We built our Toyota Hilux to take us anywhere, and we meant anywhere. From the heat and chaos of Dakar to the cold and windy end of the world: Norway’s North Cape. No hotels, no hookups, just us, our 4x4, and whatever the road (or lack of it) threw at us. To make that work, we needed power we could trust. That’s where REDARC came in.
TESTED IN THE HARSHEST CONDITIONS
What convinced us about REDARC early on was that their gear is built and tested in Australia’s extreme conditions. Think scorching deserts, dust storms, and brutal heat by day, freezing cold by night. These are some of the toughest environments on earth, and if REDARC can perform reliably there, it can handle anywhere we want to go.
FROM 50°C IN THE DESERT...
Our journey started with a dream: drive the old rally tracks from Paris to Dakar. Real desert stuff. Soft sand, rocky pistes, dust and sun. Temperatures hit almost 50°C, and every part of our Hilux (and our marriage..) was pushed to its limits. But our REDARC system? Rock solid. Fridge stayed cool. Batteries charged. Cameras ready. No hiccups, no shutdowns.
…TO FREEZING FJORDS IN THE ARCTIC
After Dakar, we went north. As far north as you can drive with a car in the entire world. Past forests and fjords, via beautiful Lofoten to the North Cape, the top of Europe. Sub-zero nights, icy wind, and barely any sun. And still, REDARC delivered. Between our alternator and solar, we never ran out of juice, even when the sun hid behind clouds almost the entire time we were there.
DRIVE, CHARGE, REPEAT
One of the biggest game-changers for us has been how quickly REDARC charges our batteries while we drive, faster than anything else we’ve used. When you’re covering long distances like we do, that makes all the difference. We don’t even have to think about it, just drive, and the system handles the rest.
SOLAR, BUT SMARTER
One of the things we love most about our REDARC system is how it automatically prioritizes green energy. As soon as the sun comes out, the system switches over to solar: no buttons to press, no settings to change. It seamlessly balances between charging from the alternator while we drive and solar when we stop.
When we pull into camp and shut off the engine, our setup keeps charging from the sun without us lifting a finger. On lazy mornings, we can sleep in while REDARC quietly gets to work, catching the first rays of sunlight and topping up the batteries before we’ve even had our breakfast.
It’s that kind of automation that makes off-grid life feel effortless.
REAL PEOPLE, REAL HELP
Okay, we’ll admit it. We are just normal people without any knowledge about electronics. We got stuck a few times during the install. Wrong wires, wrong assumptions. But REDARC’s support team was always there. No bots: real, friendly people with a passion for overlanding who get it and who helped us get it working right.
WHY REDARC?
We’ve tried other systems, including some of the ones that are big in Europe. But for our kind of travel: remote, rough, and off-grid REDARC just works better. It’s built tough, charges fast, and doesn’t flinch in the extremes.
We’ve crossed continents with REDARC. And we’re just getting started.
LEWIE & THE ROVER (in a Toyota Hulux now)
Take a tour of Lewie & The Rover's Toyota Hilux and see how REDARC powers their adventures.
