November 1985
John Stewart's first 4xForward: "I love monster trucks. I hate monster trucks."
February 1986
"Bye-Bye Tall Toyotas, Hello Prerunners" examines Toyota's new independent front suspension.
March 1986
Ford Ranger SuperCab XLT wins 4x4 of the Year award, beating the Chevy S-10 Blazer, Jeep Comanche, Nissan (pre-Hardbody) King Cab, Suzuki Samurai, and IFS Toyota. The Ranger is the first pickup and first Ford to win.
June 1986
New Jeep Wrangler is subject of a Dave Kimble cutaway illustration on the magazine's first fold-out cover. Stewart writes in his editorial: "It will take more than a few months to prove to the world that the CJ is obsolete."
September 1986
Stewart's last issue as editor; Steve Campbell takes over with the October issue.
February 1987
4x4 of the Year issue moved ahead one month; Nissan Pathfinder beats field that includes the Dodge Dakota, Ford F-150, Jeep Wrangler, and Mitsubishi SPX pickup.
March 1987
Martial artist and sometime off-road racer Chuck Norris featured on magazine's cover; Baja 1000 race coverage includes Campbell's and Hardin's 24-hour race chase.
May 1987
A GMC Sierra is the subject of the first test of GM's completely revised GMT 400 pickups.
November 1987
Drivelines column begins; issue also contains the first look at Toyota's 3.0L V-6, the first non-four-banger in a Toyota pickup.
February 1988
Jeep Cherokee becomes the first vehicle to win the 4x4 of the Year test twice, beating pickups from Chevrolet, Ford, Isuzu, Mazda, Toyota, and Range Rover. What began as an office joke two years before ends when Robert Miller's '77 Stepside is featured as "Robert's Red Ford."
April 1988
Robby Gordon named SCORE/ HDRA Rookie of the Year at age 18.
May 1988
We run a teaser illustration and info on Jeep's upcoming ZJ. "Our guess is that it's a sport/utility that's halfway between a Cherokee and an upscale import station wagon. We suspect the ZJ will completely obliterate the truck/car distinction."
June 1988
Campbell writes about the murders of Mickey and Trudy Thompson in 4xForward.
October 1988
Drivelines: "Samurai Sales Nose-Dive After Rollover Reports."
December 1988
First article about Tread Lightly!
February 1989
Toyota Xtracab V-6 wins 4x4 of the Year, beating Chevy S-Blazer, Dodge W250, Geo Tracker, Isuzu Trooper II, and Mitsubishi Montero.
April 1989
First tech story about lifting new GM IFS features Skyjacker's 1 1/2- to 3-inch kit.
February 1990
Eleven Bigfoot monster trucks appear at Indy Jamboree, setting the stage for a centerfold poster. Nissan Pathfinder is second vehicle to score two 4x4 of the Year wins; beats Mitsubishi Mighty Max pickup and four-door versions of Chevy S-Blazer, Ford Explorer, and Toyota 4Runner.
March 1990
In a "Best of the Best" anniversary issue, a story called "War of the Winners" pits previous 4x4 of the Year champs against one another. Cherokee wins and steals thunder from just-announced '90 4x4 of the Year winner Pathfinder. Nissan is not amused.
August 1990
Drivelines reports first rumor of a Toyota fullsize truck.
January 1991
Magazine's name and logo change from 4WOR to Petersen's 4Wheel, "to alleviate some of the confusion" among the competitive titles, and because going off-road "connotes trail-blazing in many people's minds. In the minds of some, 'off-roader' is to recreational four-wheeling what 'Hells Angel' is to motorcycling," writes Campbell in his editorial. The logo quietly changes back in October.