With the secondary battery we can be sure that the Montero will start every morning, even if we run the fridge all night.  We also swapped all interior lights to warm-white LED's.  This will provide more confortable and brighter light while using much less electricity.  Conveniently the Montero has individual lights for the rear seats.  They're perfect for reading lights while we're in bed.  It'll be just like home!


This is the rear platform in its open and closed positions.

The fridge.  It is about 10 inches deeper than you can see here.  The auxiliary battery is mounted below those plastic bins.

We mounted a safe inside to keep our documents and cash from the banditos.

Here is the front of the platform in its open and closed positions.  As of about 9 pm the night before we left, I still hadn't figured out how to have this be supported in the front.  I was thinking some sort of double hinged legs but couldn't figure out the best way to do it.  Then Kaytie's mom Sheila came up with the incredibly effective and simple idea to use wooden dowels with those rubber feet used to prevent scratching floors mounted upside down on the platform.  Works like a charm.

And finally we got to the bed. An Ikea Skadvofamsovasdka mattess with our most favorite billion count I-got-it-at-Ross sheets.  We added a down comforter for those chili Mexican nights. (See what I did there?)  After sleeping on the side of the road last night, I'm fairly confident we have the most comfortable bed currently traveling down US Highway 550. 

Much thanks to Kaytie's brother Justin and my cousin Chase for their help.  There is no way we would have finished all this in such a short amount of time without them.