STRANDED in Namibia! 🇳🇦 Ford F250 Overland Mechanical Disaster (Motsumi Part 1)

Introduction to Ruacana

Namibia doesn't give you a journey. She gives you a taste. Where paths begin.

On this Namibian journey we'll take you from the Kalahari to the Kunene, from the Kunene to the Orange River and beyond. So buckle up as we explore the beauty of the Namibian landscape in this eight-part series of Tusk & Tyre. Are you ready? Start this train. Let's go.

Good morning and welcome back to Tusk & Tyre Overlanding. I'm sitting here at the Ruacana River campsite, and right here is one of those mornings that reminds you why we do this. A calm river, a warm sun, and that feeling that the real journey is about to begin.

Motsumi's mechanical disaster

But to be honest, getting to this peaceful moment wasn't smooth. The last few days tested us properly, and in a way we didn't plan for. Plans had to be made. Parts had to be flown in. So here's the real story.

We started the trip excited, packed, ready, and then Motsumi reminded us that overlanding does not care about your schedule. First we had issues that slowed us down and forced decisions on the road. Then things escalated. Injector pipes, oil, a diesel mess, and a few moments where we just stood there thinking, okay, what now?

Parts had to be flown in from Joburg. People had to help. Plans had to change. And I'll be honest, it was stressful. Not because of the vehicle, but because this trip is more than a drive. It's friends, it's family, it's a convoy, and it's memories we cannot redo.

But here's what I love about this lifestyle. You meet the best people when things go wrong. Strangers become helpers. Mechanics become heroes. And somehow the road still opens again.

Good morning. It was a hard push from Joburg yesterday, to Kalahari Rest near Kang. The drive was about 12 and a half hours, about 800 km. We left at half past 4 yesterday morning and arrived just after 5. Today is an early start, just after 5. We're pushing for Otjiwarongo today. That's about another 700 to 800 km, and we should be there by about half past 5 or 6. As always, anything on the road, I'll film it and keep you guys updated.

Trapped in a Namibian cloudburst

A big storm is brewing up ahead. We're just before Gobabis. This storm looks huge. Huge.

We're driving through, and the streets turned into rivers from that cloudburst. I believe it's been over 100 mm of rain in about 30 minutes. Then we left, turned onto the gravel road, and waited to see what happened.

Yeah, the Namibian gravel roads took their first victim, a flat tyre. Luckily we were close to Gobabis. I turned around, came back, and we're putting a mushroom plug in it. Gravel roads.

Why injector pipe repairs are difficult

I caught Stefan off guard there. It's his first trip with me filming for YouTube, and I pulled a little prank on him.

But some more unfortunate news. Yesterday, between Gobabis and Otjinene, Motsumi burst injector pipes. Through a friend of mine in Windhoek, we got to a farmer close to Otjinene, and we tried fixing it. But from my previous experience, silver solder or brazing does not hold on these injector tubes. The pressure in them is too much, and it failed within 40 km.

We're limping to Otjiwarongo to see if we can find a workshop, a mechanic, or a spare shop that has these injector pipes, because I have to replace them with new ones. Failing that, I'm going to have to fly in injector pipes from South Africa, as we need to continue. We can't give up. I'll update you once we've got a solution.

While we watch a masked weaver patiently building its nest, we're stuck doing the same. Waiting. We arrived too late yesterday, and by the time we got here all the spare shops and workshops were closed. We managed a quick grocery run because we had no supplies with us. You can't enter Namibia with any animal products. Tomorrow we head toward Tractor Supplies and hopefully we can come right. Until then, we kill time.

A beautiful sunset here in northern Namibia, about 15 km before Otjiwarongo. Namibian sunsets, they're just awesome. Amazingly beautiful.

Good morning. We're leaving for Otjiwarongo early so we can get to the mechanic shops bright and early, and maybe get injector pipes from Windhoek. But a friend from Windhoek stopped here with us yesterday. They were on their way back from Etosha, and by coincidence, his uncle, or his wife's uncle, owns the Otjiwarongo Tractor Supplies. So he gave them a call. They're waiting for us. Hopefully they can help.

Meeting the heroes in Otjiwarongo

Tractor Supplies could not help us. They said it's above their pay grade. So they directed us to Otjiwarongo Breakdown Services. They said it's a truck workshop, they work on trucks. Let's see if they can help us.

What's your name? JR. Yes. A trustworthy mechanic.

Let me show you around. A very nice workshop here in Otjiwarongo called Otjiwarongo Breakdown Services. So if you're ever overlanding Namibia, you're around Otjiwarongo, and you've got problems, be sure to give them a call. They've got a breakdown service as well, so they can come and fetch you wherever you are. Very nice, clean workshop. They do fitting and turning, welding, construction. They build vehicles. They basically do everything over here. If you ever need help in this area, make sure to give them a call at Otjiwarongo Breakdown Services. Very nice people, very helpful. They can also help you with some of your travels, give you advice on where to go, where not to go, what to look out for. Make sure to stop here.

Well, it looks like we're going to get sorted. The pipe is back, and the leak on the compressor has been fixed with a gasket. We're just waiting another 30 minutes or so for everything to dry, and then we're going to start up and reveal the results. Let's hope we get back on the road.

Well, the big blow. We couldn't fix the pipe. It started leaking immediately. We cannot find any injector tubes in Namibia, as it's December and most of the places are closed. So we're busy organising with my mechanic in Joburg to fly in some injector tubes.

Camping in a workshop and a Namibian braai

Breaking down in Namibia is not always that bad, especially when you meet people like we have. I've experienced it all over Namibia, the hospitality and the friendliness of the Namibian people.

So we were invited for a braai tonight. We're camping in the workshop. Let me show you this. Okay, so it's a bit dark, but this is our camp while we wait for the injector tubes for Motsumi. And then when we walk through here, they've made us a nice bathroom, with a flat, inside here.

And then the Namibian hospitality. About 90% of the people in Namibia speak Afrikaans, understand Afrikaans. So a lot of the next part will be a little bit in Afrikaans, and we'll put the subtitles down here. Making some nice potatoes.

Tackling the steep Ruacana hill in low range

Four days after ordering them, Motsumi's injector pipes finally arrived. JR wasted no time this morning, and by midday we were rolling again.

Otjiwarongo Breakdown Services, thank you. Fast service, relentless effort, and genuinely good people. We won't forget the kindness or the friends we made here. Next stop, Ruacana, to meet up with our crew again.

While we were stuck in Otjiwarongo, I made one thing clear. They had to go on to Etosha. We were safe, we had help, and they had bookings. Stefan said he waited 61 years to see Etosha, and I wasn't going to let Motsumi's breakdown take that away. See you in Ruacana.

This was a hill just after the hydroelectric plant close to Ruacana. This hill was so steep that it pulled Motsumi dead in first gear, and Motsumi is very, very strong in first gear. I had to stop and engage low range to get out of this hill. I still think she would have made it if it wasn't so rutted close to the top, but the footage does not do this hill justice.

Heading north to Epupa Falls

As the sun lifts over Ruacana, we pack up and point the convoy north, following the Kunene River towards Epupa Falls.

And this is the way we travel. No bookings, no tight schedule, just a route in our heads and the freedom to change it in a heartbeat. I always joke that nothing can go wrong because nothing is planned. But out here, that freedom comes with a price. You never really know what the next day is going to ask of you.

This is part one of the series. Keep a look out for part two, where we cover Epupa Falls and the people who live there. And as always, stay safe, be humble, make a difference.