Four Wheeler May 2020

Cell phones don’t always have service where we wheel so I’m working on a story that digs into some options for off-road communication. Nowadays, we have more choices than ever when it comes to moving our voice via radio in the backcountry, and options include FRS, GMRS, MURS, and amateur (Ham). As I’ve been working on this story for the past few months, getting hands-on time with the various radio types, it has got me thinking about the two-way radio wheelers have been using for years, the CB (Citizens Band) radio. CB has been a staple of off-road communications. I’m old, and thus have watched the evolution of the CB radio. I got “into” CB around 1975 when my dad bought an ancient tube CB radio. I remember that it was…

EDITOR@FOURWHEELER.COM AN ENGINE RESUME I’m old enough to know how to spell “carburetor” and in my youth I pumped gasoline at 9.9 cents per gallon! I had a Chevy with a 292ci inline. Also had an Austin-Healey 3000 and a Toyota Land Cruiser, both with inline six-cylinder engines. Had a Porsche 911 with an “opposed” six-cylinder (does that count?). Also had a Mazda RX3 (rotary) that would leave a Corvette in its dust! Nasty little two-rotor engine! Now I have two Dodge trucks with inline six-cylinder Cummins diesel engines: ’00 with a six-speed manual and ’05 “flatbed” with an Allison six-speed auto conversion. The only truck I have with an eight-cylinder engine is an ’84 Dodge W350 1-ton crew cab. The engine is a tried-and-true 360 V-8 with a non-synchro granny First gear and 60,000…

EDITOR@FOURWHEELER.COM That’s Interesting We’ve got the best and worst cities for driving, according to European automotive parts retailer Mister Auto. The best cities include Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Dubai, UAE; El Paso, Texas; and Gothenburg, Sweden. The worst include Bogota, Columbia; Lagos, Nigeria; Moscow, Russia; and, at the bottom of the batch, Mumbai, India. Where you’re unlikely to find much road rage? Osaka, Japan. Where you can expect it? Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. PPG has studied the 2019 automotive color trend and blue is the one to watch, as it’s on the rise. In case you wondered: “Blue reflects consumers’ desire for adventure, relaxation, and reliability.” But the champ is white in North America, South America, Europe, and Asia Pacific regions. But hold up before you rush out to buy some relaxation in a…

EDITOR@FOURWHEELER.COM SLEEK BACK Ranch Fiberglass introduces the Icon truck cap. This new model features an all-glass rear door and frameless side windows, giving the Icon an SUV appearance. Standard features of the Icon include a fiberglass skirt at the base of the door, the user’s choice of a front picture or sliding window, an LED interior dome and third brake light, a carpeted interior lining, and a limited lifetime warranty on paint and structure. Each cap is painted to match the pickup truck with an automotive finish using Axalta coating systems. The Ranch Icon cab-high cap’s optional features include keyless entry/security using the truck’s original key fob, a Cap-Pack roof-mounted storage system, a LoadMaster sliding bed tray, a Yakima JetStream roof rack, a Yakima RoundBar roof rack, and an LED strip light…

After journeying a collective 13,000 miles and arriving at Rausch Creek Off-Road Park, the handpicked group of 20 overlanders spent the day on a guided trail ride sampling the many terrain types offered by the Appalachian foothills. When they were done with the water crossings, muddy ruts, and rocks, the group returned air pressure to their tires and convoyed to Carlisle Fairgrounds where they retired to their respective tents, trunks, and trailers for the first night of rest. If you’re just joining us, the story continues, beginning with Morning Two of the 2019 TireRack.com Overland Adventure East. Adventure in the East From the stacks of applications submitted through fourwheeler.com, we selected 20 overland-equipped trucks, Jeeps, and SUVs, each equipped with true four-wheel drive, bearing unique sleeping accommodations, and hailing from all corners…

editor@fourwheeler.com “Have I mentioned that there are no parts available for S-10s?” Taylor Wise asked that a couple of times while telling us about building his ’89 Chevy S-10. Then why did he pick that vehicle, you may ask? It found him. Kind of. The story of this pickup begins at the side of the road … when Taylor was 14 and in the seventh grade. “My grandpa traded a Mercury Grand Marquis for a trailer, and the guy he traded to said he could also have a truck that his son had left abandoned on the side of the road.” It had a blown engine and transmission. Cut to later that day: Taylor came home from school and spotted what his grandfather had collected. “I saw it and sat in it…