Indholdsfortegnelse for November 2022 i Four Wheeler

This issue of Four Wheeler contains a fun story about the 2022 Centerforce Adventure Run, which is a multi-day off-road foray into the Arizona backcountry for 4x4s with manual transmissions (mostly). I think it’s safe to say that manual transmissions have played a big part in our wheeling past whether we drive a manual-equipped 4x4 now or not. My history with a manual gearbox began when the young me learned how to clutch and row gears in an old six-cylinder-powered Ford F-250 farm truck. Even though the shifter travel was super long and sloppy, and the clutch feel was funky, I eventually figured it out. The young me was surprised that it took a bit of learning. I guess I figured it would be easy after riding motorcycles since a…

DAKAR-INSPIRED STOPPING POWER Adding accessories to your 4x4 means more weight that the brakes need to bring to a stop. The X-Line Big Brake Kit from Powerbrake features a billet six-piston caliper, caliper mounting brackets, high-performance brake pads, stainless-steel brake lines, and two-piece 345-395x34mm (depending on application) 72-vane disc rotors—a combination that is inspired by Dakar Rally-winning technology. The calipers can be optioned with either a Red or Grey Hard anodized finish. All mounting hardware is included. Available for many popular 4x4 platforms, including ’07-’18 Jeep Wranglers, ’03-’09 Lexus GX470s, and ’03-’16 Toyota 4Runners. INFO: Powerbrake, 704/804-2438, powerbrakeglobal.com ARMOR YOUR JK Armorlite has added cargo area protection to its line of products for the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. The full lineup of Armorlite cargo products includes seatback covers and load floor…

In the world of performance off-road trucks, the ½-ton market has separated itself into two general categories, what we refer to as the standard-track-width trucks (Ford F-150 Tremor, Ram Rebel, and Toyota Tundra TRD Pro) and the wide-track-width trucks (Ford Raptor and Ram TRX). To the mix of standard-track-width trucks you can now add the Chevrolet Silverado ZR2. For 2022, Chevy has come into the standard-track-width market with an incredibly strong product in the ZR2, a new off-road version of the Silverado that sits atop Trail Boss in the lineup. At the core of this off-road package are a 6.2L V-8 pumping out a strong 420 horsepower and 460 lb-ft of torque through a 10-speed automatic transmission and an upsized version of the Colorado ZR2’s exceptional Multimatic DSSV spool-valve shocks.…

When Toyota hit North America with its first 4x4 pickup in 1979, the compact pickup caught the eye of four-wheelers nationwide who loved its clean lines, solid front axle, leaf springs, two-speed T-case, four-or five-speed manual transmission, and fuel-efficient 20R 2.2L four-cylinder engine. Those were the very attributes that caught the eye of Ryan Kennelly, who bought a four-speed ’80 Toyota Pickup 4x4 sight unseen, modified it onsite for light trail duty, and then drove it cross-country 2,400 miles to his home near San Diego, California. As an added adventure, along the way Ryan hit several epic mountain and desert 4x4 trails with his “new” Toy. Later, he joined us on the epic 2020 Four Wheeler Overland Adventure in Arizona. Ryan is no stranger to wrenching on 4x4s or the…

We’ve had some good experiences with Jeep’s luxurious all-new Grand Cherokee freshening, but most of our time to this point has been in the three-row L model. While we love the fifth-generation Grand Cherokee’s highway ride, its incredible tech, and the luxury found on the inside, the L just has a different feel. It lacks the sportiness of the previous two-row, and its additional size keeps it from being a truly credible trail machine (although you might be surprised just how deep down a trail it could get you). That all changes with the two-row Grand Cherokee and its tidier proportions, shorter wheelbase, and more compact dimensions. Thankfully, we’ve found everything we’ve loved about the Grand over the years intact in the new WL two-row model. Add to that the…

