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by Jim McCauley (22 Oct 07)
Originally planned for 2006, the delay brought a major advantage in that the chosen Toyota Hilux had been upgraded to three litres with the added bonus of automatic transmission, allowing the driver to fully focus on steering the vehicle through the hidden hazards of the Arctic Tundra. Alun Parry from Toyota GB was the driving force behind the organisation of the event and he recently spoke to me about the mammoth task it was and the immense satisfaction of achieving the first ever vehicular crossing of a route that was previously only crossed on skis. The story begins with the upgrading of a standard Toyota Hilux Invincible by Arctic Trucks in Reykjavik where the main changes were the fitting of a larger 170-litre fuel tank and fuel heaters as well as huge wheels (with a 38" outer tyre diameter). This involved moving the front axle forward by 40mm so that the front tyres cleared the door and the fitting of wheel arch extensions to protect the bodywork. With the need to increase and drop the pressures of these studded tyres in response to surface conditions, an on-board compressor was fitted while their diameter also required a change to the axle ratio. In other respects the running gear remained standard, and as a "just-in-case" measure a second identical vehicle was also prepared, though it was never required.
After 240 hours preparation on each vehicle, they were transported in a seven-hour flight over Greenland to Resolute in Canada along with £20,000 worth of spares in readiness for the event. The date in May 2007 was chosen as it coincided with the Polar Challenge, an annual race where competitors take eleven to twelve days to transcend the route from Resolute to the Pole on skis. The main reason for this was to benefit from the expertise of the Polar Challenge organisers who were able to train the Top Gear team in advance of the crossing and oversee the stringent safety and navigational requirements.
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