Product Reviews
1. Acid Test
March 1, 2010 | By Steve Temple
We’ve all been there: the top of a mountain, the depth of a forest or a hidden oasis in the middle of the desert — the perfect end of a long day on the trail and your weekend adventure. Of course, you use all your auxiliary lights to set up the secluded campsite. And while the stillness is intoxicating, why not also crank up the tunes to get the party started?
Next day you’re eager to start exploring...
December 1, 2006 | By Chris Bolger
Tires are one of the most important purchases you will make for your 4x4. They are the foundation to good performance both on the street and on the trail. A wrong choice haunts you for as long as the tires last...
3. Banks Power
June 1, 2008 | By Steve Temple
Start thinking about high performance and the name Gale Banks usually isn't far behind. While he may be known for powering drag trucks - his diesel-powered Sidewinder Chevy S-10 recently clocked 7. 72 seconds at 179...
February 1, 2009 | By Off-Road Adventures Staff
Designed in a joint engineering effort between BD Diesel Performance and BorgWarner Turbo Systems' AirWerks program, BD offers turbo systems for the stock Dodge 5. 9L Cummins and Chevy 6. 6L Duramax engines that respond better than original designs plus flow enough air for racing applications, yet are responsive and durable enough for street and heavy towing applications...
March 1, 2009 | By Trent Riddle
A BedStep is one of those truck accessories that you'll wonder how you did without, once you have one. The step easily pulls down for use, and then folds away for driving. They make getting into a truck bed or loading a rack much easier...
July 1, 2008 | By Denis Snow
This was a different tire introduction than what Off-Road Adventures magazine usually gets invited to. Not like last year's BFG intro of their then new Mud Terrain T/A KM2 where Jim Allen got to take it through the paces off-roading in Utah.
This is a BFG tire of a different nature and purpose...
7. BRAINPOWER
February 1, 2010 | By Steve Temple
Anybody who uses a diesel pickup to tow a trailer or off-road rig to a trailhead knows there’s more to it than simply stompin’ on the throttle and headin’ for the hills. All that wonderful stump-pulling torque from a turbocharged mill comes at a price. Not in dollars and cents, but in good operational sense...
April 1, 2007 | By Steve Temple
While the domino theory typically refers to a foreign policy, the concept also has an application that's closer to home. It goes something like this: You put a lift kit on your truck or SUV so it climbs over tall boulders in a single bound. This super-sized suspension makes room for larger wheels and tires, which also help in tackling tough terrain with improved traction...
January 1, 2007 | By Steve Temple
SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS IN AUTOMOTIVE TECHNOLOGY and the need for better fuel economy have contributed a significant boost to the image of the diesel engine. Now, auto industry analysts expect these hightorque, durable engines will continue to conquer the hearts and minds of truck buyers of all sorts. These include offroad enthusiasts who crave low-rpm power for both 'wheeling and towing...
May 1, 2008 | By Jim Allen
We'd like to think you want more than a truck that just looks good in the driveway but if that's all you need, you can turn these pages to the next story. If you want to have as much show as go along with something you can actually drive day to day, read on.
Step One: Tread Rightly!
The tread design you choose dictates performance on the street and on the trail...
11. Clean Air Act
April 1, 2009 | By Steve Temple
Phoenix-based Airaid started manufacturing air intake systems for light trucks and SUVs about a dozen years ago. By 2002, the company introduced a premium system incorporating new materials and technologies that improved on the traditional cotton-gauze performance filter. The heart of the intake system is the air filter with multiple layers of surgical-quality cotton gauze supplemented with an additional layer of nano-fiber synthetic, SynthaFlow, sandwiched between either stainless steel or aluminum mesh, depending on the vehicle application...
12. Cover Me
October 1, 2007 | By Steve Temple
IF YOUR RIG’S interior is old, cracked and broken, with all the life sucked out of it, Coverlay Manufacturing, Inc. of San Angelo, Texas comes to the rescue with their dash covers, door panels and armrests that can transform that desiccated interior into good as new condition.
Coverlay started humbly enough more than 25 years ago when Paul Cornwell saw the need for replacement dash covers...
