what is a stock 04.5 4x4 capable of doing ofroad?
 

hey all, just wondering what the limits are on a 04.5 2500 auto 4x4 crew cab short box
just has the cheap and free mods, nothing else
whats the max fording depth? and is there anywhere to offroad in pittsburgh pa?

wanna do some wheelin, outside tower city pa, a place called Roush Creek. i have never been there ( i only wheel on the old coal trails:w2:), but a bunch of buddies have, and they love it. as far as a stock CR wheelin, not sure, never took mine out. i don't want to scratch the paint just yet:tttt::ouch:

Getting stuck.... Thats its capabilities stock :D I've had mine to the middle of the bumper in water. Just don't get water in the intake.

ha ha i guess thats where stacks come in handy, at least they don't look funny on big truck, seen them on jeeps and such, and i don't dig that at all:booo:

We were at Moab, UT a couple years ago. We took my Ram up to Arches National Park and ended up taking it down the Salt Valley 4x4 trail (not just the improved road). It's a "moderate" trail, a little over 9 miles long, recommended for high clearance 4wd vehicles only. Unfortunately, that sign was NOT posted at the end of the trail we started on.

Got about 2 miles in and went down a set of "steps" about 18" high. After I got to that point, I started think I was going to end up having to have my truck hauled out by a helicopter, as there was NO WAY it would crawl back up those steps! Between the deep sandy washes, slick-rock out-croppings, the steep hills and blind peaks, it took nearly 4 hours to get to the end. Don't get me wrong, it was a blast, but we were about as nervous as a blind fag at a weenie roast! There were sections where 4-low, granny gear, and 4.10 axle gears were still too fast.

The slick-rock literally shredded the tread lugs from the stock BFG's as they struggled to pull the truck's bulk over it, and the skid-plates, rear diff and nerf bars made some cool bumping and scraping sounds.

We eventually made it through, the only damage was a light trail-side pin-stripe down the passenger side. I don't believe I would try that trail with my truck again. It's just too long, too wide and too heavy.

Here at the house, if I get it even close to mud, it sinks straight to the axles and stays there. In snow or loose gravel, it wheel-hops so much, I have to get out and piss blood and the "un-limited slip" differential is a joke at best.

I love my truck, but it definitely ain't an off-roader in stock trim. That's why I'm working on building my 4-BT S-10!:U:

Now that funny right there! :lol88:

how far from pittsburgh? ive found a trail bout an hour from me in beaver that has a guide come with you but i wanna do something myself

well its up I 81 north of the 78 split. ummmm from harrisburg maybe 45 min, hour if there is traffic. i wanna say its exit 107. i found this web site, don't know if it will help you out.


Rausch Creek Off Road Park :U:

so far, i haven't tested the lmits of mine, but i'm sure the limits aren't far from the pavement! of course i wheel a well built xj that does almost everyting so it's hard to compare.
i think the truck is just too wide, long and heavy to do much.
now, with front and rear lockers, some skid plates and rock rails, and a willingness to scratch it up or worse, it would do ok in some terrain. not on the tight tree lined trails i have here though.

If you throw a decent set of tires on it you'll go a lot farther than a stocker... Problem is, the Cummins is so heavy the front end sinks in the mud. With a set of lockers, good tires, and a small lift (plus proper trail armor), these trucks will hold there own with the best of em. My truck with the 35's will go anywhere a stock Jeep will go (not a Rubicon). Its not a great truck in the mud, but the big footprint goes a long way.

yeah i forgot to add, good sized tires with good tread will make a huge idfference for sure. without traction, nothing matters!

I think a purpose built Cummins would scare some folks. FAT Foot print Gear reduction under armor and weight up the bed with silly stuff like Spare Tire's Gear and tools and spare parts lock up the front and rear (which any real trail rig has anyways)

I know alot of people think big trucks have no place on a mountain but I'll argue that point with a good driver and proper built rig

I've gone on some pretty nasty stuff in the high country here and the best traction I get is when I have a ton of weight in the bed or the horse trailer on......I've been places people didn't think I'd get to. All I have is a little bigger tires. It's not like my single cab gasser or the jeep but it holds it's own, except in the deep snow. I use the other trucks with tall skinny agressive tires for that stuff.

imho if your looking at Rock Crawling etc then good luck but is there anyone that has one of these actually set up fairly capable? at least set up comparable to the Jeeps and Landcruisers they are being compared too?

I understand they will need more lift instead of 4 go 6 isntead of 6 go 8 (not much over 8) but is the motor that big of a disadvantage? I've trailed short bed trucks and other than pin striping I have gone trompin right past stuck jeeps and the short wheel base likes with a locker in the rear.

gotta go man, me and my buddies are goin the first weekend in june. i dont wheel my truck but i tow my buddys jeeps out there. then ride with them. i guarantee youll be hooked the first time you go man. campins free and its $35 for the owner of the truck and 5 for passengers. :U:

Biggest problem with these trucks is their massive size. I know when I was wheeling around Ouray there were several times I had to unlock the transfer case and make a 3 (or 10) point turn. But I made it to the top of Yankee Boy :ok1: There is something to be said for low gears and massive torque.