CHEAP JEEP XJ CHEROKEE BUILD TIPS I have a ’00 Jeep XJ Cherokee Sport that’s pretty much bone stock. I want to build it up on the cheap to fit 32-inch tires and hit some trails in southwestern Colorado. I know these Jeeps have been built 1,000 different ways but wondered if you have any tips or tricks that will help me keep the budget down while improving the off-road abilities of the Jeep without ruining its on-road manners too much. I also found and scooped up an XJ Dana 44 rear axle for this build from a junkyard and will have it re-geared to work with the slightly larger tires. MIKE VIA FACEBOOK MESSENGER Welcome to the addictive world of one of the most used and modified Jeeps. XJs…

RESCUED SUBURBAN After trying to buy it for a few years, I finally rescued this ’70 K25 Suburban from under a bunch of sequoias on Palomar Mountain in Southern California. It has an SM465 four-speed, electric overdrive, NP205 with a hydraulic PTO for the 12,000-pound hydraulic winch, and an Eaton rearend. It took me one day to get it driving and three days to clean it. JEFF VIA EMAIL INSPIRED BY COLONEL MUSTARD I’m responding to the Trail’s End article on the flattie (Jul ’22). It’s a great story and hits home as I also have a ’51 CJ-3A and it has been a labor of love since I found it in 1994 totally beat, rusted out, with a seized 283ci small-block Chevy, but it had the adapter for the…

Jason Helbig’s ’86 Jeep J10 overlander was a worthy addition to the 2021 Four Wheeler Overland Adventure Presented by Jeep. The Oregon native was accustomed to off-grid travel and had designed his overlanding J10 specifically for remote adventure. “It was my grandpa’s truck,” Jason said. “He handed it down to me and I decided to build it for long-distance off-road travel.” Jason had the tired AMC 360ci V-8 built to make more torque and horsepower. He also had it powdercoated for good looks and corrosion resistance. A custom exhaust system runs Hedman long-tubes and dual Flowmaster 40 Series 2.5-inch mufflers. The beast now has enhanced suspension components and rolls on 37-inch tires. The truck’s axles are a Dana 44 front and an AMC Model 20 rear, and to up their…

Jeeps and soft tops go hand in hand. We love jeeping and the fresh air and open feel that a Jeep yields, but every now and then we need to seek shelter from the rain, wind, snow, or sun. You know how it is. If you want to keep the weather out or just seek some shade from the sun, there are several soft top options on the market for Jeep TJs and LJs. You can get bikini tops, which come in full-length or front-seat-only varieties. You can get a replacement factory-style full soft top with all the parts, or one of several tops engineered differently than a factory top. Or you can get a bowless, frameless top, which is one of the most versatile styles of tops for modern…

In the August 2022 issue of Four Wheeler, we reported on buying a classic ’75 Ford F-100 Dentside in Reno, Nevada, and the adventure of driving it home to Southern California. In Part 2 (Sep. ’22) we outlined the upgrades to the vintage Ford, including flooring, gauges, tires, wheels, and more. The outcome was a significantly improved truck that was coming together nicely. In Part 3 (Oct. ’22) we told the story of how the truck was stolen, vandalized, recovered, and a new build plan was hatched. In this installment we dig into that new plan. From Day 1, this F-100 was always going to live out its days as an adventure vehicle. A well-equipped overland vehicle would be expected to have low gearing, big brakes, and locking differentials at…

We added strength to this WJ Grand Cherokee Dana 30 using parts from Artec Industries, and then we replaced the upper control arm bushings. While we were replacing the upper control arm bushings on this axle, we realized with just a little more work we could add even more strength to the passenger-side upper control arm mount. With a piece of 1x8x⅛-inch plate we were able to box the top of this upper control arm mount, which greatly increased its strength with only a little fab time, a hammer, and a welder. This mod will apply to any Jeep with a solid front axle and a link suspension, including the XJ Cherokee, ZJ Grand Cherokee, TJ Wrangler, JK Wrangler, and the JL Wrangler. Here’s what we did.…