March 1, 2007 | By Steve Temple
AYBE YOU HAVEN'T MADE THIS MISTAKE, but chances are, you know a lot of 4x4 buddies who have. They buy a nice Jeep to take off-road. It's not new, but it's solid and intact with no glaring defects like fluids dripping spots on the road...
August 1, 2007 | By Steve Temple
The Detroit Locker was initially developed during World War II by Thorson. After the War, the company changed its name to Detroit Engineering and began marketing its locker to the aftermarket. Detroit Engineering became Tractech, Inc...
15. Finesse 1 -2 -3
December 1, 2007 | By Jim Allen
WHAT DO YOU CALL A PERSON TRAINED AND EDUCATED IN THE ART AND SCIENCE OF LUBRICANTS AND THE REDUCTION OF FRICTION IN MOVING PARTS? A TRIBOLOGIST. NO, WE’RE NOT GOING TO GIVE YOU A TRIBOLOGY DEGREE, BUT THE NEXT THREE EPISODES OF FINESSE WILL GIVE YOU ENOUGH INFO TO MAKE YOU DANGEROUS AT THE LOCAL QUICK LUBE!
SYNERGY — The Big Picture Synergy is all about making the ingredients in a lubricant hold hands and sing Kumbaya. The base oil and additives must be compatible with each other and for their given application...
April 1, 2008 | By Jim Allen
One of the most commonly asked performance questions is, "what's first?" The answer can vary somewhat from vehicle to vehicle, but most often it's the exhaust system. We aim to give you the 101 course on exhausts and tell you how and why they can give you an increase in performance and mileage at the same time. Cooler running under load and increased engine life are side benefits...
May 1, 2008 | By Jim Allen
There are two worlds, everyday and racing. While the performance principles are exactly the same for both, the way they are applied is different. Pipe diameter is one such area of difference...
January 1, 2007 | By Jim Allen
THE AVERAGE 4X4 HAS AT LEAST TWO SHIFTERS. SOME HAVE THREE AND OTHERS HAVE FOUR OR MORE. THESE CONTROLS ARE SOME OF THE MOST USEFUL ITEMS YOU HAVE IN THAT BOX OF TOOLS YOU CALL A 4X4...
July 1, 2007 | By Jim Allen
There's finesse in using the clutch and there's finesse in picking a replacement for the one you finessed to death. The clutch is a very hard worked part of a manual trans-equipped 4x4. On a street rig, getting 100K miles out of a clutch is fairly easy...
September 1, 2007 | By Jim Allen
IN A WORLD of heart stopping fuel prices, where big American pickup guys are looking enviously at Suzuki Samurais, it’s time to talk once again about fuel economy. This time, we’ll talk about it in terms of gearing.
What Happens When You Build Up
A 4x4 buildup always involves three things; bigger tires, more height and more weight...
June 1, 2008 | By Jim Allen
The first days with new tires are a honeymoon all right but, as with every long-term relationship, there are practical issues to be addressed if you want it to last. With a tire upgrade your most immediate need is finding the correct street tire pressures. We addressed this topic back in 2002 and found that it was one of our most requested back issue stories, so it's long overdue for a fresh look...
January 1, 2008 | By Jim Allen
Last time we focused on the stuff from which lube oil is made. This time we'll focus on arming you with the information you need to make a good oil selection.
A sample of a viscosity chart that covers various temperatures for multigrade oils...
February 1, 2008 | By Jim Allen
Lubricants are key to the long life of your 4x4. They also have an influence on performance and economy, so you can get a double dose of good by upgrading. In Parts 1 and 2 we gave you the 101 course on lubricants...
October 1, 2007 | By Jim Allen
In this final installment on the ‘80-86 Ford 3/4 and 1-tons, we cover the drivetrain. These trucks are reasonably well endowed in this area, with improvements relatively easy.
Stock Transmissions
There are only four options...
September 1, 2007 | By Jim Allen
Finesse 1-2-3- Ford, Part 2
Part 2- Suspension and Tires
Even with no lift, there’s room for a 12. 50x33-16 or equivalent. The leaf spring TTB suspension is simple and relatively easy to lift but not a particularly supple or flexy setup...
