What is the best small 4WD for exploring Wyo. mountain back roads? (vs, vehicles)

[Claim Jumper]

Well i am no expert when it comes to serious off roading. I own two Fords both 4 wheel drives. The V.W. I witnessed was on Spirit Mountain in Cody back in the mid 70's. Now days people really put a ton of money in those bugs and when they go to sell them they dont get much back. TheSamba.com :: VW Classifieds - Vehicles - Off Road I just looked at some nice baja buggies there. I am partial to Ford always had good reliabity from them. The Ford Ranger is a good reliable truck and thats a fact. My friend in Cody back in the good ole days had a Willies Wagon, I think it had a 4 cylinder that could climb like a goat. He was a good driver too. I think its geared pretty low so you are limited on top speed.
I went on a trip to the Simpson Cabin one year with Colin driving a Jeep--it had quadra traction and he drove off the road going 20 mph plus into the barrow ditch on purpose/ snow was going over the top of the cab. (of course this was back in our high school years when we knew no better-oh yeah i was impressed with the jeep )
Colin had a cousin that was following us in a car but the snow was to high and he got stuck after losing control. Colin just kept driving while he tried to chase us down-he finally pulled over and let him in.
Yeah the senators son

TheSamba.com :: VW Classifieds - kick ass Baja Bug
This guy looks like he is having more fun than a barrel full of monkeys!

[jeepejeep]

Originally Posted by jazzlover

Well, the Grand Cherokee has had the dubious distinction of having the worst or nearly the worst score for reliability in Consumer Reports surveys of its readers on vehicle reliability. That squares with my friends' experiences. As and example, a good friend of mine--who is absolutely fastidious about maintaining his vehicles, and generally gets 200,000+ miles out of them--owned a GC for two years. He said that it was, flat out, the absolute worst vehicle he had ever owned. Lest someone think I am a Jeep hater, I've owned several over the years, and own one now that I'm quite happy with. But NOT a Grand Cherokee.

I've also been doing some pretty hard-core 4-wheeling for nearly 40 years now--in some of the most challenging places in the US. I tend to know what works, and what stays together--and what doesn't.

As far as I'm concerned, Consumer Reports should stick to washing machines and such but not cars. I bought 2 cars based on their recommendations and both had major problems and I had to sell both before they had 60,000 miles on them. They knock Jeeps to hell and by my experience, Jeeps have been very good to me and my family and friends.

[StealthRabbit]

What is the scoop with this offering? (I never heard of it before; one for sale on Craigslist, Portland, Or) It would be a good 'green choice' for mtns.


2007 Jeep grand Cherokee turbo Diesel Limited ...It has the 3liter diesel V6 with 265hp and over 300 ft pounds tork! This is the same eng as the Sprinter Van uses and gets over 500,000 miles on them. It has a tow package of 7,200 lbs ...to pull a large RV trailer with a slide or be pulled by your Motor Home. This Jeep has huge 14inch brakes and a hill holder transmission too! Quadra Tracl II Drive named the best in the world if three wheels are stuck and the fourth is on good surface all the power goes to that one wheel WOW!

I personally prefer the Cherokee, but my mom has used Grands for about 15 yrs and really has had good luck.

[sunsprit]

Originally Posted by StealthRabbit

What is the scoop with this offering? (I never heard of it before; one for sale on Craigslist, Portland, Or) It would be a good 'green choice' for mtns.


2007 Jeep grand Cherokee turbo Diesel Limited ...It has the 3liter diesel V6 with 265hp and over 300 ft pounds tork! This is the same eng as the Sprinter Van uses and gets over 500,000 miles on them. It has a tow package of 7,200 lbs ...to pull a large RV trailer with a slide or be pulled by your Motor Home. This Jeep has huge 14inch brakes and a hill holder transmission too! Quadra Tracl II Drive named the best in the world if three wheels are stuck and the fourth is on good surface all the power goes to that one wheel WOW!

I personally prefer the Cherokee, but my mom has used Grands for about 15 yrs and really has had good luck.

