Long-time lurker, first-time caller here... And my Excursion isn't actually stuck at the moment. However, I've been stuck in my (in-town) driveway twice in the last couple weeks, once requiring a winch from the neighbor to get out. I need some advice on the order or upgrades to make this stop happening.
A little background... This fall I bought a 4x4 2000 Ford Excursion, 7.3 powerstroke, with a Waste Veg Oil system installed. Aside from a little rust, the truck is super clean and the WVO system runs great, even in the cold. Ignoring the fact that I pour what is essentially someone else's garbage into my modified fuel system, everything else about the truck is basically stock. Right down to the entirely worn out shocks and leaf springs.
Back to my primary concern. I live in Crested Butte, CO where we get a little snow. Roughly 11 feet so far this year. I get stuck frequently in places like my driveway, and this evening I actually got stuck in the middle of the street. This is entirely unacceptable and at least a little embarrassing. I've previously had an '86 and a '95 F250 that would easily drive through 3' of snow with nary a wheelspin. Where do I start to get my Excursion up to snuff?
The issues I see include:
- Open Diffs: I've quickly discovered that despite being 4wd, the truck has open differentials. Or at least the single spinning front and rear wheel leads me to believe so.
- Highway Tires: The truck came with nearly new Firestone Transforce HT tires in the stock 265/76/16. I'm sure they were great for surfing the pavement in Oklahoma where the truck came from, but they seem nearly useless here.
- Old Shocks and Springs: Not really a cause of getting stuck, but something I'd like to remedy at some point.
- Auxiliary Fuel Tank: Again not really a cause of getting stuck... Due to the WVO conversion there is an aux diesel tank mounted mid-ship between the frame rails. It hangs down a little and has its fuel filter hanging in front (right behind the transfer case). I'm not looking for any significant lift, but getting the rig up an extra inch or two and/or adding a skid plate under the transfer case and fuel filter would make me feel a little better.
I'm not looking to make the Excursion into a gigantic rock-crawler, and I want to keep the costs as reasonable as possible. I do want the truck to be respectable in the winter and also be capable of rambling around the back-roads in the summer.
So, where do I start?
PS- I unfortunately don't own the big house in the photo. The garage (full of bikes and skis) and apartment (not visible behind the snow) are ours, and the 1980 F150 is my wife's. The rest is a vacation rental.
A little background... This fall I bought a 4x4 2000 Ford Excursion, 7.3 powerstroke, with a Waste Veg Oil system installed. Aside from a little rust, the truck is super clean and the WVO system runs great, even in the cold. Ignoring the fact that I pour what is essentially someone else's garbage into my modified fuel system, everything else about the truck is basically stock. Right down to the entirely worn out shocks and leaf springs.
Back to my primary concern. I live in Crested Butte, CO where we get a little snow. Roughly 11 feet so far this year. I get stuck frequently in places like my driveway, and this evening I actually got stuck in the middle of the street. This is entirely unacceptable and at least a little embarrassing. I've previously had an '86 and a '95 F250 that would easily drive through 3' of snow with nary a wheelspin. Where do I start to get my Excursion up to snuff?
The issues I see include:
- Open Diffs: I've quickly discovered that despite being 4wd, the truck has open differentials. Or at least the single spinning front and rear wheel leads me to believe so.
- Highway Tires: The truck came with nearly new Firestone Transforce HT tires in the stock 265/76/16. I'm sure they were great for surfing the pavement in Oklahoma where the truck came from, but they seem nearly useless here.
- Old Shocks and Springs: Not really a cause of getting stuck, but something I'd like to remedy at some point.
- Auxiliary Fuel Tank: Again not really a cause of getting stuck... Due to the WVO conversion there is an aux diesel tank mounted mid-ship between the frame rails. It hangs down a little and has its fuel filter hanging in front (right behind the transfer case). I'm not looking for any significant lift, but getting the rig up an extra inch or two and/or adding a skid plate under the transfer case and fuel filter would make me feel a little better.
I'm not looking to make the Excursion into a gigantic rock-crawler, and I want to keep the costs as reasonable as possible. I do want the truck to be respectable in the winter and also be capable of rambling around the back-roads in the summer.
So, where do I start?
PS- I unfortunately don't own the big house in the photo. The garage (full of bikes and skis) and apartment (not visible behind the snow) are ours, and the 1980 F150 is my wife's. The rest is a vacation rental.