November 1, 2008 | By Jim Allen
The Evolution kit includes the programmer, dash pod and securing hardware, OBD2 data cable, USB computer cable, Fusion software CD and instructions. This product is CARB and EPA Certified.
Until recently, power was the end-all-be-all...
August 1, 2009 | By Jim Allen
The Particulars
At this writing, the F-C II comes in floatation sizes from
31x10. 50R15LT to 40x13. 50R20LT and metric sizes from
LT265/75R16 to LT325/50R20...
January 1, 2009 | By Steve Temple
Responding to all the transitions on the trail of life can be a real challenge. One moment you're crawling over rocks, and the next, sliding on loose sand. (and you don't even know about that mud hole around the curve yet...
29. Inhaler Device
September 1, 2008 | By Steve Temple
Are you experiencing the following symptoms? You feel your stomach knot, your breathing constrict, your heart pound. That's a fairly typical condition the closer you get to your local gas station, especially when you spot the latest highway robbery taking place at the pump.
Okay, there's obviously some sort of virus going around, as so many folks report having the same affliction...
April 1, 2007 | By Off-Road Adventures Staff
The Powerstroke is a workhorse with a lot of power and torque built in for doing the tough duty of towing a big load. To handle the air flow, Ford fit the truck with a large OE air filter that does a good job of keeping the motor running strong. The design of the stock filter incorporates not only the filter element, but also the filter housing, making it a pricey replacement every time it needs changing...
June 1, 2007 | By Steve Temple
AS 4X4 ENTHUSIASTS, we logically focus on off-road adventures and upgrades for our off-road rigs. But towing those rigs to the trailhead can sometimes turn into just as much of an adventure as scrambling over shale up a steep slope. If that trailer starts to bob up and down or swing like a pendulum because the tongue weight is wrong, your 4x4 could end up heading off the highway without you in it...
November 1, 2008 | By Steve Temple
Ivan "Ironman" Stewart
Ivan "Ironman" Stewart took his first step toward off-road racing legend status in one of those, "Put-me-in-da-game-coach!" movie moments. It was 1973 at the Ensenada 300. He was scheduled to co-drive with Bill Hrynko in a Class 2 buggy...
33. Mud Matters
May 1, 2007 | By Larry Walton
I don't know how many of you've ever been stuck in the mud on the way to work, but it's not as much fun as it sounds. Having experienced this unhappy situation my share of times while logging and farming, I can tell you hiking through the mud in the driving rain to fetch a tractor or skidder is not my ideal way to start the day.
Perhaps even worse are those mornings when you are headed in to hunt a remote area and you know all this spooling winch line and thrashing about will lessen your chance to bag the game you are pursuing...
34. One For All
December 1, 2006 | By Bruce W. Smith
WINCH TECHNOLOGY seems to move slower than a custom rock crawler idling along in double-under four-wheel low-range. In the last 25 years, the biggest advances in winches have been pretty much relegated to the introduction of planetary gears, automatic reverse braking, heat-sensing relays and remote-control.
Aside from those items - and minor cosmetic packaging - the electric winch has remained pretty much the same from manufacturer to manufacturer for decades - an electric motor connected to a drum that reels in cable...
35. Pipe Music
July 1, 2007 | By Steve Temple
DynoMax is one exhaust manufacturer who delivers the entire equation for off-road enthusiasts - a whole exhaust system from the ports to the tail pipe, or just a cat-back system (from the catalytic converter back, hence the name), that both boosts performance and quiets the ride.
DynoMax performance exhaust systems were introduced at the Specialty Equipment Marketing Association (SEMA) Show in 1986. The company basically sprang fully formed from the forehead of Zeus, or the automotive accessory equivalent - Tenneco Inc...
36. Playing with JKS
February 1, 2008 | By Steve Temple
Garages seem to inspire inventiveness. They inspire the handiwork of off roaders to create something better or stronger that will enhance their vehicle of choice. ...
July 1, 2009 | By Chris Collard
Carving turns on the Johnson Valley sand dunes (at 12-psi), the XM/Ts provided good floatation and enough moxi to stay on the rim in aggressive turns. (The Legal stuff: this test was done for demonstrative purposes only. Off-Road Adventures recommends only using the manufacturer's recommended tire pressure)...
