One of life's finest moments for John Bomar is when he's standing beside his seven-year-old son on the bank of some little stream or river deep in the Ouachita National Forest with fishing poles in hand and hungry fish ready to tug on their lines at any moment.
Another of life's great rewards is camping in the boondocks with his wife, son, and daughter while exploring the surrounding country, whether near their home in Hot Springs, Arkansas, the mountains of Arizona, Colorado, and Utah, the arid expanses of Big Bend National Park in Texas, or wherever the trail under the tires of the family's 1999 Toyota Land Cruiser and their off-road wanderlust leads the family. "I sell luxury custom-built radial whitewall tires for a living and spend my weekends and vacations driving on 33-inch Nitto Tire Ridge Grappler all-terrains," quips John, who is a regional sales manager for a boutique tire manufacturer. "On top of that, I was always a car guy infatuated with owning German and Italian sports cars and participating in SCCA track events. Then I fell in love, got married, and found a new passion: Toyota Land Cruisers. After all, people around the world who need reliable transportation out in the middle of nowhere in the desert are all driving Land Cruisers."
John's 271-hp, 4.7-liter V-8 100-Series, now with a tad more than 300,000 miles on the odometer, is relegated to being the family overlanding and tow vehicle. He's had it for 10 years. It's one of three meticulously maintained and moderately upgraded Land Cruisers in his stable, sharing driveway and garage space with a 2004 Lexus LX470 and a 2015 Lexus LX570.
He upgraded the 1999's rear coil springs and OEM shocks to three-inch-lift Old Man Emu Extra-Heavy 868 coils and Ironman 4x4 Foam Cell Pro shocks for better trail and towing duty. "Those are armored truck springs, and they're great for an LC towing a trailer that weighs close to 4,800 pounds loaded," says John. He also upgraded the front torsion bars and shocks to Old Man Emu 303001 torsion bars to give a couple more inches of clearance for the taller tires, and he installed Ironman 4x4 Foam Cell Pro shocks to maximize ride quality on- and off-pavement.
Because traction is a priority when the family goes camping and exploring the backcountry, John slid in ARB Air Lockers at both ends with 4.11 gears. "Sometimes I could use the factory 4.30s lower gearing, but this combination is really dependable and works for how I use the truck—at least for now … it's still an ongoing work-in-progress for me," he told us.
The interior is stock save for a custom rear cargo storage system he built, and a replacement for the Toyota sound system with a combination of a Pioneer head unit supplemented with Polk Audio speakers. He also utilizes a Garmin Overlander GPS for navigating and a Cobra HH RT 50 CB radio for added communication. When the Bomar family hits the road several times a year for their out-of-state overland adventures, there's always a Kimberley Kampers USA Karavan Eco-Suite trailer in tow. John says the Australian-built 17-foot, 3,700-pound (dry weight) trailer is ideal for their type of four-wheeling because it's well-built, light for its size, and very comfortable.
Related: 14 Amazing Off-Road Camper Trailers You Can Drag to the Hinterlands
"My stock 100-Series doesn't have as much power as many other vehicles on the road, but I don't care. If I'm slowing up highway traffic while pulling the Kimberly Karavan, I pull over, stop, and let people pass. I'm not in a hurry to get places anymore. Especially when you're out West sightseeing and just driving on the pavement to get to where the dirt roads and fun begin."
John Bomar's Land Cruiser is the family's primary overlanding vehicle. It's usually towing a 17-foot Kimberley Kampers USA Karavan Eco-Suite trailer on out-of-state trips like it was during the 2020 Four Wheeler Overland Adventure.
The stock 2UZ-FE 4.7-liter V-8 in John's Cruiser just ticked over 300,000 miles, and its 271 horses do just fine for the way he uses it.
John likes to keep things simple and efficient when it comes to upgrading his Land Cruisers. He found swapping out the OEM torsion bars under the Cruiser for Old Man Emu 303001 torsion bars and the stock shocks for Ironman 4x4 Foam Cell Pro shocks is a nice combination that provides about 2.5 inches of lift and good ride quality off pavement.
Side body armor is provided by Slee Offroad SliderSteps that sit between the LT285/70R18 Nitto Ridge Grappler hybrid-terrain tires that are mounted on factory Land Cruiser wheels powdercoated satin black.
John upfitted the front bumper with an ARB Deluxe winch bumper and a Warn M12-S winch filled with 3/8-inch-diameter synthetic rope. "The only time I've used the winch is to pull other people out of trouble," he says.
The Front Runner Slimline roof rack isn't used heavily because most of the family's camping gear for shorter trips is either stored inside the Karavan Eco-Suite trailer they tow behind the Cruiser, or in the rear cargo area. But the Alu-Cab Shadow Awning is extended 270-degrees whenever camp is set up to provide protection from the sun and elements.
John quickly admits the Land Cruiser's V-8 engine isn't fuel-friendly, so he installed a Long Range Offroad 40-gallon auxiliary fuel tank, with double-wall bottom, to give the needed range and rock-damage protection needed for hitting the longer, more challenging trails.
When the Bomar family heads out for long road trips, such as the 2020 Four Wheeler Overland Adventure, every square-inch of storage space inside the 1999 Land Cruiser's cargo area is utilized to carry gear and provisions, placed around a 40L Engle MR040 fridge. Under all that stuff is a custom storage system that keeps smaller trail necessities well organized.
According to John, the secret to being very comfortable on overland adventures is having the 17-foot Kimberley Kampers USA Karavan Eco-Suite hybrid trailer as your home on the trail. The 17-foot hard-side trailer's upper half extends upward to provide a spacious and well-designed camper. The long tongue of the 3,700-pound unit allows for fuel and other items to be easily carried on or off-pavement.
A unique feature of the Kimberley Karavan camper is the air suspension that is a long-travel design, and the airbags are adjustable for both load and for leveling the unit when set up at camp.
When hosts Fred Williams and Dave Chapelle attempt to build one vehicle that can run all types of terrain, the results are ridiculous. On episode 51 of Dirt Every Day, they combine an old Range Rover with a Ford Ranger to build an overlanding prerunner that can also play in the mud and rockcrawl. Sign up for a free trial to MotorTrend+ and start watching every episode of Dirt Every Day, plus much more!