Arctic Trucks

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Arctic Trucks is an international company founded in Iceland and with operations in the United Kingdom, Norway, Finland, Poland, Russia and the United Arab Emirates. Arctic Trucks specialise in the re-engineering of four wheel drive vehicles to allow them to be used in the most challenging conditions.

They have supplied vehicles for a number of high-profile expeditions in the Arctic and Antarctic.

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History

In Iceland the difficult terrain led the locals to experiment with larger tires and low tire pressures on the snow. In the mid-1980s, practical solutions began emerging and in 1990 Toyota in Iceland (P. Samúelsson hf.) established their own re-engineering division, calling it "Toyota Aukahlutir" (Toyota Accessories). This division grew very quickly and soon 20% to 70% of all new Toyota Hilux, Land Cruiser and 4Runners were re-engineered before delivery to customers - and in 1996 this division became Arctic Trucks.

In 1999 Arctic Trucks Norway was established. In 2005 Arctic Trucks was separated from Toyota Iceland, and began working more with other brands.

Additionally, Arctic Trucks offers self-drive tours in Iceland since 2008 under the name "Arctic Trucks Experiences".

It also offers support services to explorers, broadcasters and scientific surveys in the Arctic and Antarctic regions.

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Arctic Trucks Engineering

Arctic Trucks was established in Iceland in 1990 and specialises in the re-engineering and conversion of four-wheel drive vehicles for extreme conditions. Over the years, Arctic Trucks have built an unparalleled level of expertise in developing vehicles to deliver handling, safety and reliability improvements both on and off-road. Their development engineers have accompanied many of these expeditions so they can understand, first hand, the challenges the vehicles they design will need to conquer. Arctic Trucks have driven to both poles. They visited the magnetic North Pole with BBC Top Gear, and in the Antarctic a fleet of four and six wheel-drive vehicles are used by scientists to support their work, all under the most extreme conditions our planet has to offer. Arctic Trucks vehicles also set the record for the fastest journey to the South Pole in 2010.

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Vehicle Categories and Services

Arctic Trucks offer 3 different categories of vehicle:

• Sports and Utility
• Professional
• Exploration

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Exploration Support, Training and Adventures

In addition to vehicle engineering services and sales Arctic Trucks also provides logistical support, training and tourism services in the Arctic and Antarctic regions.

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Arctic Trucks Icelandic Experiences

Arctic Trucks Experiences offer a range of single and multi day tours. Alternatively you can create your itinerary or our vehicles can be rented on a self-drive basis, leaving you to explore Iceland in your own time. Arctic Trucks Experiences have built up a reputation as being one of the most popular off-road vehicle tourism experiences in Iceland.

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Expeditions

Arctic Trucks has supplied vehicles, organized or taken part in various expeditions in Iceland and outside of Iceland.

International expeditions:

• December 1997 to January 1998 - Antarctica Expedition organized by the Swedish Polar institute. Two rebuilt Toyota Land Cruiser 80 on 44 inch tires supported scientific research, driving over 3000 km.
• May 1999 - Greenland. Three rebuilt Toyota Land Cruiser 80 in 44 inch drove over 800 kilometers across the Greenland icecap back and forth.

• April 2007 - Magnetic North Pole with BBC Top Gear. Two rebuilt Toyota Hilux AT38 along with one Toyota Land Cruiser AT38 drove from Resolute to the 1996 Magnetic North Pole. A first and only time a car has been driven this way.
• November 2008 to February 2009 - Antarctica. Supporting a ski race and a crew from BBC filming the TV show On Thin Ice. With unexplored crevasse area and a route never driven before, four Arctic Trucks Hilux AT44 drove from Novo to South Pole and back with film crew, doctors other service crew. Combined the vehicles drove nearly 30,000 km on the high plateau of Antarctica.
• November 2009 - Antarctica. From Novo to 83:20 degrees in Antarctica, preparing a fuel drop. Two Arctic Trucks Hilux AT44 drove over 3000 km each to service a fuel post setup on the Antarctic plateau with temperature falling well below - 50 C. When traveling the vehicles were averaging over 500 km per day.
• April 2010 - Iceland. Taking BBC Top Gear filming crew to the erupting volcano Eyjafjallajökull.