May 1, 2009 | By Off-Road Adventures Staff
Flat fender Jeeps offer numerous advantages including added tire coverage and protection, maximum tire clearance and tighter turning radius; and the fact that flatties look cool. TJ and LJ owners get the classic, flat fender Jeep look with an easy, no-drilling installation process. The flares give 199702006 Wrangler TJ's and 2004-2006 Wrangler LJ Unlimiteds six-inches of additional tire coverage for clearance to handle even the largest, most aggressive tires and backspaced wheel setups...
May 1, 2009 | By Off-Road Adventures Staff
I
ntroducing the WeatherTech No-Drill MudFlap featuring the Patent Pending QuickTurn hardened Stainless Steel fastening system. The No-Drill MudFlap set mounts-in-minutes with most applications without the need for wheel removal, and without the need for drilling into a vehicle's painted metal surface. Most vehicles' rust warranty is voided if one drills through the painted metal surfaces...
May 1, 2009 | By Off-Road Adventures Staff
Pro Comp announces the release of their all new 6" Long Arm suspension system for the 2007-2008 Dodge Ram 2500/ 3500 Diesel 4WD.
Stylish control arm mount brackets with stainless steel laser-cut logos bolt-on to the frame to provide a secure attaching point for the new longer upper and lower control arms.
Systems also feature front coil springs, a new drop pitman arm, adjustable chromoly track bar and relocation bracket-and uses the factory steering assembly...
May 1, 2009 | By Off-Road Adventures Staff
As an extension to its metal fabrication and body armor roots, Warrior Products introduces two new innovative product designs for the rear tub of the Jeep TJ & JK Wrangler '97-09.
Its new Rear Corners have openings to accommodate two flush-mounted LEDs: a 4" red stop, turn and tail light, plus a 2" white back-up light. All lights are sold separately and are American-made with a lifetime warranty...
April 1, 2007 | By Steve Temple
If you didn't catch our previous two issues, you missed out on an award-winning suspension upgrade for Toyota's FJ Cruiser. No matter, you can always order back issues, or check out our website (www. oramagazine...
April 1, 2007 | By Steve Temple
PICTURE OFF-ROAD RACING RIGS roaring across dry lake beds and up rock strewn, eroded mountain passes. You can't identify these rigs, they're tiny pinpoints against a burnt umber landscape, but you can chart their course by the rooster tail of dust that fans out behind them like the contrail of an F-15.
Now get carried away by this scene, and picture your own rig chasing this dust cloud through the desert...
July 1, 2008 | By Steve Temple
Bestop has been around for nearly 55 years. Originally, Tom Bradley stitched up fabric tops and side curtains for Jeeps during the slow periods at his Boulder, Colorado car-upholstery business. His story is like one of those garage-business bios we've shared in the past, but Bradley did it with class, later moving his Jeep-top business into an old school building with seven employees...
December 1, 2008 | By Chris Collard
For a tire designed for mud, the SSR Radial turned out to be formidable rock tire as well. At 7-8 lbs, the SSR's pliable sidewalls wrapped itself around obstacles like Silly Putty, conforming to the terrain without objection.
In the past decade, tire manufacturers have unveiled an array of tires we would not have dreamed of thirty years ago...
October 1, 2008 | By Steve Temple
Superchips built its reputation on providing significant horsepower and torque increases for light truck engines, helping off-roaders scramble their 4x4s up trails or add needed oomph to tow vehicles. Horsepower, torque - both desirable things in the category of "if a little is good, more is better. " That benefit still applies, but is now colored by the cost of gasoline...
47. Superlift Savvy
December 1, 2008 | By Off-Road Adventures Staff
It's part of the cycle of life: you get a stock 4x4 rig and you buy the biggest meats you can wedge into the wheel wells. The next stop is a lift kit so, once mounted, you can turn the tires without rearranging those wells. Just jack up that puppy and away you go! Right?
Okay, it's not that simple, which is why companies like Superlift Suspension Systems serve as a source of appropriate lifts for your application, along with an encyclopedia of information to make sure you've got the right combo...
