Four Wheeler June 2021

Recently, I was sauntering through a parking lot trying to remember where I parked my truck and I passed a seemingly nondescript late-model Silverado Crew Cab pickup. It appeared to be bone stock except for one thing. As I walked past it and glanced at the front end I saw a winch mounted to the truck. There were no other visible modifications to the truck. No suspension lift, aftermarket wheels, aggressive tires, or lightbars. Nothin’. This caused me to ponder: Why, it appears, was the owner’s first mod a winch? That Silverado got me wondering what mods were first for some of Four Wheeler’s contributors and staff, and why did they choose them as the first mods? So I asked. Four Wheeler contributor and former editor John Cappa has built many legit…

Eat your peas. Take your medicine. Clean your room. Chances are, if you had to do any of these things as a small child your parents turned it into some sort of game that made whatever distasteful task you had to complete more palatable. “Open up, here comes the airplane!” “Hold your nose, here comes the spoon!” “How many socks can you pick up before the buzzer goes off!” But as an adult it’s not so easy to turn work into play. However, I’ve found that sometimes when I’m using one of my classic 4x4 trucks to do real work, it takes the sting out of whatever task I’m trying to complete. VINTAGE 4X4 TOW RIG Although with a factory fuel-injected 460 engine and functional air-conditioning, my old ’89 Ford F-250 barely…

EDITOR@FOURWHEELER.COM COLORADO TRD Here is a pic of my ’10 Tacoma TRD Off-Road with the 4.0L V-6 and six-speed manual. From TRD, I added a cold-air intake, performance exhaust, short-throw shifter, and skidplate. The 32-inch lightbar and LED fogs are from Cali Raised LED. The wheels are ’18 Tacoma and the tires are Falken Wildpeak AT3s. A pair of 2018 Bilstein struts and springs raised the front 1-inch and Bilstein 4600 shocks are in the rear. This pic was taken at the Pennsylvania Mill along Peru Creek near Montezuma, Colorado. BILL VIA EMAIL EYE-POPPING BRONCO Here’s my ’79 Bronco that I’ve had since 1982. It still has the original paint. There’s a Red Baron mural on the back. I was an avid goer to all the Jamborees in the ’90s. This is a recent pic of…

JERED.KORFHAGE@FOURWHEELER.COM DID YOU KNOW? A STUDY FROM COPILOT (COPILOTSEARCH.COM) REVEALED THAT VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA; COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO; AND WICHITA, KANSAS; HAVE THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF VEHICLES PER PERSON OVER 16. WHO HAS THE FEWEST? THE TOP THREE IN THAT CATEGORY ARE NEW YORK, NEW YORK; BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS; AND WASHINGTON, DC. Bow Tie Dreaming Don’t get your hopes up (yet), these are only artistic renderings! Designer Jacky Zhan’s work appeared on the @generalmotorsdesign Instagram account, showing what the upcoming Chevrolet Silverado could look like. We noticed the increased ride height, larger wheelwells, and some similarity with the company’s Hummer EV. We might have also gotten lost in a daydream over this fantastical design from Instagram user @c_zr1 portraying their version of the Chevy Blazer. SUPER TRUCK CORNER Four Wheeler MOBILE Be sure to check out fourwheeler.com on your…

JEREDKORFHAGE@FOURWHEELER.COM COMPASS WHEELS ICON Alloys announced the release of its Compass wheel that combines sharp concave lines with a vented lock ring and an eight-spoke design to improve the aesthetics and function of your truck, Jeep, or 4x4. The Compass wheel can be had in Satin Brass and Satin Black finishes. Backspace and wheel offset dimensions have been engineered to reduce scrub radius, which is said to improve your vehicle’s handling and ride quality. The ICON Alloys Compass also has a 2,750-pound load rating. INFO: ICON Alloys, 951/689-4266, iconvehicledynamics.com DEFENDER RACK Upgrade your ’20-up Land Rover Defender 110 for overland and off-road travel with this expedition-grade, low-profile roof rack from Voyager Offroad. The rack is designed specifically for the new Land Rover Defender 110 L663 vehicles and installs directly into the integrated mounting points of…

Following closely on the heels of our 2021 Four Wheeler SUV of the Year test, we bring to you the 2021 Four Wheeler Pickup Truck of the Year. While similar in concept, this test features off-road trails and locations that cater to the unique needs of large pickups. The program that you will see on the following pages is the apex of hundreds of hours of hard work that encompasses several months of planning and preparing. The days spent testing are long. We are up before sunrise and work until nightfall. Our judging panel comprises some of the most knowledgeable minds and able bodies in the off-road industry. They come to us with backgrounds in off-road, diesel, lifted, new, and classic off-road vehicles. This ensures that our judging staff is just…