Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2016 i Four Wheeler

“IT KIND OF GOT OUT OF HAND,” BLAKE van Brouwer explained when describing his three-door ’71 Suburban. Originally he just wanted a 4x4 that he and his family could use to explore the mountains around their home in Reno, Nevada. Not just any 4x4 would do, though—It had to be a vintage Chevy. So when Blake found a three-door Suburban that was someone else’s halfdone project, he snatched it up for cheap. It took a diehard Bow Tie fan to see the potential in the ’Burb, given the hacked interior and purple metalflake paint job. “It wasn’t just ugly. It was a poor paint job,” Blake recalls. That made it easy for Blake and his friend Tony Faraco to start over though. Rather than cutting and hacking the Suburban to…

THE STORY OF THE POST-WORLD WAR II Dodge Power Wagon closely parallels that of its brother in arms, the Willys-Overland Jeep. Both companies built a wartime vehicle that earned legendary status in the war, and both followed up with a civilian counterpart that built on that reputation and became legendary out of uniform as well. The WWII Dodge VC and WC series trucks were ever present, and Dodge dominated the wartime production of 1⁄2- and 3⁄4-ton trucks from 1940 to 1945. Heck, they dominated light tactical truck production well into the ’60s. Their trucks were the just-right combination of adaptability, beef, capability, and cost that makes for a legendary military truck. Those characteristics have kept them competitive in the light-truck market since then as well. As with Willys-Overland, Dodge began…

THE CLASSIC FIRST-GENERATION BRONCO AND THE FULLSIZE BRONCO HAD both been highly popular 4WDs when Ford decided to introduce a scaled-down version of its bobtail SUV. The Bronco II was introduced for the ’84 model year after GM made a move into the smaller-SUV market segment about a year earlier with its S-Series Blazer and Jimmy models. The “baby” Bronco shared a similar design to the Ford Ranger truck of the same era. The short wheelbase spanned 94 inches from axle to axle, putting it in the same ballpark as the Jeep CJ-7. Unfortunately, the Bronco II would survive production for only seven years before the Explorer would push it out of the Ford lineup 1st Generation (1984-1988) The Bronco II shared many of the traits of the fullsize Bronco…

Manufacturers trot out concept rigs to gauge, among other things, the buying public’s reaction. Some concept rigs make it into production, and some just disappear. One concept that didn’t make it into production, but should have in our opinion, is this Power Wagon we featured in the Mar. ’99 issue of Four Wheeler. We had a chance to inspect and drive the rig prior to its debut at the 1999 Detroit Auto Show. The truck was designed to reflect the “rugged, purposeful look” of the original Power Wagon, but with “modern industrial touches and innovations.” Under the hood was a common-rail 7.2L I-6 turbodiesel engine that was fed sulphur-free fuel and produced 250 hp and 780 lb-ft of torque. We noted that the Cummins I-6 found in the Dodge trucks…

LIKE A CANNONBALL INTO A KIDDIE POOL, THE ORIGINAL Ford Super Duty made such a splash 17 years ago, that the truck market was forever changed. Breaking the heritage of sharing their cab with the F-150, the Super Duty truly brought a vehicle so large and so much more capable to market, that it was its own class of truck. With 44 configurations and GVWRs all the way up to 19,000 pounds in the F-550, the Super Duty had the heavy-duty truck market covered. For its entire lifespan, the Super Duty has been refined and improved to ensure it remained relevant in hotly contested truck space. It’s remarkable to note that Ford claims a full 43 percent of the registrations in the 8,500 to 14,000-poung GVWR segment, while nearly 65…

WE ALL TEND TO TAKE SHORTCUTS AND FIX THINGS THE WAY WE ALWAYS HAVE, BUT SOMETIMES those shortcuts and ingrained methods are wrong and can make your 4x4 life more difficult in the long run. It doesn’t matter if you’ve been doing it wrong for years or have only just started your bad habits; it’s easy to change once you realize there is a better way. We compiled 10 of the more common mistakes made by off-road enthusiasts when working on and operating a 4x4. Here is what you should and shouldn’t be doing. 1. You Lug Nut When was the last time you tightened your lug nuts in a star pattern or actually used a torque wrench to seat them properly? Most of us simply bust out the impact…

WHEN THE TEMPERATURE DIPS TO THE bottom of the needle, diesel fuel transforms into a consistency resembling molasses, leaving the wax particles within the fuel and thickening or “gelling” inside the arteries of the truck clogging. And just like cholesterol clogs human arteries, gelled diesel fuel in your truck’s fuel system is like a heart attack waiting to happen. Most diesel fuels can withstand 32 degrees. For most of us, we know it often gets much colder than that! Here are five easy ways we’ve found to help defend your Cummins against the evil freezing arctic temperatures. 1. Fuel Additive: This simple solution should always be running in the veins of your 4x4 at all times during cold months. As an added bonus, it contains cleaners to help remove deposits…

IF THE SIGNIFICANT OTHER HAS TIGHTENED UP THE 4X4 PURSE STRINGS AND THE ONLY THING collecting in your pockets is lint, then we have the cheap tips you need. We also threw in some problem-solver components that have made our garage wrench, fabricator, and off-road–centric lives easier. 1. Mini-Station Welding on the ground is uncomfortable and not ideal for throwing down a good weld bead. Build or buy yourself a thick steel welding table. We’ve been using this portable Miller (millerwelds.com) F-Series ArcStation for several years now. When not welding, we use it as a workbench we can keep close to our project. The thick steel top can take a beating and there are several different clamps available that interface with the tabletop. 2. Wheel Evaluation You can quickly and…

IF YOU’RE AT ALL FAMILIAR WITH AMERICAN EXPEDITION VEHICLES (AEV), you already know what the company can do for the Jeep Wrangler. Much more than simply a conversion company, AEV engineers suspension systems, exterior upgrades, interior accessories, and wheels for these popular vehicles. It also offers its complete Hemi Builder Kit for those looking to perform a V-8 swap. Now the company has waved its magic wand over the Ram 2500/3500 truck. The suspension underneath the AEV Ram offers some interesting mechanical details. Built exclusively for the 2500/3500 Ram truck, AEV’s suspension system features many of the engineering basics that were incorporated into the company’s well-respected JK Wrangler suspension. The concept from its beginning on paper was to make it a dual sport system—to have excellent road manners, as well…

WHEN YOUR BUSINESS IS BUILDING 4X4 VANS, YOU DON’T HAVE TO TRY TOO HARD FOR YOUR WORK TO STAND OUT IN a crowd. Specializing in 4x4 conversions for ’92-newer Ford E-Series vans, Ujoint Off-Road owner Chris Steuber is an expert in practically all things E-Series. Looking to build a new shop truck/wheeler, Steuber decided to think way outside of the box with what he simply calls V4. Since Steuber routinely hauls parts and build materials for his shop projects, he wanted a versatile rig that could double as a shop truck. Given his enthusiasm for wheeling and camping, he also wanted something that could handle harsh off-road conditions while toting his custom bed-mounted camper. The result is the custom flatbed van you see before you. Starting with a 7.3L diesel-powered…