September 1, 2007 | By Steve Temple
JEEPS ARE MORE THAN JUST A VEHICLE, more
even than sturdy off-road workhorses — they’re a lifestyle. That piece of wisdom comes from
Tom Richardson, head of Warrior Products in Tualatin, Oregon, near Portland. What he
means is that there’s a joie d’vie about the little WWII veterans...
49. Tighten Up
September 1, 2009 | By Harry Wagner
BD Diesels' Track Bar Cures the 'Death Wobble"
DODGE 3/4 and 1-ton trucks have a well-earned reputation for rugged durability. Cummins engines, Dana 80 axles, and an excellent four link coil suspension all add to this reputation.
Of course even a white knight can have a little chink in his armor, and the Dodge pickups are no exception...
May 1, 2009 | By Larry Walton
The bold asymmetric design of the MT/R with Kevlar will make it an easy tire to recognize.
When the guys at Goodyear told me they were introducing a new off-road tires, I hopped on a plane, flew to Palm Springs, jumped into one of their Jeeps, and drove out through the huge windmill farms to The Hammers in Johnson Valley. The much celebrated rock crawling area known as The Hammers also has dry lakebeds, not so dry lakebeds, sand dunes, undisturbed open desert and disturbed open desert with plenty of whoops...
51. Totally Tubular
February 1, 2007 | By Steve Temple
Grille guards, steps, push bars, roof racks - what would a serious off-road rig be without one or more of these 4x4 badges of courage? It would just be a truck, a weekend honey-do, a hauler of potted plants, a vehicular wimp with no serious dirt creed. Any self-respecting 4x4 would appreciate some protection from the nicks, dings and smashed headlamps it may receive from tangling with sagebrush and rocky trails. That nifty lift's few extra inches now require extra leg lift to get your fat rump into the beast, but a set of step bars will help get you into the driver's seat...
52. Tuffy Security
February 1, 2009 | By Off-Road Adventures Staff
The JK Full Security Console (Tuffy part #157) is a direct replacement for all 2-door and 4-door JK Wranglers. Since the JK's have more available "creature comforts" compared to previous models, Tuffy has worked all the possible factory configurations into a single unit as well as adding many more features of their own. Tuffy's designers took note when new owners said the factory console sat too low to comfortably rest an arm, so they made their console 2-1/2" taller, which also gave it about twice as much storage space as the factory console...
March 1, 2009 | By Jim Allen
Long travel suspensions combined with big tires pose some problems. Sometimes even the mighty Hi-Lift runs out of travel before the tires come off the ground. In the case of this axle repair on a Jeep coiler, in a rather inconvenient spot on the trail, the suspension was chained up at ride height to facilitate getting the tire off the ground...
54. Warn Industries
May 1, 2008 | By Steve Temple
Warn Industries and recreational off-roading share a heritage that began with a fleet of Jeeps, both the new models and those WWII veterans assimilated into civilian life. Jeeps grew into the premier off-road rig with an uncanny ability to stay on the trail. Meanwhile, Warn grew to be synonymous with the winch, one of the tools that retrieved the Jeep when it occasionally slipped off that trail...
55. Warn Industries
December 1, 2008 | By Ned Bacon
This poster was seen hanging in the factory during our tour.
When Arthur Warn developed a simple free wheeling hub for surplus WWII Jeeps in 1948, we doubt he envisioned his small family business ever growing into a multi-million dollar corporation with multiple factories and worldwide recognition.
Warn Industries celebrates its 60th anniversary this year...
56. We Have Ignition
May 1, 2007 | By Steve Temple
Automotive performance enthusiasts are all good people, for the most part. Trouble is, those hot rodders, drag strippers and drifters fall into the general category of asphalt jockeys. These guys and gals don't fully appreciate the level of skill and performance off-roading requires...
January 1, 2008 | By Chris Collard
There are no set standards for the diameter and design of the mounting surface, the tire's bead. A few thousandths of an inch can mean the difference between de-beading a tire under low-pressure rock crawling, or ending up on your lid during high-speed cornering at medium pressure. Greg, our 4 Wheel Parts tire guy, said the M/T required a bit higher psi that other brands to seat the bead, reflecting tighter bead tolerances from the factory...
