In 2007, Top Gear wanted to test the HiLux’s reputation for withstanding a pounding and entered it into an extreme race to the magnetic North Pole. Five years later the event organizer Extreme World Races set up a challenge for the HiLux to take on the magnetic South Pole pushing the truck to its limits over a fourth month challenge.
More after video
The team faced temperatures of -58 degrees Fahrenheit and altitudes as high as 11,000 feet, so special preparation was sought from Icelandic 4�4 specialists Arctic Trucks. The three HiLux vehicles were fuelled with A1 jet fuel to best cope with the freezing conditions, whilst other modifications included special suspension and extra-large low-pressure tires to give a footprint 17 times larger than standard tires.
Importantly, the HiLux engines remained unmodified – the 3.0L D-4D Diesel engine and transmission were entirely unchanged, apart from the addition of a crawler gear. All three HiLux trucks completed the 5,900-mile journey and in doing so, went further than any other vehicle in Antarctica. Not a bad effort under the conditions we think.
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