CJ340 in Australia

What is the Bushranger?

In Australia the Mahindra CJ340 was marketed as the Bushranger. Same chassis as the European Bahia and Indian domestic CJ340: high-hood CJ-3B body, 2,112 cc Peugeot diesel, 4-speed KMT90 gearbox, two-lever T18 transfer case with 2.46:1 low range, part-time 4WD, worm-and-roller steering, and ladder-frame construction.

Typical Bushranger spec includes khaki canvas soft top, white 15″ or 16″ steel rims (often 700×16), olive drab or British Racing Green paint, and export badging. Chassis numbers follow CJ3B-4 DKxxxxx; engine numbers DJxxxxxx.

Specifications

Importing to Australia

Vehicles 25 years or older may qualify under Australia's classic and vintage vehicle import pathways. Check current Department of Infrastructure rules before shipping. Most Bushrangers in Australia arrived via private import or were registered when new through Mahindra distributors.

Resources: Australian vehicle import guidelines.

Parts & maintenance

Mahindra no longer manufactures CJ340 parts, but OEM and reconditioned components ship worldwide from Nonu Ventures. Many Willys CJ-3B steering, brake, and body parts interchange. Injection pumps, starters, radiators, and transfer case components are commonly sourced from India or specialist rebuilders.

Australian owners report success with 700×16 tyres on white steel rims, regular diesel injection pump calibration, and keeping the T18 transfer linkages greased.

Buying a Bushranger in Australia — what to check

The order of inspection matters more on a CJ340 than on most classics, because the mechanical package is repairable and the structure largely is not. Work down this list rather than starting with how it drives.

Chassis and mounts first. Go over the ladder-frame rails, the spring hangers where they are welded to the chassis, the body mounts, and the tub floor. Mud packs into the hangers and rots them from the inside, and on a vehicle that has worked corrugated roads you are also looking for fatigue cracking rather than just corrosion. Sound steel does not give under a screwdriver. A rotten chassis is not economically recoverable; a tired engine is a weekend.

Then the Peugeot diesel. Watch the exhaust from cold: blue smoke means oil past rings or valve guides, white that persists after warm-up points at injection timing or a head gasket, and heavy black under load at injectors. Ask when the injection pump was last calibrated, since pump work is specialist and not cheap.

Then brakes and steering. The CJ340 runs 11-inch drums on all four corners with no servo on most examples, and they are not self-adjusting. A soft or long pedal is usually adjustment rather than parts. Some play in the worm-and-roller steering box is characteristic; excessive play is adjustable in most cases.

Then paperwork. For an imported vehicle, confirm the import approval and compliance history exist before money changes hands. Reconstructing missing import documentation after the fact is far harder than any mechanical repair on this list.

• Chassis rails, spring hangers, body mounts, tub floor — structural, check first
• Cold-start smoke colour and injection pump service history
• Brake balance and pedal travel — usually adjustment, not parts
• Steering box play — some is normal, excessive is adjustable
• Import approval and compliance paperwork for anything not originally sold here

Registration: club permits and historic schemes

Every Australian state and territory operates some form of concessional registration for older vehicles — the Historic Vehicle Scheme in New South Wales, the Club Permit Scheme in Victoria, the Special Interest Vehicle concession in Queensland, concessional licensing in Western Australia, and equivalents in South Australia, Tasmania, the ACT and the Northern Territory.

The details differ in every jurisdiction and are revised periodically, but the common shape is consistent: a minimum vehicle age, membership of a recognised car club, an inspection, and restrictions on how the vehicle may be used — often a set number of days per year recorded in a logbook, or club-event-only use.

Because CJ340 production ended in 1994, every surviving Bushranger now clears the age threshold in every state. The question is not eligibility but suitability: the usage restrictions are the catch. If the jeep is a weekend and club vehicle, concessional registration is a substantial saving. If it is farm transport or a daily driver, full registration is usually the honest choice.

Confirm the current requirements with your state road authority before joining a club specifically to qualify — the schemes change, and the eligibility rules for modified vehicles in particular are not uniform between states.

Living with one in Australian conditions

Heat. Cooling is the most reported Bushranger complaint in this country, and it is rarely one big fault. It is usually a stack of small ones — a partially blocked radiator core, a tired thermostat, a slipping fan belt, and thirty years of sediment in the block. Address them together rather than replacing the radiator and hoping. See overheating causes and fixes.

Dust. Air filtration is the single highest-value maintenance habit on dirt. Service intervals written for sealed roads are meaningless behind a road train, and a diesel that ingests dust wears bores fast. Check the filter on hours and conditions, not odometer readings.

Corrugations. Sustained corrugated road work is what fatigues leaf springs, elongates shackle bushes and cracks chassis around the spring hangers. Grease the shackle pins regularly and inspect the hangers whenever the suspension is apart — see leaf springs and suspension.

Distance. Be realistic about the gearing. With 5.38:1 hypoid axles and a four-speed KMT90, the CJ340 was geared for load and gradient, not for cruising. It pulls strongly at low speed and runs out of comfortable revs well below highway pace. Combined with a 40-litre tank, that shapes what a sensible day’s drive looks like — plan fuel stops on range rather than optimism.

Community

Connect with other Mahindra Jeep owners at 4-the-love-of-jeeps.com and browse the historical archive at cj3b.info. CJ340.com is the visual fan home — walk around the vehicle, explore body styles, and read owner stories.