This was my very first new car, it was a pretty big occasion really, it was so "modern" compared to the spartan LJ50. I also purchased it from the dealer that my LJ50 originally came from (I did not buy it from them, but a private seller) and this car dealer was at Little Hartly at the base of the Blue Mountains. What was I thinking?? It was like a 4+ hour drive for me from Dubbo. So, we traded the LJ50 in, I had striping professionally put down the sides of the car and took delivery. If memory serves me right, I also had better seats put in.
Plus, it had a massive 1ltr engine and an extra cylinder!! What more could a P plater want??
I loved that car as well, it was so much fun, and when I finally went off my P's onto full licence, it could actually do 100kmph without screaming like a banshee.
This 4WD went a lot of places, including of course, out to the Hervey Ranges near Peak Hill, but you have to remember, the "track" that went through the ranges back then was very rough, not like the super highway of today. So, there were 3 of us this time, my brother and a mutual friend, we were having a ball out there, until, I got bogged, and when I say bogged, I mean totally bottomed out, no winch, so backup vehicle, no mobile phones and we were right in the middle of the traverse from one end to the other. Holy crap, it was like 4pm and we were expected back in Dubbo soon.
Nothing we could do, but walk to get a farmer with a tractor. So, my brother stayed with the car, just in case someone else came along, nobody did. It took the two of us over 2 hours to walk to the main road and then find a farm, complete with farmer to see if we could get some help. It was very boggy right the length of the track so we really need a tractor, farmers tractor was out of commission. So, we jumped in his old Holden ute and off we set into the gloom.
About half way back, fallen trees stopped his progress, but he did bring a hand winch with him, so after walking the final distance in almost total darkness, we arrived back at the car around 10:30pm. It took a while to winch the car out of the glue like quagmire, and then as we could not go any further in the direction of his car, we gave him a lift into Peak Hill. It was not well after midnight and we headed back in the direction of Dubbo.
We dropped our friend off to very relieved parents after 2am, and we then headed home to some just as worried parents. Poor fuel tank was badly pushed up reducing the fuel capacity. But, what an awesome adventure that was.
Sadly, the Sierra had to go when I started having to commute every second weekend between Sydney and Dubbo and back, it just really was not a great touring vehicle and that was the end of my 4WDing for many, many years. I still have a very soft spot in my heart for Suzukis...
Many years later, with a family of 5, we decided we needed a 4WD again, we got a 1999 Mitsubishi Pajero NL Widebody.