Backcountry Vehicles

[gnwatts]

X2 on the 911 Bob.
My 1972 Citroen SM. It is shown here at cruising height, but could raise to nearly 12" of clearance. Shown here near Needles, Ca on the way to the Egypt trailhead.

 

[Artemus]

X2 on the 911 Bob.
My 1972 Citroen SM. It is shown here at cruising height, but could raise to nearly 12" of clearance. Shown here near Needles, Ca on the way to the Egypt trailhead.

That's great Greg. Why does this Frenchy(?) have an adjustable cruise height and 12 " ! of adjustable lift? She is a beaut. Almost looks like an early electric or hybrid car....

 

[Bob]

Now that's a classic.......

 

[gnwatts]

Thanks...
Citroen invented hydraulic suspension, powered by nitrogen filled gas canisters instead of shock absorbers. The hydraulics ran the brakes, steering etc. Citroen is a French company, and was then owned by Michelin tires. Michelin also owned Maserati, so they combined the 2 cars in 1972 & 1973, combining Citroen styling and the Maserati drive train, hence the SM, or Sport Maserati.
This was my fathers car after my restoration in 1984. He bought it new in 1973. He would let me drive it to high school (in eastern San Diego county) a few times a year. Latino students parked their amazing low riders in a section of the senior parking lot (every senior got their own unofficial parking space) comparing their rides, and they would let me park the car with them, comparing ride height and basic technologies. It was pretty funny, my Citroen slowly going up and down with their cars bouncing up and down. It was a cross cultural exchange I guess.
It was also a rally car:

 

[Jeff Hilton]

My next truck is gonna be an f150 eco boost. Ive heard they have v8 power with v6 gas milage. I need to down size from the 3/4 ton chevy that I have but I do like not having a car payment.

 

[Absarokanaut]

@gnwatts as I clearly implied I meant no disrespect so I'm not sure where the hostility comes from. I hope your Subaru serves you well and it will indeed if you don't overestimate its abilities as others have. With that 9" of clearance maybe you will be able to get into at least one rut if it is not too deep when it is necessary. Enjoy.

The Ranch has a 2010 Ecoboost that's a pretty great truck aside from the suicide doors. Of course we still use 250s to haul horses. My family was strictly GM until the earlier 90s when Ford was simply making much better trucks than they had earlier on and they proved to hold up better on bad roads. But GM does seem to still go down the highway more smoothly. Explorers did indeed seem to deserve the nickname Exploders so if going for a SUV instead of a PU I'd probably go Japanese or GM. They might film a GM commerical on the Ranch next year, will have to hide the 5 Fords and 1 Tacoma.

 

[gnwatts]

@gnwatts ...........so I'm not sure where the hostility comes from.

Hostility?
You need to lighten up.
I don't think you disrepected me. In order for you to disrespect me, I would need to care what you think about Subarus, which I don't.

 

[Absarokanaut]

Fair enough. Maybe you could take your own advice on this one and lighten up yourself. Geesh.

Peace,

John

 

[Bob]

I constantly get 21 mpg in my 1/2 tom Silverado at 70mph freeway. 19mpg in town.

 

[steve]

My next truck is gonna be an f150 eco boost. Ive heard they have v8 power with v6 gas milage.

The eco boosts have great power, but it's delivered more like a diesel than a traditional V8. It's crazy how much torque they have and how they make most of their power below 2500 rpm. Great trucks for sure!

 

[Nick]

My next truck is gonna be an f150 eco boost. Ive heard they have v8 power with v6 gas milage. I need to down size from the 3/4 ton chevy that I have but I do like not having a car payment.

The eco boosts have great power, but it's delivered more like a diesel than a traditional V8. It's crazy how much torque they have and how they make most of their power below 2500 rpm. Great trucks for sure!

I was checking that out after seeing it here. I've never had much Ford lust, but I have to admit, that is a sweet feature. Between that and being able to put a 6.5-foot bed on a 4-door truck, it's really tempting. I could actually sleep back there with the tailgate up! And now that I found out how poorly Toyota outfits the new TRD Pro, that is no longer on my wish list, even if it is a damn sexy truck.

 

[steve]

If only they made an ecoboost raptor and I had $70k.

 

[Jeff Hilton]

I constantly get 21 mpg in my 1/2 tom Silverado at 70mph freeway. 19mpg in town.

What year is your silverado and what engine does it have?

 

[Jeff Hilton]

If only they made an ecoboost raptor and I had $70k.

If they did make the raptor with an eco boost it would cost that much. I can't believe what they want for those raptors.

 

[Bob]

2012 4x4 Extended Cab 5.3.

 

[Jeff Hilton]

2012 4x4 Extended Cab 5.3.

Really that is pretty good. My work vehicle has the 4.3 v8 I think but its gutless and gets crappy mileage.

 

[DAA]

...now that I found out how poorly Toyota outfits the new TRD Pro, that is no longer on my wish list, even if it is a damn sexy truck.

I didn't want to say anything. But I was thinking it...

If only they made an ecoboost raptor and I had $70k.

I would probably have bought a Raptor, but they are just too wide for my purposes. They are quite a bit wider than even my Megacab diesel was. And it was all I could do to squeeze it between the trees down a lot of trails. The Raptor is wide track, too, which really, really, REALLY sucks on rutted two track in the sage brush, which I do a lot of miles of every year. Neat truck, but, after really looking into them, not really very good for "my" use.

I actually tried to buy an Ecoboost, too, but the dealer was lying to me and it didn't work out. I'm glad, now. The Ram 1500 I ended up with is better all around for what I wanted.

The new aluminum body F150's look like super neat trucks. If I was shopping for a new 1/2 ton a 2015 Ecoboost is where I'd start.

- DAA

 

[steve]

...the dealer was lying to me.

I find that hard to believe.

 

[John Goering]

Here's another one worth consideration.

A good friend of mine bought that one last summer and despite my initial jaundiced opinion, they really do work well both on and off road. Not a Rubicon but can do way more difficult trails than I would have ever thought.

 

[wanderinfinn]

This is my ultimate adventure vehicle. Great on gas, its capability is limited only by the rider, enough gear capacity for solo trips, and it will go damn near anywhere. The only draw back is its a little chilly in the winter!