In the News ■ What color is your vehicle? Is it yellow? A study by iseecars.com looked at depreciation based on hue and yellow is currently the top shade for retaining its value. Brown? Well, it can’t be called No. 2 in this case. That and gold have the highest depreciation. As usual, silver, black, gray, and white are your safe bets. ■ According to a study of Gen Z vehicle buyers via CDK Global, that age demo finds it more difficult to buy a vehicle online than any other generation. But … aren’t they the online generation? A shoutout to them via shrug emoji. ■ 50 million vehicles currently whizzing around “are being driven with a known issue that should be repaired,” according to Carfax. California has the most…

If vehicle-based and self-sustained off-road travel is your thing, then scrawl the Overland Expo series onto your to-do list. Overland Expo West, in Flagstaff, Arizona, is joined by similar gatherings in the East, Pacific Northwest, and the Rockies (Mountain West), where adventure travel enthusiasts come together to get educated, ogle new products, and share stories from the trail. The 2022 Overland Expo West was held at Fort Tuthill County Park, just outside Flagstaff, and the venue was teeming with over 28,000 showgoers hailing from all corners of North America as well as from Great Britain, Peru, Mexico, Australia, the Czech Republic, and Canada. They were joined by 406 exhibitors as they attended clinics on topics from cooking and trailside welding to vehicle recovery and route planning, entered raffles, enjoyed happy…

The 2022 Centerforce Adventure Run combined (mostly) manual transmission-equipped 4x4s with overlanding to create a multi-day tour through the Arizona backcountry, punctuated by clutches and shift levers. In the January 2022 issue of Four Wheeler we covered the inaugural 2021 Centerforce Adventure Run and it was an absolute blast. So, when this year’s Adventure Run was announced we quickly set up our schedule to fit around the trip. The result was amazing, starting within one of America’s natural wonders and ending at the home of Centerforce Clutch in Prescott, Arizona, with a ton of beautiful and remote dirt miles in between. Many folks falsely believe that automatic transmissions have some advantage off-road, and that’s just not true. Sure, a slushbox may make things easier for some, some of the time,…

The Jeep JK Wrangler has been around since 2006 as a 2007 model year vehicle and has vastly changed and expanded the Jeep world on several fronts. The JK, with its coil-sprung, solid-axle suspension, was an evolution of the TJ Wrangler, and while the TJ is known for having a smooth ride, the JK was a definite improvement. Still, like most Jeeps, enthusiasts have been modifying JKs since their inception, and the development of new parts to modify them has been steady since 2007. One of our favorite suspension companies, Skyjacker Suspensions, has kept its suspension designs particularly fresh despite the passage of all that time. As of a few years ago, Skyjacker revamped most of its coil-based suspension kits, upgrading the company’s coil springs from single-rate to dual-rate (the…

Rust, often considered the cancer of the automotive world, is the enemy of anyone who loves cars, trucks, or any items mainly constructed of steel or iron. Rusting, or oxidation, is defined as a chemical reaction in which electrons are lost, and while that’s a stuffy, chemistry-based definition, it is relevant to stopping rust from destroying our 4x4s. Basically, we want to stop or slow the loss of electrons from the steel either chemically (via rust-remover) or physically (by grinding it off and/or sealing it with paint or another type of sealer). For decades, we’ve dabbled with various techniques for killing rust, which is the only way to prevent its continued growth. Recently, we needed to stop a bunch of surface rust on the hood of our ’74 CJ-5 and…

Think back in Four Wheeler history to Doctor Doolie, an ’81 Chevy turned project monster truck with a souped-up 454, six 47-inch backhoe tires, and a repertoire that included sled pulls and unforgettable wheelstands. Scott Strew’s ’86 Chevy K3500 had a similar powertrain and paintjob, and tires three inches shorter than those on Doctor Doolie, but it could do something the exhibition puller couldn’t—drive on the highway. Have a look back with us to the April 1990 issue of Four Wheeler and this colossal squarebody named Challenger. Scott bought the pickup new in 1986 and had plans to give his truck only the best of the best in the suspension department and plenty of creature comforts inside without heavily modifying the powertrain. On the list of robust components left very…