April 2007 4x4 Readers' Rides

Send us a picture of your ride if you've never done so. We keep a surplus of Readers' Rides submissions, but only one submission per person, and we love all off-road vehicles so send in your entries whether your rig is stock or not. Please use the new e-mail address shown below. Make sure each digital image is at least 1600 x 1200 pixels (or two megapixels) and saved as a TIFF, EPS, or maximum-quality JPEG file.

Vehicle (year, make, model)
Owner (name, city, state)
Tires & wheels (size, make, model)
Suspension (lift, springs, shocks)
Drivetrain (tranny, t-case, axles)
Performance (engine)
Other mods
Does it work the way you want?
Anything you would change?
Funniest Wheeling Incident
Anything to add?

Write to:
Readers' Rides
4-Wheel & Off-Road
6420 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90048-5515
fax 323.782.2704

E-mail to:
readersrides@4wheeloffroad.com

Vehicle: '62 Willys CJ-5
Owner: Luke Werley, New Tripoli, PA
Tires & wheels: 31x10.5x15 Sidewinder MT
on steel Suspension: Lifted
Drivetrain: T-90 tranny, Dana 18 transfer case, Dana 25 front, Dana 44 rear, front and rear lockers
Performance Mods: Hurricane F-head engine bored 0.060 over, shaved head, K&N air filter
Other Doodads: 120-amp alternator, electric fan, custom bumper and grilleguard, rocker rails, custom hitch, S4500 Superwinch winch, B&M hammerhead shift knob
Funniest Wheeling Incident: Submerging it in a swamp, filled the tub up with mud and water right up to the top but I made it after a few runs!
Does Everything work the way you want?: Yeah, she's a stump puller!
Anything to add?: Werley's Willys rocks!

Vehicle: '95 Ford F-350
Owner:
Tires & wheels: 38-inch Parnelli Jones Dirt Grips on 16x12 Classic Locks
Suspension: ORU shackle-reversal kit, National springs in front, 10-inch Atlas springs with Bilstein shocks in rear
Drivetrain: TCS-controlled E4OD tranny, Dana 60 front with crossover steering, Rear 10.25 Visteon axle with Detroit Locker, 4.88 gears
Performance Mods: 7.3L Power Stroke diesel, open intake, chip, downpipe, 5-inch exhaust Baumann
Funniest Wheeling Incident: Not being able to pull my bud's Excursion out and it costing him $300 for a Chevy tow truck to do it.
Does Everything work the way you want?: Everything works great
Anything you would change: Not really, but I'm always making changes
Anything to add?: Owner converted it to a 4x4

Vehicle: '98 Isuzu Amigo
Owner: Peter Plotzeneder, Honolulu, HI
Tires & wheels: 35x12.50R15 Goodyear MTRs on 15-inch alloys
Suspension: Custom 3 1/2-inch lift, Rancho 9000s, Calmini control arms
Drivetrain: Stock tranny, Tera Low 3.07:1 transfer-case kit, Lock-Right locker in front and Ox locker in rear, 5.38 gears
Performance Mods: 3.2L engine
Other Doodads: 1-inch body lift, custom front bumper, Independent 4X kevlar brake lines, Stinkyfab custom skidplate and trailing links, Warn M8000 winch
Funniest Wheeling Incident: Snapping both front axles in a matter of 20 feet
Does Everything work the way you want?: Of course
Anything you would change: Put on bigger CVs

Vehicle: '71 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40
Owner: Philip Regas, Denver, CO
Tires & wheels: 33x10.50R15 BFGoodrich M/Ts on American Racing 15-inch
Suspension: 2-inch Rancho springs, 1-inch heavy-duty shackles, Heckethorn shocks
Drivetrain: Stock
Performance Mods: Rebuilt 2F, straight-six bored 0.020 over, 430-cfm Weber carb, Man-a-Fre custom headers, Jacobs electronic ignition, Optima battery
Other Doodads: Fender cut-outs, Alpine stereo, waterproof speakers, geared to the hilt (snatch block, tow straps, Special Forces first-aid kit, Hi-Lift, and so on), custom leather dash, rubberized undercoating, on-board air, Warn winch, custom (homemade) S.T.U.B. bumper (short-trimmed unbreakable bumper)
Does Everything work the way you want?: Yes, you can't stop this thing, although steering can be sloppy
Anything you would change: ARB lockers
Funniest Wheeling Incident: Thought I could four-wheel the Continental Divide from Wyoming to New Mexico in a week (it's 10 hours on the highway). It took six-woo-hoo!
Anything to add?: I bought "Elsie RockCrusher" when I was 18, which is 25 years ago. I've been improving ever since and feel like I have a lot more to do. Being that it has been 25 years, I thought I'd go ahead and submit it now and then again in 25.

Vehicle: '93 GMC Sierra
Owner: Anthony, Byron, CA
Tires & wheels: 44-inch TSL Swampers on 16.5-inch Pro Comp Rock Crawlers
Suspension: Solid-axle swap, 15-inch lift, Pro Comp shocks
Drivetrain: TH400 auto tranny, NP205 transfer case, Dana 60 front with 35-spline axles, 14-bolt rear, 5.13 gears
Performance Mods: 454ci engine, aluminum heads, Hooker headers, Flowmaster mufflers
Other Doodads: 3-inch body lift
Funniest Wheeling Incident: Every time I take it out
Does Everything work the way you want?: It needs a new front driveline but other than that, yeah, it's great
Anything you would change: Linked suspension

Vehicle: '71 Ford Bronco
Owner: Chris and Vivian Stone, Waialua, HI
Tires & wheels: 35x15x15 Swamper TSLs on 15x12 589
Suspension: 3 1/2-inch Tom's Bronco Stage 9 kit
Drivetrain: NP435 Low Granny tranny, Dana 20 transfer case, Dana 44 front (disc brakes), Ford 9-inch rear with 31-spline axles, Detroit Lockers, 4.10 gears
Performance Mods: '69 Mach I 351 Windsor engine, Holley Pro-Jection, MSD ignition and pro-billet distributor/wires, four-core radiator, Edelbrock intake, F-150 steering box, K&N filters, Superior axles, dual Flowmaster mufflers
Other Doodads: 2-inch body lift, Edelbrock water pump, Saginaw steering pump
Funniest Wheeling Incident: Stuck in at least 35 inches of thick mud (35-inch tires disappeared) and getting winched out by four Suzuki Samurais
Does Everything work the way you want?: Yes
Anything you would change: Change fiberglass fender flares to trail flex flares, install rock sliders
Anything to add?: Restored, modified, and fabricated by husband and wife