• November 2010 - Antarctica. From the Indian scientific base MAITRI to the South Pole and back, nearly 4700 km. Four Arctic Trucks Hilux AT44 carried scientists and equipment up to 3400 meter altitude with temperature measured at -56C.
• December 2010 - Antarctica. Two Arctic Trucks Hilux AT44 drove a team from Kazakhstan from Novo to the South Pole and back. The expedition to South Pole, 2308 km took only 4.5 days.
• December 2010 - Antarctica. One Arctic Trucks built AT44 Tacoma was used to set a new world fasted time from Patriot Hills to South Pole, 1100 km distance.
• December 2010 to January 2011 - Antarctica. Four Arctic Trucks Hilux AT44 and two Arctic Trucks Hilux AT44 6X6 supported an ZDF and ORF TV production team filming the TV show Der Wettlauf zum Südpol where an Austrian skiing team competed with a German team for the last 300 km to the South Pole.
• December 2011 to February 2012 - Antarctica. Five Arctic Trucks vehicles, three AT44 Hilux and one AT44 Hilux 6x6, started off from Novo runway to support a ski race, a film called "Cold Sweat". The film crew and competitors got drive 110 km from the runway where the ski teams started their acclimatizing for the next 100 km through the Shcherbakov Mountain Range. After this phase, three vehicles continued to the fuel catch at S83º23 E20º29 and met up with the Blue Peter support team but two vehicles returned to Novo runway. The ski teams got pickup by a Basler ski airplane at the end of the mountain range and flown to the fuel catch where the car teams had made a runway. With 100 years since Amundsen and Scott raised to be the first to South Pole, 7 ski teams, including a team from Norway and UK raised the last 780 km to South. The support team got one more vehicle from the Blue Peter support crew so four vehicles supported the filming the race. All vehicles then returned to Novo runway.
• November to December 2013 - Antarctica. Four Arctic Trucks vehicles, two AT44 Hilux and two AT44 Hilux 6x6 supported a ski race between three teams of wounded soldiers, Walk With The Wounded. The vehicles and the support team drove ahead 2000 km and set up a runway for the ski airplane bringing in the ski teams. After supporting and filming the ski race and both the film crew and skiers flown back to Novo runway but the car team was split in two, two vehicles went on to Ross Iceshelf to support Maria Leijerstam in her cycle attempt and the other two returned to Novo runway, laying out fuel depots for a Massey Ferguson expedition the following season.
• November 2013 to January 2014- Antarctica. Two Arctic Trucks vehicles AT44 Hilux drove from Novo runway to the fuel catch at S83º23 E20º29, setting up ice runway, setting up and preparing for a fuel Para drop and servicing flights between Novo runway and South Pole.
• December 2013 - Antarctica. Two Arctic Trucks vehicles one AT44 Hilux and one AT44 Hilux 6x6, double crossed Antarctica, Expedition 7 (http://www.expeditions7.com/) starting from the iceshelf below Novo Runway, to South Pole and onward to Ross Iceshelf. It took the team only 20 hours to drive from the Amundsen coast to the South Pole.
• December 2013 - Antarctica. One Arctic Trucks vehicle AT44 Hilux 6x6 took drove Parker Liautaud, Doug Stoup together with film and support team from Union Glacier Ross Iceshelf, at Amundsen coast. Then followed and filmed Parker and Doug as they walked unsupported to South Pole in 21 days http://www.willisresilience.com/ fasted skiing time from coast to South . After the skiing the team returned to Union Glacier.
• December 2013 - Antarctica. Two Arctic Trucks vehicles one AT44 Hilux and one AT44 Hilux 6x6 drove Maria Leijerstam from South Pole to Ross Iceshelf at the Amundsen coast and supported her cycling to South Pole before driving to Union Glacier. Maria set a new record as the first person to cycle all the way to South Pole.
• December 2013 - Antarctica. Two Arctic Trucks vehicles one AT44 Hilux and one AT44 Hilux 6x6, following the support of Walking With The Wounded, laid out two extra fuel depots on the route between Novo runway and South Pole for supporting a Tractor Expedition, Antarctica2 http://www.antarcticatwo.com/ planned the following season

• November and December 2014 - Antarctica. Two Arctic Trucks vehicles AT44 Hilux drove from Novo runway to the fuel catch at S83º23 E20º29, setting up ice runway, setting up and preparing for a fuel Para drop and servicing flights between Novo runway and South Pole.
• November 2014 - Antarctica. Two Artic Trucks vehicles both AT44Hilux 6x6 supported Mano Ossevoort (the Tractor Girl) driving a Massey Ferguson tractor from the iceshelf below Novo runway to South Pole and back. This expedition was under the name of Antarctica2 http://www.antarcticatwo.com/

• January 2015 - Antarctica. Two Arctic Trucks vehicles both AT44 Hilux 6x6, supported the Brazilian scientific research starting from Union Glacier 1.700 km drilling for and collecting snow samples in Ellsworth land for their research program.
• November and December 2015 - Antarctica. Two Arctic Trucks vehicles, one AT44 Hilux and one AT44 Hilux 6x6, drove from Novo runway to the fuel catch at S83º23 E20º29, setting up ice runway, setting up and preparing for a fuel Para drop and servicing flights between Novo runway and South Pole.
• December 2015 - Antarctica. Two Arctic Trucks vehicles did a short expedition to Lake Undersee from Novo runway. The expedition was for studying the route and as part of IAATO membership approval.
• November and December 2016 - Antarctica. Three Arctic Trucks vehicles, two AT44 Hilux and one AT44 Hilux drove from Novo runway to the fuel catch at S83º23 E20º29, setting up ice runway, setting up and preparing for a fuel para drop and servicing flights between Novo runway and South Pole.

• November 2016 to January 2017 - Antarctica. Two Arctic Trucks vehicles, one AT44 Hilux and one AT44 Hilux 6x6 established a land route between Novo runway and the landing site of the South African Icebreaker, Agulhas II, S72 º14 W02º42. The expedition along the Fimbul Iceshelf crossed two large ice rises and the notorious Jutulstraumen Glacier. The expedition returned along the same route to Novo runway before searching for a land route to WolfsFang, a large blue ice area south of Kurze Mountains. The expedition used 450Mz Mala ground penetrating radar and satellite imagery for navigating the highly crevassed areas.
• December 2016 - Antarctica. Four Arctic Trucks vehicles, one AT38 Hyundai Santa Fe, two AT44 Hilux 6x6 and one AT44 Hilux drove from Union Glacier to McMurdo via South Pole and back with the great grandson of Ernest Shackleton, Patrick Bergel. After visiting the Discovery hut where his great grandfather had stayed, Patrick and the team return the same way back to Union, a total of 5800 km. This was the first car crossing of the Ross iceshelf.
• January 2017 - Antarctica. Three Arctic Trucks vehicle, one AT44 Hilux and two AT44 Hilux 6x6 drove to South Pole with a group of clients, all vehicles returned to Union Glacier.

src: arctictrucks.is

External links

• Official website
• Arctic Trucks on YouTube < Arctic Trucks

src: www.carmagazine.co.uk

References

Source of the article : Wikipedia