Finally got mine out off for some off-pavement fun. I wanted this vehicle to be able to take me off the beaten path for some fun, and it looks like it will do just fine.
The Primitive Racing skid plates probably paid for themselves already; I did a short climb on loose softball sized rocks and tagged the rear several times, and the front once. I did not hit anything else underneath. I also did not stop and take action pics on this section, as someone apparently had holed their oil pan there and made a bit of a mess.
This is about as rough as I'd want to try, although I have no qualms about doing some off-camber stuff to get around larger rocks or dried ruts.
Bunch of oil-pan hatin' rocks:
I packed for a multi-day trip (not pictured) to see how the vehicle handled with a full load. The car handles just fine on and off road, no complaints. The rear diff was a bit lower than I had expected, but no more so than anything up front.
I did some very minor trimming on the factory jack bracket and the plastic paneling that the false floor rests on, and removed the false floor. (I can still put it back in) A 215/65 R16 on a factory alloy wheel will just barely fit in there without trimming; with trimming, it goes in and out easier. (It will of course be much taller than the factory donut spare, hence the removal of the lower trunk floor) I did not want to use up roof rack space on a spare, and don't plan on commuting to work with a rack on anyways. Some tool bags/rolls, a gas can, and a couple of hard cases with stuff like OBD scanners also live down in there.
Above that I have the factory flip-up cargo shelf and a pair of 8 gallon Action Packers. The totes contain a 12v compressor, tire repair, folding shovel, minor repair supplies, the sort of basic stuff I always have in the vehicle.
For longer trips I'm tossing in a third tote in the back seat with fluids/spares/recovery gear, as well as a cooler and a water can.
The underside of both front seats have humps that prevent stuff stored under them from shifting forward. I like this. I have some hard cases under there with medical stuff, GPS, etc.
Planned mods:
- I plan to replace the factory lifting trunk cargo cover with a fixed cargo shelf made from aluminum and HDPE sheet, with some tie down points on it. It should work for securing small bags, clothing, lunch coolers, etc., without blocking the view out the back. This will also help make use of some wasted space near the rear corner windows.
- I want to add some low profile Kydex pockets to the passenger side of the center console for storing odds and ends. The center console is actually not in the center of the car, it's more towards the driver's side. The side pockets in the doors are very handy, but also spoken for already.
- Run something to the trunk that I can run the air compressor off of, so I don't need to pop the hood to air up.
- Roof rack. I'm aiming to use some Frontrunner load bars to toss something together to carry some Maxtrax, and occasionally a 10L military fuel can/Rotopax/8 gallon Action Packer or two.
Overall shot. This is loaded with my regular stuff in; ride height is a bit higher in the back when empty, but not notably lower when full. This seems to be a very easy vehicle to clean; the driveway pics are after hitting up a manual car wash on the way home. I did hit up some mud holes today.
A note on the tires:
I've had a hint of rubbing on the front 2-3 times during parking lot maneuvers. I have not been able to find what I'm hitting, nor are there any marks I can see on the tires or on the plastic wheel well liners. I did not have any rubbing offroad.
