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Published: Wednesday, 05 October 2016 00:44
I (Phil) have been into cars and four wheel drives since I left school, with the fast car bug biting hard to start with. I played around with modified cars for approx 10 years but also got hooked on 4wding early in the piece too! My love of 4wding all started when I was offered a drive in my brothers mid 90's Suzuki Vitara in an old abandoned quarry which was full of mud and ruts. After covering my brothers Suzuki head to toe in mud, I was hooked! Within a week I owned what turned out to be one of a string of Suzuki Sierras. At the time I was living on the South Coast and commuting to Sydney by car every day, which usually meant a fun trip in my 500Hp Subaru WRX through the Royal National Park etc, however strangely enough I found myself leaving the WRX at home in place of my slow as a wet week, noisy as all hell 1984 narrow track Sierra. It was winter when I bought it and it had no working heater, yet I took it to work numerous times a week just so I could duck off down a bush track on the way home from work each night to have some fun and enjoy the views down the Illawarra coast!
The Sierra hung around for almost 2 years, during which time the transfer case was rebuilt, carbie fixed, diffs repaired along with many many other things, yet I loved it and still recount it as one of my all-time favourite 4wds. I sold it for $2000 with both sills stoved in and a broken front CV, and despite this obvious damage based on the original purchase price lost $400 – what cheap and memorable fun! Fast cars remained a constant and I had a string of other Sierras during this time, but it wasn't until I became a family man that the fast cars finally disappeared and a four wheel drive became my true daily driver. It was great though, I discovered that I could still own a 'toy' whilst classifying it as sensible family transport. Would I go back to a fast car now, yes and no....as a weekend toy yes, as a full time vehicle – no way!
Regardless of whether it was fast cars or four wheel drives, over the years, there was one constant issue that dampened my love of owning and modifying these vehicles, and that was the constant struggle in getting good service and advice from so called 'industry experts.' For example, when chasing lower quarter mile times with my WRX, I went to no less than 5 industry experts for tuning services, at the time using a then new to Australia Unichip aftermarket ignition. 4 out of the 5 'experts' produced big horsepower numbers, but only the 5th one produced something which was both driveable and brutally quick down the strip (funny enough it made 15KW less than the other tunes but was still way quicker!). The problem is, it cost me thousands and thousands of dollars (not mention lost weekends in time) at the first 4 'tuning houses,' only to receive less than favourable results. In fact the shop that finally nailed it advised that the previous tune was running so lean in the mixtures that it would have been only a matter of time before my expensive engine went bang! Unfortunately this trend of substandard service and advice continued into my passion for modifying four wheel drives. Over the years I (along with other friends) experienced differential failures after incorrectly installed lockers, badly sagging suspension after wrongly supplied gear based on my needs and poorly fitted parts – the list goes on!
In 2007 whilst working as an IT Governance, Security and Customer Service specialist I decided my true passion for four wheel driving needed to become more than just a hobby and weekend activity. I decided that I wanted to do things better, I wanted to provide hard working families with the service and advice that they deserved, especially when you consider a four wheel drive is often the second largest financial investment a family will ever make. I wanted to provide the best quality service and advice possible to my customers, even if that meant saying I don't know the answer to a question, or saying I can't offer you what you need and to go to XYZ business who will look after you.
From this point OzAdventure4x4 was born, with the name aiming to describe what a four wheel drive can offer families in terms of holidays and weekend travel/touring opportunities. In addition to this our slogan "Gear for your adventure large and small" was penned, describing the fact we can offer our customers the parts and accessories required to equip their vehicles for off-road travel, whether it be for that epic lap of Australia or short weekend away. Our mission, vision and governing operating premise is to:
• Always take the time to listen to the customer's needs and wants
• Understand what the customer is looking to use their four wheel drive for, not just that once a year trip but what it is used for on a daily basis
• Make every enquiry or purchasing experience enjoyable, informative and easy to understand and undertake
• Most importantly, if the customer chooses to make a purchase, ensure it ends with our valued customers receiving the best quality products or just advice they need to help them make an informed choice
• Be willing to say I don't know at the time, because there is always new technology out there and sometimes we simply don't have the answer at the time. We always then take the time to find the correct answer and advice from other industry experts and peers
• Only sell products that we would happily fit of use ourselves, and where possible test as many items possible in the real world before selling to our customers
Based on the above I firmly believe we are able to offer the best range of products, services and advice ensuring the vast majority (if not all) of our customers are 100% happy with their purchases, and that the products supplied and fitted do exactly what they are intended to do, leaving families free to enjoy this awesome country we live in.
In 2015 OzAdventure4x4 transitioned from being an online only business to a fully equipped showroom and workshop located in West Gosford on the NSW Central Coast. This change occurred to meet the needs of our growing customer base and the desire to take our customer service experience, parts offering and service in general to the next level. Today we operate with 4 permanent staff and enjoys a growing reputation as being an honest, knowledgeable, quality supplier of four wheel drive parts and accessories. We are a specialist business that attracts customers from as far as interstate, just to get their vehicle/s serviced and modified with us.
Below is a selection of recent customer feedback:
Had a good experience with Phil. I'm a mechanical punter filled with the sort of beginner rookie questions no one enjoys. He had patience which got my business and gave me his time which will make me a return customer.
Thanks again Phil.
Phil and Dan and Dave at OzAdventure4x4 - Thankyou! The new Thorburns' rear bar for my Troopy looks absolutely fantastic!
It's not often you come across a group of guys who are so genuinely willing to help you in anyway they can. Honesty and integrity go a long way, and with service like yours, your reputation rightly precedes you. Highly recommended!
Oz Adventure 4x4 did an excellent job fitting my bullbar, winch and fuel manager system. The price was competitive and the workmanship was as good as it gets! I will be going back to get more work done in the future and I have recommended them to all my friends with 4x4s !!
Would definitely recommend Phil and his team for anyone looking for parts or work done to your vehicle. they provide excellent customer service, friendly and knowledgeable, quick with answering emails or over the phone. I had some parts shipped up to me in QLD after talking to them and finding out what was best suited for me and my vehicle. They only use and recommend top quality gear and parts and are more they willing to talk you through whats best for you. Overall can't fault them will definitely be using them again.
Phil is a great guy to deal with, knows his products inside and out and cares about providing the best service possible for his customers. Highly recommended.
