New G4 Owner in the Arctic – Building a Winter Expedition Defender

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Thefrontmans	Thefrontmans posted 7 days ago @ 3:02 PM Topic Details
Group: Forum Member Posts: 1, Visits: 7	Hello everyone, and greetings from the Arctic Circle. I moved from the Netherlands to northern Sweden in early 2023 and have been working here as a nature guide, Arctic truck driver, and service engineer. The combination gives me a strange but useful skill mix: knowing the land, knowing the weather, and knowing how to keep machines alive in brutal conditions. I recently started The Frontmans, a bespoke nature-guiding and expedition company focused on Northern Lights tours and remote hikes. Most tour operators here use minibuses or vans, but after guiding long enough, I realised they kill the sense of adventure. A proper expedition vehicle adds something—to guests and to the experience itself. Which brings me to the newest member of the family: a Defender 110 TD5 G4 in Tangiers Orange, Being imported from the Netherlands as we speak. The plan is to turn it into a fully winter-ready Arctic expedition rig. Current upgrade list: -Engine block heater -Cabin heater -Studded winter tyres (265/75R16 Nokian hakkapeliitta LT3) -Insulated under-body fuel lines -Possibly a battery-powered fuel-filter heater -General winterisation to survive –30 to –40°C nights The Defender will be used for small-group aurora hunts and remote-area day trips. No hardcore rock crawling, just the kind of routes normal vans can't take when the snow has piled up a bit. Reaching the best spots without needing to trek for hours through the dark cold Arctic nights. My parents test-drove it back in the Netherlands, and I’ll include some photos of that! Right now we’re in the process of ordering parts and planning the winter build. If anyone here has suggestions—lockers vs LSD for icy roads, useful winter mods, known G4 weak points, or clever TD5 cold-weather tricks—I’m all ears. Always happy to learn from people who have far more hours behind these vehicles than I do. Looking forward to getting to know more of you and your builds. Arjoen — The Frontmans - Frontman's Expeditions Guiding guests through the Arctic in a Defender G4 Luleå, Norrbotten, Sweden Tags #ArcticDriving #ExpeditionPrep #NewOwner #NorthernLightsTours #WinterBuild
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