The other day I was driving around and saw an old Suzuki Samurai for the first time in a long time. Dang those things are narrow! I looked them up on Wikipedia and found they are only 55" wide, which less than 10" wider than most quads and 13" narrower than a CJ-7, and it barely weighs 2000lbs. With a set of good tires I bet you could take one pretty much anywhere legally registered and insured vehicles are allowed to go in the pines. In fact I'm surprised I've never seen one back there. They are cheap on Craigslist too...time to make space in the shop!
Suzuki Samurai = ultimate pines vehicle?
- Thread starter Badfish740
- Start date
I've heard a lot of good things about the Samurai's off road capabilities. I considered getting one myself, but the lack of cargo room held me back.
Jeff
Jeff
Yeah I have heard a lot of people sing their praises. A little small for me, but you could sure get anywhere in one. Funny to seem them lifted and kitted out with big tires.
If I were to get my hands on one I wouldn't lift it but rather just cut/completely remove the fenders and put the largest tires I could possibly fit on it. The goal would be to put the largest tires on possible while keeping the stock track width of 55". A set of 265/75/16s identical to the ones I run on my Toyota would probably be ideal. They measure out to about 32 x 10.5. Something like this is what I have in mind:
The thing would also probably also be a dream to turn around on a tight trail if things got too hairy. I'd also make an effort to strip off as much extra weight as possible in order to lighten it up-I wonder if you could get it under 2000 lbs? Recovery via come-a-long or Hi-Lift jack would be easy.
The thing would also probably also be a dream to turn around on a tight trail if things got too hairy. I'd also make an effort to strip off as much extra weight as possible in order to lighten it up-I wonder if you could get it under 2000 lbs? Recovery via come-a-long or Hi-Lift jack would be easy.
Honestly, a stock Samurai with a good set of AT's would be perfect for the kind of driving I do in the pines. I could go down pretty much any narrow trail and fit. No need for a lift or giant tires - I'm not going muddin'.
Mud isn't really what I'm thinking about, just sheer ground clearance. As I learned the other day, you can get yourself plenty stuck on solid dry ground. Purpose built rock crawlers that never see mud typically run 38" tires or more in some cases simply to be able to traverse rough terrain without smacking a differential or driveline part on rocks. In the pines you likely won't damage anything on your undercarriage, but you can strand yourself quite easily by high centering, slipping into a bad rut, or getting otherwise hung up. The extremely short wheelbase of the Samurai combined with the large tires would nearly eliminate those possibilities. I bet you could even hop logs with it
I did rip up my brake lines once in the bronco when I took a "go around" at night and didn't see a stump. So, while we don't have rocks we do have the submerged ruts and stumps, Also, I am always leary of what might have been left in a deep mudhole....logs, cinder blocks etc. from a previous stuck truck. I always center my right or left side through the puddle anticipating large ruts. On the motorcycle I always go through the center for the same reason. Usually the motorcycle just goes around, but not in the height of chiggar season.
In my younger days I tore up a BFG A/T pretty badly on my Land Cruiser after getting stuck in a hole-I have no idea what was down there but it literally tore chunks out of the tread blocks from spinning the wheels in an effort to get free. That was when I was 17-I'm glad I'm a lot smarter now
True, there are some hazards besides rocks in the pines, but my point remains that the more distance you can put between the ground and the centerline of your hubs, the better. I've always toyed with the idea of getting a dual sport because those are really the ultimate pines vehicles, but I guess I'm a little soft as I prefer heat in the winter and to be shielded from all of the dirt and muck at least some of the time...
Actually warmer than you think and you get some excercise as well. Hands do get cold but grip warmers handle that.
As for dirt and muck, well, sometimes but 99% of the time you can go around.
Sure, but the more distance you put between your tires and the ground, the less clearance between your truck and the trees going over the road.
I'm mostly talking about really disused, narrow roads.
I'm mostly talking about really disused, narrow roads.
Everything is a trade-off I suppose. The nice thing about a Samurai is that they're not all that tall to begin with. Seems like they don't have much headroom. In any event, it's interesting when you look at the trends in 4x4s these days. If you look at Pirate4x4, which is probably the largest 4WD enthusiast site on the web, you see that the majority of builds involve fitting the largest tires possible while lifting the vehicle as little as possible, or in some extreme cases not at all. It seems that form has finally caught up with function-hardly anyone puts a 12" lift on a fullsize Chevy pickup and puts 44s under it anymore. What you do see is a lot of compact pickups and Jeeps running 38s with very little or no lift. I'm actually considering it myself by cutting most of my front fenders away and getting rid of my regular bed and putting on a custom flatbed.
