July 2009 Reader 4x4 Trucks - Readers' Rides

Submission Information
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. 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.

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

Email to:
readersrides@4wheeloffroad.com

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

Half A Case
Vehicle: '87 Chevy Blazer
Owner: Matt Black, Kamas, UT
Tires & wheels: 35x12.50x15 BFG KM2s on 15x8 Pro Comp wheels
Suspension: 6-inch Tuff Country
Drivetrain: 700R4, NP208, Dana 60 front, 14-bolt rear with a spool, 4.10 gears
Performance mods: 350ci, K&N intake, Flowmaster exhaust
Other doodads: Crossover steering, ORD steering and frame brace, MileMarker winch
Does everything work the way you want?: So far so good
Anything you would change?: 4.88 gears, lockers, and a cage
Anything to add?: The transfer case uses the Chevy front half and Dodge rear to create an extremely cheap slip-yoke eliminator

Big K
Vehicle: '72 Chevy K20
Owner: David Oakley, Fresno, CA
Tires & wheels: 39.5x13.50 Iroks on 17x9 Mickey Thompson Classic IIs
Suspension: Custom 12-inch
Drivetrain: TH350, NP205, Dana 44 front, Dana 70 rear
Performance mods: 337ci, Holley carburetor, Flowmaster exhaust, Cower cam, MSD HEI
Other doodads: Relocated fuel tank
Does everything work the way you want?: Yes
Anything you would change?: Swap the Dana 44 for a Dana 60, 3-inch body lift, and 454ci

Barter Bogger
Vehicle: '38 Ford 1/2-ton pickup body/Rock City Chop Shop chassis
Owner: Matthew Carr, White Lake, MI
Tires & wheels: 44-inch Boggers on Custom 16.5x16 Chrome wheels
Suspension: Custom
Drivetrain: TH400, NP205, 2 1/2-ton Rockwells
Performance mods: 468ci, custom headers
Other doodads: Suspension seats, full hydraulic steering
Does everything work the way you want?: Yes
Anything you would change?: Paint and fenders
Anything to add?: Between swapping parts and bartering on Craigslist, I was able to build the entire rig for less than 4,000 bucks

60 To 1
Vehicle: '60 Ford F-100
Owner: Larry D. Shreckengost, Huntsville, AL
Tires: Buckshot Mudders
Suspension: Custom 6-inch with air shocks
Drivetrain: Stock
Performance mods: 223ci
Other doodads: 12,000-pound winch
Does everything work the way you want?: It's perfect
Anything to add?: It has been a great hunting truck and has never let me down

Rover Boat
Vehicle: '85 Land Rover 110
Owner: Don Lang, Roblin, Manitoba, Canada
Tires: 7.50x 16 Michelin ZXLs
Suspension: Stock
Drivetrain: R-380, IT-230, rear Detroit Locker
Performance mods: 300TDI with tuned pump and a straight pipe
Other doodads: Custom snorkel, power steering, and sliders
Does everything work the way you want?: Works good, but could always be better
Anything you would change?: More suspension travel, bigger tires, and paint

Wagon Wonderland
Vehicle: '05 Dodge Ram Power Wagon
Owner: John Worker, Yorba Linda, CA
Tires & wheels: 35-inch BFG KM2s on stock wheels
Suspension: Stock
Drivetrain: Stock
Performance mods: AEM intake, Gibson exhaust, Superchip programmer
Other doodads: Onboard air, Warn winch
Does everything work the way you want?: Everything works, but the lockers are slow to engage
Anything you would change?: Nope

Port Time
Vehicle: '98 Toyota Tacoma
Owner: Zach Hamilton, Portland, OR
Tires & wheels: 35x12.50 BFG M-Ts on 15x8 Pro Comp wheels
Suspension: Custom straight-axle conversion, Wagoneer front springs, 63-inch Chevy 1/2-ton rear springs, 12-inch travel Bilstein shocks
Drivetrain: Dana 44 front, Lock-Rights, 4.88 gears
Performance mods: 2.7L
Other doodads: Custom bumpers, sliders, and skidplates, Warn winch, onboard air
Does everything work the way you want?: It's getting there, but I am still working out the bugs from the straight-axle conversion
Anything you would change?: Selectable lockers, bigger tires, and another transfer case would be nice
Anything to add?: Great magazine! Keep up the good work.

Philip-N-Go
Vehicle: '92 Toyota Land Cruiser
Owner: Victor Tan, Davao City, Philippines
Tires & wheels: 265/75/16 Cooper Discovery STTs on 16x8 American Racing ATX
Suspension: 2-inch coil spacers with Bilstein shocks
Drivetrain: Detroit E-Z Locker in the front, Toyota electric locker in the rear
Performance mods: 2LTE, K&N air filter
Other doodads: Warn M8000, Hella lights, Airlift helper bags
Does everything work the way you want?: Yes
Anything you would change?: More power and efficient Toyota 1KZ engine

Aqua Horse
Vehicle: '93 Ford Bronco
Owner: Van Everette, Mechanicsville, VA
Tires & wheels: 35x12.50 Mud Terrains on 15x10 Outlaw IIs
Suspension: Custom 6-inch via a straight-axle conversion
Drivetrain: C-6, Dana 44 front with ARB Air Locker, 9-Inch rear with Detroit Locker; both axles are fitted with chromoly axleshafts and are out of a '78 Bronco
Performance mods: 351ci, 0.030 over, Edelbrock intake, heads, cam, and carburetor
Other doodads: York onboard air, custom rear bumper with swing-away tire carrier
Funniest wheeling incident: Packing every spare part I though I would ever need and then breaking the one thing I didn't have a spare for!
Does everything work the way you want?: So far, but it has taken three years to get here
Anything you would change?:1-ton axles, front bumper, and a winch
Anything to add?: Straight-axle conversion is the best upgrade I've done; the carburetor is the worst

Myrtle Mopar
Vehicle: '98 Dodge Durango
Owner: Chris & Jessy Green, Myrtle Beach, SC
Tires & wheels: 38.5 Thornbirds front, Boggers rear, 15x10 Soft 8
Suspension: 11.5 inches via a custom solid-axle conversion
Drivetrain: 46RE, NV231, Dana 44 front, 9 1/4 rear, 4.88 gears
Performance mods: 5.2L, Jet Performance chip, throttle-body spacer, performance coil, Flex-a-lite fan, Edelbrock headers
Other doodads: 3-inch body lift, custom steering
Does everything work the way you want?: Needs lockers
Anything you would change?: Coil swap for the rear in the works