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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Two feet of moving water is no joke. It will float most SUVs. And it’s not for the inexperienced or faint of heart if the force of the water starts to move your vehicle downstream.

I you’re most realistically into the territory of a off-road rig like a TRD 4Runner/Sequoia/Land Cruiser or Bronco. A LR Defender or Disvovery Sport with air suspension is also something to look at. The last thing you need is to hydrolock your engine so bear in mind that a rated wading depth is for static water.

And a snorkel shouldn’t be off the table depending on your needs. The Bronco Everglades fits this niche.

Unless traveling with a more capable rig, I wouldn’t attempt this type of fording (deeper than 14-16”) without at least a remotely operated demountable electric winch. And although modern AWD tech is marvelous, you almost certainly want locking differentials and off-road tires.

Finally, ask yourself whether you want to subject a brand new vehicle to this type of use, with the understanding there aren’t many deals to be found on a used late model vehicle right now.

[/quote]

This is good advice. Definitely consider a snorkel and a winch.

They can be a PITA with re: to maintenance, but for these requirements, if I didn’t want a Jeep, I’d get an older Land Rover (Discovery or LR4) or an older Toyota Land Cruiser and put on a snorkel and a winch. If you don’t mind beating up an expensive car, new Land Rovers are underrated as trail vehicles.

If you don’t need a shorter wheel base and you want towing capacity, a new 4WD truck is another option. More ground clearance and the new club cabs are huge and would accommodate the kids and dogs. My DH traded his old Land Rover (that finally just died) for a Ram, and he loves it. [/quote]

Anyone who doesnt know how to drive through running water should take a class or at least go out on trails before attempting it by themselves. You can have the perfect set up and still end up drowning. [/quote]

Like others, I was trying to answer the question OP asked without giving a lot of unsolicited advice.  The fact that OP is asking is a good sign as they understand they need a better vehicle. If OP wanted the safe option, they’d be looking in a gated community.  Having the right equipment is a significant issue — I’ve forded rivers in Alaska where the water was half way up the windows in a truck with a snorkel and we were fine. The standard equipment suvs & trucks that were abandoned in the middle of the river, not so much.

If I were giving unsolicited advice, I’d say that, no matter what equipment you have, don’t assume you can access this property 100% of the time. Unless you’ve seen the stream in all seasons, don’t underestimate how much a stream can vary by the time of year and even day to day. There are likely to be days or weeks in the early spring when the stream is impassible because of high water, and I’d also worry about winter.  Falling through ice to running water is no joke, either.  Remember the “Into the Wild” kid?  In addition to being an idiot who refused the offer of a map and food supplies, his fatal error was not knowing that the river he easily forded in the low water season would be impassable during the spring melt (although if he’d had a map he would have known about the hand tram that would carry him across the river, so the no map was fatal error #2). [/quote]

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