Innholdsfortegnelse for October 2018 i Four Wheeler

DARKNESS IS NOTHING TO TINKER WITH. NO MATTER HOW YOU USE YOUR 4X4, chances are you’ll find yourself either at work or on the trail after the sun goes down, and being able to see is paramount. With the onset of LED technology, lighting up the dark now requires even less strain on your electrical systems—with some high-output off-road lights drawing less power than a single incandescent household lightbulb. Lighting solutions for parts of the off-road experience you never thought possible now exist. Whether you need high-power light hundreds of feet down a desert trail, replacements for the factory lamps on your rig, or a flick-of-the-switch solution for flooding an area with light while you set up camp in the dark, we’re here to help with 24 bright ideas for…

WHILE THE NAME PIRELLI MIGHT CONJURE up images of high speed and G-force turns on the racetrack, those were only part of our first experience with Pirelli’s new tire—the Scorpion All Terrain Plus. We found ourselves in Las Vegas, Nevada, in a place we don’t normally visit to test our tires—the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Pirelli catered to the growing SUV and light-truck market by making some serious changes to its previous all-terrain offering, the Scorpion ATR. The company focused on three areas for the new Scorpion: designing a more aggressive-looking tire, deepening the tread grooves, and developing a “new generation” tread compound. Rather than lecture us on the merits of the Scorpion All Terrain Plus, we were shown out to the racetrack to feel out the new rubber for…

THIS BACKWARD GLANCES WILL MAKE YOU DO A double take. What is it? Well, the closest description would be a half-tracked motorcycle, but it really isn’t that. The World War II Kettenkrad is in a place all its own. As Nazi Germany’s military buildup peaked in the late 1930s, the call went out for a fast, compact, air-portable, tracked vehicle for light towing and mountainous terrain. Heinrich Ernst Kniepkamp finished the design on such a vehicle in the summer of 1939, but the job of turning it into a reality went to the NSU company in Neckarsulm, Germany. NSU had been in business since 1873 and was best known for building bicycles and motorcycles, though they had built cars in the early part of the 20th century. NSU would get…

October 4-6 What: 4th Uwharrie Jeep Jamboree Where: Troy, North Carolina Hosted by: Jeep Jamboree USA Info: 530/333-2550, jeepjamboreeusa.com October 4-7 What: Trucks Gone Wild at Plant Bamboo Where: Okeechobee, Florida Hosted by: Trucks Gone Wild Info: trucksgonewild.com October 4-7 What: Mud Bog 2018 Where: Palatka, Florida Hosted by: Hog Waller Mud Bog & ATV Info: hogwallermudbog.com October 6 What: 13th Annual Quadratec Tent Sale Where: West Chester, Pennsylvania Hosted by: Quadratec Info: quadratec.com October 11-14 What: Method Race Wheels Laughlin Desert Classic Where: Laughlin, Nevada Hosted by: Best in the Desert Info: bitd.com October 13 What: Getting Started Off-Road Driving Where: Gorman, California Hosted by: Badlands Off-Road Adventures Info: 310/613-5473, 4x4training.com October 13 What: Sand Drags Where: Lisbon, Ohio Hosted by: Tri County 4 Wheelers Info: tricounty4wheelers.com October 13-14…

JL LIFT OPTIONS Skyjacker now offers 1-1.5-inch, 2-2.5-inch, and 3.5-4-inch lift systems for the ’18 Jeep Wrangler JL. Each kit features dual-rate long-travel coil springs designed specifically for the JL for on- and off-road use. The Skyjacker suspension systems include extended sway bar end links and bumpstop extensions. Long-travel front and rear shocks are said to offer the maximum extension allowable for full articulation. Lift systems are available with either M95 monotube or Black MAX long-travel shocks. The 3.5-4-inch lift system also includes an adjustable front track bar, eccentric cam bolts, and a rear upper frame-mounted track bar relocation bracket. INFO: Skyjacker, 318/388-0816, skyjacker.com TRUE BEADLOCK Method Race Wheels now offers the 106 beadlock. The 17x9 wheel features a deep-dish split six-spoke face design, 3.5 inches of backspacing, a forged…

