Recommend a mountain car

[Anonymous]

Off-Road Specs


Bronco Jeep
Maximum tire size 35 in 35 in
Ground clearance 11.5 in 12.9 in
Approach angle 43.2 deg 47.4 deg
Breakover angle 26.3 deg 26.7 deg
Departure angle 37.0 deg 40.4 deg
Fording depth 33.5 in 33.6 in

Jeep also offers better crawl ratio and doesn’t look like a cartoon character. Plus, the Bronco is a Ford so guaranteed issues. Other than the angles, the stats are close and either will get you up your mountain but as someone who off roads, the choice is clear.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you have to drive up a mountain and through 2 feet of water, that’s someplace you shouldn’t be allowed to live anyway.

Why do you need to impose yourself on nature?

Agree with this take.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Get a truck. An F150 or a ram 1500. The Subaru won't give you the clearance.

Neither of these trucks can hack actual bad road conditions. I see them in the ditch often here in the mountains of CO in the winter. They are silly and get laughed at often out here.

I would go for a used Toyota Landcruiser OP. That said, my partner has hiked all 58 peaks over 14k feet in Colorado and gotten us up gnarly trailheads in our Outback. We do not ford 2 foot moving streams though. I have forded many rivers and streams in a Toyota Landcruiser with a snorkel, including feeling the vehicle unweight and float a bit. Did NOT enjoy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Get a truck. An F150 or a ram 1500. The Subaru won't give you the clearance.

Neither of these trucks can hack actual bad road conditions. I see them in the ditch often here in the mountains of CO in the winter. They are silly and get laughed at often out here.

I would go for a used Toyota Landcruiser OP. That said, my partner has hiked all 58 peaks over 14k feet in Colorado and gotten us up gnarly trailheads in our Outback. We do not ford 2 foot moving streams though. I have forded many rivers and streams in a Toyota Landcruiser with a snorkel, including feeling the vehicle unweight and float a bit. Did NOT enjoy.

Your “gnarly” trailhead access is basically the entrance road to where most Jeep trails begin. You have no idea what actual Jeep roads look like.

Picture a milk crate. Now imagine a path made out of rocks that size. That’s what a typical Jeep trail looks like. Your Outback wouldn’t go five feet on an actual trail.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The problem with a Subaru for off-roading, aside from ground clearance, is that garbage CVT. That and AWD is mostly useless offroad.

Agreed. The CVT is absolutely garbage.

Subaru destroyed their entire reputation with that stupid ####ing transmission. They’re no better than a Nissan now.

[Anonymous]

Just wanted to update everyone. Going with a lifted Ford F250 short bed. The stream is usually 6 inches but can seasonally go up 2 feet. Won't cross if it's that high or cross where the big boulders bridge is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just wanted to update everyone. Going with a lifted Ford F250 short bed. The stream is usually 6 inches but can seasonally go up 2 feet. Won't cross if it's that high or cross where the big boulders bridge is.

F-250 is a good choice. Easy to get fixed locally, too, if you need it repaired. Also doesn’t stand out much or look too ostentatious.

What tires? AT or MT tread pattern?

[Anonymous]

Rivian R1S or R1T. They're designed for off roading.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just wanted to update everyone. Going with a lifted Ford F250 short bed. The stream is usually 6 inches but can seasonally go up 2 feet. Won't cross if it's that high or cross where the big boulders bridge is.

You better keep some weight in the bed of your truck or you won't have the traction to make it up a muddy incline.

[Anonymous]

Ford F-150. I love my King Ranch.

[Anonymous]

Too bad. My 1999 Landcruiser has had 330k trouble free miles and is still going strong. You should have gone with one. It allows you to manually disengage everything so getting stuck is never an issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just wanted to update everyone. Going with a lifted Ford F250 short bed. The stream is usually 6 inches but can seasonally go up 2 feet. Won't cross if it's that high or cross where the big boulders bridge is.

You better keep some weight in the bed of your truck or you won't have the traction to make it up a muddy incline.

It's a 4x4 not RWD so I hope it will be OK. But I do plan on hauling stuff

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Too bad. My 1999 Landcruiser has had 330k trouble free miles and is still going strong. You should have gone with one. It allows you to manually disengage everything so getting stuck is never an issue.

I really wanted one! But the prices have doubled and I couldn't justify spending 50k on a basher

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just wanted to update everyone. Going with a lifted Ford F250 short bed. The stream is usually 6 inches but can seasonally go up 2 feet. Won't cross if it's that high or cross where the big boulders bridge is.

F-250 is a good choice. Easy to get fixed locally, too, if you need it repaired. Also doesn’t stand out much or look too ostentatious.

What tires? AT or MT tread pattern?

MT tires just to be safe

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just wanted to update everyone. Going with a lifted Ford F250 short bed. The stream is usually 6 inches but can seasonally go up 2 feet. Won't cross if it's that high or cross where the big boulders bridge is.

F-250 is a good choice. Easy to get fixed locally, too, if you need it repaired. Also doesn’t stand out much or look too ostentatious.

What tires? AT or MT tread pattern?

MT tires just to be safe

Probably a good idea. I’ve always run MT’s on my Jeeps. They’re noisy as hell, but they’re unequaled for traction. Sidewalls are a LOT tougher than AT’s, too - which is HUGELY important if you’re going to driving on trails (or stream crossings) with sharp, exposed rocks that can cut the sidewall of a tire.

The 3/4 ton truck (F250) is also a better choice for towing/hauling, too, because of the bigger brake rotors and calipers.

Some other advice - get a quick air-down tool and a heavy duty 12volt portable air compressor. Make it standard practice to drop your tire pressure from whatever you run on the street down to about 12-17 psi when driving off road. It makes the ride over trail rocks and ruts a LOT smoother, and the tire can flex and wrap around rocks and bumps for better traction. You’ll have to experiment to see what pressure works best, but it will become immediately clear why this is a good idea off road the first time you try it.

The compressor hooks up to your battery when you get back to pavement, and let’s you get your tires back up to street pressure before driving at highway speeds again.


Ignore all the idiots who will chime in soon with “you should never run your tires under-inflated ‘cause the govt says it’s dangerous” …… those people are morons who’ve never driven off road before. Disregard what they say.