With a proper locker ( I would do both axles) and some good tires you can go a lot of places.

I like Kaz's attitude!! It's all about modifying your driving style!

actually I got to thinking about it and it wasn't yankee boy it was blue lake in Ouray CO

Trails need a diamond ranking... Blue diamond is good for fords and 2wd cars Red for open axle jeeps and other 4x4's blazers ramchargers Black is for Locked up double black is for Oh shit did he really stuff those tires on that kind of rigs etc...

Just like Skiing but more fun....switch it up to maybe Nuts? or instead of diamonds make it the pucker factor.

Getting stuck is pretty high on the list if you have stock tires with the weight of the cummins in the nose:c:

i know it's harder for a big body truck to go on mountain trails. but me and my buddy followed jeeps with 350's and 454's with 44" tires all the way up and down Mnt Eagle Mountain down here. And we were cruisin along in an 85 bronco with a 8" suspension lift and 2 1/2" body lift sittin on 38" tires. we had alot a trouble, thought we were gonna flip down the mountain, broke some stuff and got up on 2 wheels twice. but we made it. took from like 10-6 or 7. but of course we stopped a couple times along the way to eat and goof around. and to fix the stuff we broke.

IMO if you wanna go trail ridin in a full size truck, have at it and best of luck. but i'd go with an s-10 with a 350 cut the fenders out and shove some 44s on it and of course everything else everybody's already talked about. hell go ahead and throw a diesel in it if you want to. :pca1:

I dont make a habit out of taking my dually "off-roadin" but its spends a whole lot of time of the pavement, either in fields, or movin or haulin hay, and and where we keep the hay is down a slightly washed out logging road, but when it rains, i get to drift my 4 door dually with a 28ft trailer, lots of fun. Even though i dont look to go off roadin, a heavy truck with mud tires will pull most stuck trucks out. Ive had to go pull a bunch of truck out, the key to wheelin a big truck is say out loud, that will buff out, knowing that it probably wont and even if it would its not very likely that my truck sees wax anytime soon. l know that isnt a good plan but my truck is a work truck, so i dont want to scratch or dent it, but if it happens im not gonna freak out, its a battle scar that sets it apart from the city boys lifted trucks with big wheels that never even see grass. With a set of good tires and a lot of throttle, that heany front end digs like crazy and pulls the truck almost anywhere, ive backed into mud, thick georgia red clay, up to the hubs, and drug my buddies ranger out of the mud. By the time i got to solid ground, the bumper was plowin mud and i dug one helluva big hole, but it got it out, not a heavy truck to pull but it makes an anchor in mud. Lots of throttle, boost and tire spin, thats the key.

Hey don't pick on us "city" boys (not really):bat:, but i spent a lot of money on my truck and i don't plan on runnin on the woods to pull someone out, not yet anyhow. i bought mine to work also, but i have found that customers really like to see nice, clean, well maintained trucks, along with the workers. and sometimes its the little things like that , that will get more work for ya. but hey i guess thats the difference in a farm truck, and a construction truck. i know you farmers and rolling in the dough.........:tttt: :pals: and don't mind a ding here or there

hahaha, well dont get me wrong, i dont put my truck somewhere i know im gonna get it messed up, but i guess im sayin that if it happens i wont worry too much, whats done is done. My front bumper is cocked a little to the left and a little down right now cause i found the limits of the stock tow hooks, oh well. Ive only got a few minor scratches, and my big ol fat outside dually mud tire flung a rock outta the tread and right into my mirror and cracked the bottom corner, but the worst scratch was from leaving it parked in the pasture and riding to lunch in my fiancees jeep, and when i got back one of the horses was chewin on the corner of my hood! I fixed it pretty good with some touch up paint from autozone. City boy or not, you still get plenty of props for a construction truck, it gets used so like a truck, thats good enough for us country boys. Its the guys that buy a diesel, or even worse, their daddy buys it, and they drop 10 grand on a diesel "cause they are cool now" or cause the smoke "looks cool". The 35s you got might look cool, but at a construction site, there is a small possibility that you might just have to put those big ol tires to use. Thats good enough for us:U::c:

personally it all comes down to sheetmetal........if your like me, sheetmetal dont matter and i will take a full size places a suzuki samurai cant fit.......

One advantage to a dually with wide tires is they stick out of the fenders in the back, so my tires will rub trees, not the fenders, as long as im paying attention its gonna be pretty hard to catch a dually fender on something

If you wanna do some off roading. there is a place called yankee lake truck nite. its in brookfeild ohio. only a hour north from pitt. trucks gone wild will be there on july 31 and august 1st. its a good time gates open at 6 every friday night. and if you wanna see what your truck has against others there is a tug o war pit. only 10 bucks to get in.

I'll reiterate that the stock tire size is the main limiting factor on these, in the world of full size wheeling. Upgrading the shocks and some weight in the bed is probably next. IMO, no amount of "streetable" upgrades will make these things excel in the mud given the weight of the engine and massive trans. It's a diesel 4x4, please scratch the paint!!