Yeah, a higher center of gravity is not really the ideal situation off road. I agree entirely with your reasoning for wanting some lift as i stated before, but it occured to me that one of the big reasons I didn't mention before is keeping your engine out of the water. Them puddles get real deep. I have mud tires on my bronco (31x10.5) and I never spin a tire (almost never). It seems water height is my biggest concern. i'm not a mudder....it is all about access for me. So i don't go looking for trouble.
Jeff
Jeff
True. Although shoving bigger tires in your wheel well increases the risk that you'll rub them on your suspension at full lock.
I had a Grand Cherokee with a 3" lift and even with that in certain circumstances the 30 or 31" tires I had on it (I forget - it's been so long ago) rubbed.
I had a Grand Cherokee with a 3" lift and even with that in certain circumstances the 30 or 31" tires I had on it (I forget - it's been so long ago) rubbed.
That's a good point, however, as I'm sure you've experienced with the motorcycle, having access to the lesser used, narrower roads that even Jeeps have a tough time fitting down, I'm betting you find a lot fewer puddles to travel through in the first place. Sure, there will always be low spots on a roadway that will inevitably flood, and there will be roads that were long ago cut through a cedar swamp in order to access bog iron or the cedar itself, but they're more likely to have smooth, firm, sandy bottoms. That was my experience when I got lost between Allen Road and Martha.
Once I got onto the trails that threatened to rip the doors off of my truck I noticed a lack of tire tracks (well, a lack of truck tracks-I did see dirtbike tracks-maybe yours?
) much less any kind of ruts. The puddles that I had to go through (no go around and too late to turn back) were no problem at all. I think Bob said it best in a post from a while back (I'm paraphrasing) "When I hear that scraping sound on the side of the truck, that's when I know I'm really out there..." 
That's when you employ a BFH in order to impart the "proper motivation" on said part
33x12.5's can be run with no rubbing (and full travel) on a Toyota pickup if you remove the plastic fenderwell inserts and beat the tar out of the sheet metal. Running different wheels with less (or more? I forget) backspacing can help this as well. I went a slightly different route with my current truck and used wheels with the same backspacing as stock because they were dirt cheap and 16" (as opposed to 15") and used 1" wheel spacers instead. I get no rubbing at full lock and full compression with 265/75/16s which are equivalent to 32x10.5 or so.
Oh, for sure there was stuff I could do to make it not rub. It didn't happen often - just in whatever special circumstances. Full lock and not level I think. It wasn't really a big deal.
That's a good point, however, as I'm sure you've experienced with the motorcycle, having access to the lesser used, narrower roads that even Jeeps have a tough time fitting down, I'm betting you find a lot fewer puddles to travel through in the first place. Sure, there will always be low spots on a roadway that will inevitably flood, and there will be roads that were long ago cut through a cedar swamp in order to access bog iron or the cedar itself, but they're more likely to have smooth, firm, sandy bottoms. That was my experience when I got lost between Allen Road and Martha.
Once I got onto the trails that threatened to rip the doors off of my truck I noticed a lack of tire tracks (well, a lack of truck tracks-I did see dirtbike tracks-maybe yours?
Hmmm, what you are saying stands to reason...that lesser used trails/roads are less rutted up. However, as I reflect on that I am surprised that I have encountered some very deep water and mud fairly frequently on very remote, seldom used trails. I've been on trails with the motorcycle that are plauged by deep ruts with thick brier and blueberry that make drive arounds nearly impossible.
I think that ruts don't recover well at all, they just fill up with light sediment that quickly gives way under weight.. I will say that ruts and water are uncommon in the uplands, certainly. But that would be about drainage. I bet most of the lesser used trails are formally heavily used trails that just got too bad to use anymore.
Jeff
Aren't those the kind of trails that motorized vehicles aren't supposed to be used on?
Aren't those the kind of trails that motorized vehicles aren't supposed to be used on?
No, these are legitimate roads i am referencing, just long forgotten.