I must be missing something here ... the standard Sprinter 3.0 V6 turbodiesel is rated at 154 HP and 243 ft-lbs, while the latest optional 3.5 V6 turbodiesel is rated at 254 HP and 250 ft-lbs of torque. My understanding was that the Grand Cherokee with the 3.0 turbodiesel was a 2008 offering only.

Boosting one of these 3 liter diesel motors up to 265 HP and 300 fl-lbs torque simply is a recipe for disaster in terms of engine life and fuel economy. I don't doubt that somebody has figured out how to do it, but there's no free lunch in the turbodiesel biz .... and then claiming longevity and fuel economy as equal to that of the normally rated motor.

I'd be real wary of buying any vehicle that was boosted so high over the OE specs for HP.

Current ads for 2010 models show a "new" MB Turbodiesel 3.0 liter at 215 HP and 376 ft-lbs of torque, but this is a newer generation motor than the 2008 model. The road test reports I've seen show that it needs 2,000 RPM before the turbo spools up and the motor starts delivering the real HP curve to the 5-speed tranny. It's not going to scare anybody with off-the-line stump pulling performance ... and it's still a far cry from the 265 HP claimed in the OP's ad reference.

[griz134]

I have a 2001 Toyota Tacoma 4cyl 4X4. Got it new, and have 140,000 miles on it. Same brakes, clutch, transmision, same everything. Replaced the battery this past summer. That is it. Best vehicle I ever owned. I'll get another one someday. I'll wait for this one to break down. I think I'll be waiting a long time.

[northbound74]

'04 was the last year Chevrolet sold the Suzuki-built Tracker. With a V-6, it had plenty of power. I think the Tracker and it's twin, the Grand Vitara, were the last small SUV's to be built on a conventional, rear-wheel-drive based, body-on-frame platform. They also had the good ol' shifter in the floor for 4wd. The modern 4wd Suzuki is a unibody, with a front-wheel-drive layout.
The biggest problems I've had with the Tracker have been minor things like door handles coming a little loose. Mechanically, it's been near-perfect.

[eric#1]

Some of the 2 door trackers and suzukis fit in the toy hauler campers too. I know a few hunters that pick them up for a couple 2-3 grand and sold their side buy side 4 wheelers and now they have a heated cab.

[molon labe]

Straight axle Toyota short bed or 4 Runner for me. I've had several, and they've out-wheeled everything else out there. If you're going to pour lots of $$ into it the make and model don't matter. Anything that you do enough to will do well.

Originally Posted by CptnRn

I'm thinking of getting a vehicle especially suitable for this. In the distant past the best vehicle for this was a Willy's Jeep. Has that changed? What do you recommend?

[NVDave]

Agree on the straight axle toyota. I had a 85 SR-5 pickup (long bed) and it was great for off-roading. It was stolen, replaced it with an '86 SR5. Nowhere near as durable with CV joints and IFS.

My ideal off-road rig (for light loads) would be an '85 Toyota SR5 or 4-runner. First year for the EFI, last year of the solid front axles. After that, I'd move up to a F-150 with a 300CID I-6. After that, I'd be into a Suburban.

[molon labe]

They are one of the tougher trucks on the mountain. The one downside to the '85 and earlier Toy's are that almost none of them came with EFI. Some of the 85's had the 22RE, but most of them I've seen had the 22R. The 22R is a great little engine, but there's something to be said for EFI when you're climbing anything steep. I've thought about a newer model (maybe '95 with the 2.7 or 3.4) with an all-around axle swap for Dana 60's or 44's if I can't find the 1 ton stuff. Of course that would have to come with a second transfer case, air lockers, coils, narrowed bed, bob job, etc... you know how it goes.

Originally Posted by NVDave

Agree on the straight axle toyota. I had a 85 SR-5 pickup (long bed) and it was great for off-roading. It was stolen, replaced it with an '86 SR5. Nowhere near as durable with CV joints and IFS.

My ideal off-road rig (for light loads) would be an '85 Toyota SR5 or 4-runner. First year for the EFI, last year of the solid front axles. After that, I'd move up to a F-150 with a 300CID I-6. After that, I'd be into a Suburban.