Snowboarding Forum - Snowboard Enthusiast Forums banner

Your Snowboard Vehicle.

383K views 2K replies 556 participants last post by  speedjason 
G
#1 ·
New to the forums. Currently have a BMW 330xi as my vehicle to get to the mountain. See where that's a problem? More than a couple inches on the road and I am screwed..


Looking for input on what vehicles you all drive to the mountain. I have about 12k to put into this. Maybe more.

Thanks for input--

-Alex
 
#1,652 ·
I went out for a pre season 4x4 test the other day. Unfortunately my pickup is too low and long for challenging trails so not much of a 4wd test but I did get a chance to work out the rear locker on a hill and crawl in 4lo a little. All the Jeep guys thought I was a poser for sure.
 
#1,659 ·
I don't mind IFS for daily driving. My pickup does good in mud and better in snow than anything I've driven. But it's definitely not an extreme off road setup.

I think the Wrangler will die if they give it an independent suspension in front. Solid front axle is 90% of the reason people buy them. For anything but crawling there are tons of vehicles just as capable.

It takes a lot of work to make IFS rock worthy. Check out petersons ultimate adventure f150 from a couple years ago. That said for a DD that does light offroading I prefer IFS.

I'm sure now that so many former solid axle off roaders are now independent more kits will enter to beef them up. But I'm not a fan of unibodies for off roading AT ALL.
 
#1,660 ·
Sounds like the Wranglers are also headed towards an aluminum frame which is pretty awesome from a weight point of view but I can only imagine is going to increase the cost of modifications. I don't know much about welding but I've been told welding aluminum takes some skill / practice compared to steel.
 
#1,662 ·
Aluminum frames would render steel parts that bolt onto the frame (bumpers, rock sliders, skid plates) worthless. I don't know all the fancy scientific words, but the reason is that when aluminum gets bent, it can't be bent back without completely compromising the structural integrity of the metal. The reason you bolt steel parts to the frame of offroad vehicles is to take hits from obstacles. If the parts get damaged, you just hammer them back out because steel can be bent and reshaped without issue. If a steel part takes a hit that's bolted onto an aluminum frame, the frame would absorb the impact and bend (vehicle is totalled). As such, you'd have to use aluminum parts. But aluminum parts cost a lot more money, because aluminum is a lot more expensive than steel. And if you damage an aluminum part, you can't fix it. It needs to be trashed. And to top it all off, there's nothing saying a hit to an aluminum part won't still transfer to the aluminum frame and damage it.

TL;DR: Aluminum frames are a terrible idea for an off-road vehicle. If the Wrangler goes aluminum (which I'm sure Fiat will do because they are one of the worst car companies on the planet) then they will just become another mall cruiser with no offroad capability that beta guys drive to look/feel tough while still getting good gas mileage.
 
#1,676 ·
Some of the fun stuff about half an hour from my house...









Wish I had stopped and got pics of some of the trails. The tougher stuff were sections with ruts about 2.5' deep on a road that was perched on the side of a hill. Had to be careful through that section. And another slope that was probably about 25 degrees, with boulders/rocks at just the right height to take out your diff if you weren't careful.

My favorite section was where the road was washed out, and the approach on the other side was about 3' of a vertical wall, followed by a solid 40 degree hill climb. Got through all that and some ATVers at the end of the road looked at us like we had three heads!

Stock '98 4Runner and TRD Tundra. Both with good tires.
 
#1,680 ·
I've mentioned it before I think, last summer had to ford some water in my pickup... It was pretty deep, once the AC belt started squeaking I knew that was the deepest I was ever going to go thru, ever. :hope:


Screw that! I'll take gumbo mud with no water over that any day!
 
#1,681 ·
I got another car because my car got rear ended on the highway while I was stopped in traffic.. the women behind me hit me doing about 30

I ended up getting a '05 Subaru Legacy GT sedan this time a little weird since I haven't driven a sedan since like 2004-2005, and the cross bar setup for a sedan is crazy expensive.. so for now I will be using the pass through
 

Attachments

#1,694 ·
Perfect car for me. I need the cargo but dont need heavy cargo like a truck, need the mpg and size to gangster the snow awd sedan styles. My 2 door civic is the perfect vehicle but something just like it in awd but small is what I seek.

Maybe a regular Golf but the obvious answer is the Golf R, but a little outta my price range atm. May be able to stretch current car until it is....
 
#1,711 ·
Im looking into buying a suzuki sx4 hatchback. Its kind of an ugly car, but you can lock in the front and rear differentials if you need to. Its a really capable vehicle at a decent price. It probably feels like a cheap ride compared to my maxima...but for functionality and dependability it would be a great car. I would only buy one with a manual though.
 
#1,715 ·
If you take care of that Bronco it'll last way longer than your patience and tolerance for its fuel consumption. If it's really pristine it's a rarity and it's understandable for a guy to cringe at it getting bumps. Vehicles were made to be driven, though! Those things are beasts. Just needs a 7.3L in it like my truck...
 
#1,716 ·
I wouldnt put a 7.3 (im assuming youre talking diesel) in a half ton ford bronco. That would add alot of weight up front that you can actually feel when you are rocking around on bumps and going up hills. Plus you would have to rebuild the front end stronger to accomodate for the extra weight. If you arent familiar with the 351...they have gobs of usable hp and torque. Even with the 33's or whatever hes rocking on this Bronco...the 351 is going to do everything you need it to and a bit more. Climbing a steep grade off road? Put it in low lock. Theres no advantage to having a 7.3 diesel in this guys rig unless hes pulling a 10,000lb trailer.

If he were to do a diesel conversion....a 5.9 cummins would be a way better recommendation.
 
#1,717 ·
Our two snowboarding vehicles (and the curse of living rural).
Both AWD, both very solid on snow n ice.

The slim mountain goat, Toyota Rav4 where boards of 164 length in bags fit diagonally. Not as much fun factor driving as the XC60, but steady and economical


And the ice bear, Volvo XC60 with more loading capacity (164 boards in bags fit straight), more luxury, more power, more fun, but also may more coins for insurance/gas station/a.s.o.


BTW: I drive a Toyota because... ;)
 
#1,718 ·
BTW: I drive a Toyota because... ;)
My Camry had 455,000 km on it when I sold her. Base model 2.2L 4 cyl that just took a beating.

My MR2 Supercharged, and Lexus SC400 were both in the high 300,000 km range when I took them to the drag strips. And ran faster times than the magazines were getting with them brand new. :hairy:

And I've worked on a lot of cars, in many cases they're easier to fix than other brands. Just better engineered...
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top