Editor's note: Feature Editor Jerrod Jones started off our Best 4x4... in the June '06 issue, with Tech Editor Fred Williams continuing in the July issue, Art Director Alan Huber penned his picks for August, and I finished up my choices in the September issue. Here's a few rants about Jerrod's picks and his reply.
Reader: Regarding your "Best" picks; OK, AMG Hummer H1, obvious. Chevrolet/GMC H3, agree. Dodge Power Wagon, is there another option? Ford FX4 Ranger? Er-uh-OK, I see your point (the Ford faithful will egg your house, however). International Scout II, good! Ah, yes. Here we are! The Isuzu Trooper. What?! Isuzu Trooper? Jerrod, dude, I love you and the entire staff of the best 4x4 mag on the planet, so I am going to give you the benefit of the doubt and blame this miscue on scarcity. The VehiCross is clearly the best 4x4 made by Isuzu for the U.S. My argument is simple: The very drivetrain that was the reason you chose the Trooper also underpins the V. The 3.5 used in the Trooper is also Isuzu's powertrain of choice for the V. But the V sports better approach/departure/breakover angles and a whole bunch of ground clearance that has been left on the table by its Trooper sibling. Sure, the V is very rare, with just over 4,000 units being sold during its three-year production run, but this article was not based on availability, was it? I will not be alone on this one, I am certain!
I am a 'Yota guy (4Runner with 4.7 transfer gears), and I have to agree with you on the FJ80. I would have definitely gone straight to the FJ40, and never looked back. Touche, Jerrod.
Clint Moran, via 4wheeloffroad.com
Reader: I enjoyed your article on the best 4x4s on Earth. However, I noticed one small inaccuracy in the Jeep writeup. The six-speed manual was also offered in the '05 model. I confirmed this with my 2005 brochure and with my buddy's Rubicon Unlimited. I wonder how the new '07 Wrangler Rubicon/Rubicon Unlimited would compare in your rankings? With all the extra goodies, it's hard to believe the new engine would cancel out the extras.
Dennis, via 4wheeloffroad.com
Reader: A stock FX4 Ranger is better than a stock early Bronco? Sounds like we need a good old-fashioned wheel-off to show the Bronco's prowess! Don't get me wrong; I'm sure the Ranger works great when going to the grocery store, but honestly, to make the list of the best 4x4s of all time? I saw a few pictures in the mag where it looked like your head was missing and I didn't know what had happened. I figured it had to be a freak accident or something, but now I know the real cause-it has been up your rear this whole time!
Eric, Moorpark, CA
Reader: Let me guess, Mr. Jones. You're about 24 years old and never grew up in the four-wheel-drive evolution. Heck, you probably just bought one when you got your first job since graduating from some third-string community college and your dad is good friends with the editor of Petersen's 4-Wheel & Off-Road. It sounds familiar to me 'cause I obviously didn't do my research on your ability to write an article on the best 4x4 of all time, and after reading yours, it's obvious you didn't do any research either. Come on, get the facts, not personal opinions. We all have them and this is my opinion of you.Joseph Haskins, via 4wheeloffroad.com
Editor: Wow, I think I've found a new hot button! I received more hate mail from Bronco owners than I ever would have guessed! A Bronco mistake that I regretted most: I wrote that Broncos never came with limited slips, but they did in fact offer a limited-slip differential. But I stand by my choice that a modern-day FX3 Level II (that was an error as well-I never included the "Level II" title in the story) would best a stock '66-'77 Bronco off-road. Just the tire differences alone from what was available then compared to now makes my decision an easy one. Not to mention the trouncing in any high-speed off-road situations that a stock Bronco would get. But the fact that I mistook that Broncos never came with a limited slip gave Bronco lovers enough reason to tear into my integrity, my family, and offer me butt kickins'
Forget Scout owners. I can't wait to start picking on Bronco owners even more.
As for other inaccuracies...Jeep did in fact have a six-speed manual tranny in 2005 and not just 2006, Land Rover had both a 3.9L and a 4.0L engine in the D90s. Maybe I should have picked the VehiCross for Isuzu, and Mercedes probably should have been included obviously with a Unimog. Also, we thought "Earth" looked better in the title than "Best 4x4s in the U.S."-a couple of people called us on that one. Oh, and I was only picking one vehicle from each manufacturer. I never actually stated that in the story.
One thing that not one person called me on (this surprised the heck out of me because I was sure I was going down for this one), was that I accidentally wrote that the Isuzu 9.61-inch ring gear was bigger than a Dana 60. Wrong! That must've been when I was snacking on paint chips. Dana 60s have a 9.75-inch ring gear, and are thus bigger than the Isuzu axle.
The outcome of all this banter about best 4x4s? Well, I think our reader Eric from Moorpark, California, is right: We're gonna have to have a good old-fashioned wheel-off to see what would be the top dog; a Ranger or a first-gen Bronco. So I am putting out an official call for your help, Bronco and Ranger owners. I need two willing volunteers (more if we can get two or three of each) owning either an original '66-'77 Bronco with stock suspension and a stock drivetrain, or a completely stock Ranger FX4 Level II. I'll even give the Bronco this: You can have cut rear fenders but no lift kit, and we'll even put you on new BFGoodrich All-Terrains (what the Ranger comes with) just to even up the odds. I'm sure we can all agree that it would be no contest if the Bronco was sitting on '60s-era treads. If you'd be willing to do some reasonable wheeling with your stock first-gen Bronco or FX4 Ranger, e-mail me at jerrod.jones@primedia.com and use the subject Best 4x4 Showdown.
-Jerrod Jones