WE RECENTLY JUMPED AT THE CHANCE TO GET BEHIND the wheel of the ’18 Ford F-150 with the new optional 3.0L V-6 Power Stroke turbodiesel engine. This is the first time the F-150 has ever been available with a diesel engine, and it’s one of six engines currently available under the F-150 hood. Of course, pickup truck enthusiasts have been begging the manufacturers to offer ½-ton diesel trucks for at least a decade, and understandably so. Diesels make more torque, which is better for towing and hauling heavy loads as well as offering an improved driving experience in off-road scenarios. Diesels also typically get about 30 percent better fuel economy than a comparable gas engine. So is the new Ford ½-ton Power Stroke everything we’ve all dreamed of? The answer…

THE ROXOR STANDS UNIQUE WITHIN THE SIDE-by-side world. At first glance, it will call to mind ideas of its military heritage. Back in 1947, Mahindra began producing officially licensed versions of the Willys MB, and more recently, the Jeep CJ-3B from 1954 to 2010. Mahindra drew upon this legacy in creating the ROXOR, which has more in common with the OD green troop carriers of way back than with its modern side-by-side counterparts. Starting with the grille, which, though it is not seven-slotted, will remind you of an old Jeep, but not quite. The ROXOR has a steel body built on a boxed steel frame, with a hood and tailgate that swing with familiarity on real steel hinges. Under that hood is Mahindra’s direct-injection turbodiesel m2DiCR 2.5L four-cylinder powerplant, which…

THE CITY OF SEDONA LIES NEAR THE CENTER of the Grand Canyon State, where it offers its own breathtaking scenery and diverse high-desert habitat. The city got its first post office in 1902, but there were settlers homesteading in the area since the 1860s. The area continued to grow because it offered a healthy climate, expanses of available land, and nearby perennial Oak Creek as a reliable water source. Evidence shows that primitive peoples inhabited this area over 10,000 years ago. Farming Native Americans known as the Sinagua made this their home for some time. Nearby are the Palatki (Hopi language meaning Red House) and Honanki (Badger House) cliff dwelling ruins, which are believed to have been constructed as early as A.D. 1125. Though these people migrated from here several…

THE RAPTOR IS A SPECIAL KIND of truck—dare we say, the ultimate truck? So, it’s no wonder that it walked away with Four Wheeler’s 2017 Pickup Truck of the Year award. After a year in the driver seat, there are still times we can’t believe a manufacturer is actually selling a machine like this, let alone a second-generation version. From high-speed desert blasts to brief moments of flight, the 450hp twin-turbo 3.5L/ten-speed automatic and long-travel suspension never disappointed. Well, except for that whole fake engine noise thing. (Ford, please give drivers the option to turn this “feature” off so we can experience the Raptor in its full unadulterated glory.) The second-generation Raptor, marked by aggressive anger-in-your-rearview-mirror styling, is mostly better than the version it replaces (itself a Four Wheeler Pickup Truck…

When is the last time you shifted your Ferrari into 4-Lo? Chuck Bachrach had never thought of such a thing until a friend took Chuck’s ’71 Bronco and mistakenly wrapped it around a tree. And so begins our look back to March 1989 and the story of the “Land Shark.” The story really begins with Chuck, who hailed from Omaha, Nebraska, and spent his days touring with rock ’n’ roll bands, wrangling their lighting equipment. He told us two additional factoids about himself. First, he was conceived in the back of a “massive” ’49 Hudson. Second, life on the road touring taught him to take what he was given and make it into…something. In this case, that “something” would turn out to be the winner of many auto show trophies.…

