4WD & AWD SUV 2016 COTY AWARDS

OZROAMER BUSINESS DIRECTORY

OVER 60 VEHICLES IN 13 CATEGORIES FOR 2016

WE RATE OVER 150 4WD & AWD SUV’S FOR TOWING AND OFF ROAD ABILITY

OZROAMER 2016 WE REVIEW THE AWARDS SPECIAL WINNERS INSIDE EDITION E-MAGAZINE

OZROAMER 2016 AWARDS PRICE $5.50 EDITORS COMMENTS & CONTENTS

The first car I can remember was a Ford Zephyr wagon. We drove from Sydney to Canowindra as we moved to live there. Being the youngest in the family my memory is sketchy but I do remember sitting on a child seat that was somehow strapped to the rear bench. I can also remember at other times standing up in the rear looking over the front bench seat of the HD Holden totally excited about where we were going for holidays.

We took a driving holiday every year, waking early in the morning and packing sandwiches and a thermos for lunch. In those days there was no road side food stops. Other times we would often drive to a halfway point and meet relatives, have a picnic and then drive home. From that age I remember being totally excited about driving somewhere.

I can also remember the first car I ever drove was an old WW11 Jeep, in left hand drive on the farm in Canowindra and I was about 10 or 11 years old. I had been driving for about 4 days when we had to move some trucks and harvesters from one farm to another, so being the country, there I was driving a Willys truck, that I could barely see over the dashboard, along the road about 10 miles to the home farm. There was a series of vehicles on the farm that I drove over the next few years, a Ford Anglia, Willys Truck, International Truck, tractors, harvesters etc. That Jeep is still on the farm, definitely showing the ravages of time and neglect.

As a teenager I was obsessed with cars. I could tell you what car and even model it was from simply the headlights or tail lights. I could quote the stats of every sports car that existed, I collected magazines, read every article, went to every motor show and shared a passion for cars with my dad. Also as a teenager most Sundays I would wash the family car and when no one was looking take off for a drive around the local streets. I would get into trouble every time, and yet still do it almost every week. The day I got my L plates I nagged my three sisters, father and mother endlessly to take me for a drive every day. The day I got my P Plates was the most exciting day I can remember to that point. I was off never to be seen again.

I have owned a multitude of cars ranging from VW Beetles, run of the mill Holden’s, sports cars, prestige cars and a bundle of 4WD’s. We had a Subaru Legacy AWD that went places it shouldn't have gone. With this job I have driven hundreds of cars. Throughout all this I have had almost no interest in what makes a car work. Yes I understand it and have stripped engines, renovated cars etc. but the key to me is what cars can do for me. The purpose they exist for and the passion they evoke.

The reason for this diatribe is just that. My passion revolves around the sense of freedom that a car can provide. The anticipation of a road trip, an outback adventure, a weekend drive, daily driving in something that isn’t mundane or simply the excitement of driving down an unexplored track. There is nothing I love better than throwing the swag on the 4WD and heading out. Over the years my passion has evolved to mainly 4WD SUV’s. I have been famously known for taking the 4WD Ute for a drive when there has been a fancy sports car in the driveway as well. I have owned 4WD’s, accessorised them, run driver training, tag along tours and basically explored as much of Australia to date as I could, with much more to come.

The people that work with OzRoamer, freelance for OzRoamer and are associated with us are all about as passionate as I am and it is with this passion that we produce the 2016 COTY e- magazine for your enjoyment.

This year there are as usual, a number of different categories, as our belief is, how can you compare a $35,000