THAT’S INTERESTING Some of the new items on the ’19 Ford F-150 Raptor include Fox 3.0 electronically controlled shocks, Recaro sport seats, and Trail Control, which Ford calls “like cruise control for low-speed, rugged terrain.” The mic has been dropped—the final Jeep Wrangler JK went down the line on April 27, 2018 (a white Rubicon Unlimited). Awkward…someone’s going to have to pick up the mic again to announce that Toledo Supplier Park is switching over to production of the Jeep truck that’s finally coming for 2019. Will the next vehicle from GM be spit out of a 3D printer? The automaker is trying on generative design software to develop lightweight components for future vehicles. Classic Centre in Essen—that would be the first Jaguar Land Rover Classic entry outside of the…

WHEN YOUR OFF- AND ON-ROAD ADVENTURES extend past the daylight hours, you begin thinking of ways to light up the world. Our ’17 JK Wrangler might sit idle during the week, but when Friday night rolls around, you’ll find it twisting through snowy mountain passes and cruising the desert in search of the next adventure. The JK has LED headlamps that are well suited for use on crowded highways, but when we trade pavement for dirt, we often find ourselves overdriving our lights. The headlamp beam pattern also leaves many things in the shadows, like the rocks and elk that tend to jump from the periphery and into our path of travel. We needed a light that not only illuminates the area directly in front of the Jeep, but also…

IT’S A GREAT AMERICAN PASTIME—THE BEACH vacation. For folks living in the Southeast, one of the most popular beach destinations you’ll find is Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. While it’s known for its array of golf courses, beachfront hotels, and countless things to keep the kiddos entertained, the coastal town has added one more thing to the list—the Myrtle Beach Jeep Jam. A Native Sons event, the Jeep Jam is a three-day gathering that combines a Jeep show ’n’ shine, obstacle course, and over 50 vendors. Using the massive area that a mall once populated, the family-friendly event was able to secure a large enough venue that was also within walking distance to the beach. We absolutely love seeing any new 4x4 events pop up, but we especially like that it…

IF YOU HAVE BEEN FOLLOWING WHAT Yokohama Tire has been up to, you would have noticed that the company has introduced some incredible new products for the off-road world. Last year, the company brought out the all-new Geolandar M/T G003. Earlier this year, Yo-kohama developed a sticky Geolandar M/T R-Spec compound Ultra4 race tire, and now the company has pulled out all the stops with the all-new, ultra-aggressive Geolandar X-MT extreme mud-terrain tire. But don’t let the name fool you. It’s not just for mud. In fact, the company is said to have designed the Geolandar X-MT for a variety of terrains, including street, rocks, mud, and more. And Yokohama isn’t even close to done yet. The company plans to develop an entire line of X-series extreme tires for each…

SURE, THE LIFT, WHEELS, AND LARGER TIRES made our ’17 Tacoma look sharp and increased off-road dexterity, but once we got the truck out on the trails, it was no surprise when we realized that the truck would benefit from new axle gears and a front locking differential. The ARB Air Locker was the solution to our frontend traction problems. The pneumatic locker is activated by an in-cab switch and uses compressed air to lock the differential, making sure that when activated, the front wheels spin at the same speed. Not only does this keep the Tacoma moving when traction is less than favorable, but the air compressor gives us the ability to reinflate our tires after a day of wheeling at lower pressures. The larger 35-inch tires also meant…

WHISTLING WRANGLER Q I have a ’04 Jeep Wrangler. Every once in a great while the engine starts to whistle. I can’t find the problem. I tightened the two front and rear exhaust manifold lugs with no success. It’s for sure not a squeak. It’s a whistle. @NOPARTSNEUTRAL VIA INSTAGRAM @CAPPAWORKS A There really aren’t many things that can cause a whistle under the hood of your Jeep. It’s either an intermittent vacuum leak or some anomaly on the intake tube. You’ll want to start by checking for vacuum leaks. Look for and repair any popped-off, loose, cracked, or missing vacuum lines. If the whistle persists, you’ll have to take the search to the next level. You may be able to find the offending whistle with an automotive stethoscope. Companies…