HI! Newb with a question...

[Mr. Moore]

hi everone! I just found this site and it is awsome. I have an '05 Ram 1500 quad cab 2wd with LSD...and my question is this: If I am not stupid (wich I am not... ) can a 2wd be fairly cabable off road if properly equipped? I know I need a small lift to get the front end up, better tires, winch and other recovery equipment....

I bought a 2wd because i neede something reliable and with less matenence cost as I don't have alot of extra cash since I am starting school and will be working only part time. I have alwasy wanted to do some short overland camping trips and I am hoping i can make my truck work for what I want to do. mostly mountain roads and hopefully some desert trips are what i am looking at as far as terrain. very mild trails will be in there too....and I hate mud....

hope I gave enough info without going overboard!

thanks in advance for any input!

 

[93BLAZER]

I got by with a 2WD for many years. I still rarely use 4WD even in my current rig. The only thing I would suggest is maybe some off road tires like a BFG At's or a cheaper equivalent. I use 4WD on graded dirt roads (for better traction and to keep me from fishtailing) more than I do any other time.

If you are off road, simply air down your tires. A 2WD truck aired down will do wonders in sand, mud and snow.

Take it slow, throttle when needed and a good tow rope will get you pretty far.

 

[93BLAZER]

and I hate mud

another good "off road" website...

www.ih8mud.com

 

[Mr. Moore]

thanks for the input... and yes off road tires are at the top of the list.... I am getting excited about getting out for andventure! it will be a slow process getting my truck ready with low fundage.....but I can't wait!

 

[mhiscox]

There's a school of thought that says that you drive in 2WD until you get stuck, use 4WD to get you unstuck, and then go a different way. If you can get yourself unstuck with a winch or another truck, you've got a workaround for no 4WD.

There's an awful lot of places to go with a 2WD truck. In fact, when I had the AdventureDuo's built-up LC80, I went to Central Oregon with a Unimog buddy and we went out of our way trying to find obscure roads where we'd do some four wheeling. Using the topo maps, the DeLorme atlas and three GPSs, we struggled to find anything that a stock pickup couldn't have done. The sites were plenty remote, and I'd have had a different story if the weather had been bad, but as it was, we never used 4WD on the most remote roads we could find.

Note, however, that we wanted to be traveling someplace, as opposed to trail running. Find a trail in an off-road area and the story is obviously different. But my experience--shared even with people's experience on other continents--is that if you are on something that qualifies as a road (country, logging, Forest Service, BLM, etc.) rather than a trail, you can do pretty well with 2WD in good weather if you have recovery gear and another vehicle and/or good emergency plans.

Of course, I've got a 2WD truck, too, so figure there's some "confirmation bias" at work here. :sombrero:

 

[Mr. Moore]

another oregonian!!!! thanks for the reply. I figured if I wasn't stupid I would be ok...it's just good to hear a little experience to back it up! I am going to do a leveling kit with 33" MT or AT tires and basic recovery equipment to start with. when I get to that point we should do an oregon GTG trip!

 

[wanderer-rrorc]

Ive wheeled 4x's for years...and several times didnt realize I wasnt in 4x untill it would get stuck...for a min...

my vanbuild in the sportsmobile section is a 2wd..and I really have no intention of making it 4x...some winches...locking differential..and some experiance...

and knowing *IF* I get stuck Im stuck with my wife..and 3 kids...((and that stresses me out ALOT more than being by myself stuck)) that if the trail gets nasty...we try and back out..or PRE-walk parts of a trail...(heck isnt it all about taking the journey...so my wife will have to walk a bit..take some pictures...and I get to goof off with the kids...its better than bein stuck and havin the kids freak out...)

get some good tires...Im runnin BFG commercial Traction TA's...get something more aggressive than an AT tire....a mud tire is best for offroad but they sell some nice aggressive street tires that make a good ballance of traction/noise/economy!!

 

[Mr. Moore]

good point about the tires....ATs are out and I will start shopping for somthing more aggressive. I will never again go over terrain where i might get stuck without walking it first! I learned my lesson the hard way with my old scout.....not doin that again!

 

[cliffslocal]

Mr. Moore. I'd be interested to hear what you do. I have a 2002 2wd quad with the 4.7. I've been pondering this for 6 months myself. While I'd love to go get a F250 PSD or Power Wagon I'm hesitant to spend the money and my current truck is paid for etc... Here are my concerns, let me know what you find. Either the 2" Coils or spacers (same idea) use the stock shock length as the shocks are the limiting factor on travel and if you put on longer shocks the coils can pop out, in theory anyway. Not to mention it puts extra stress on your ball joints etc... CST and I think Rough Country make a replacement spindle that is 3 1/2" but I have read you should get upper control arms for that setup so now we are at $1500 without shocks. These are the 2 routes I think are available to us without going 7" and I'm not interested in that. If I do it I may just do the spacers and Bilsteins and realize that when my wheel drops too for it can bottom out the shocks, i.e. go slow.

I think with this setup and a hi-lift and maybe an ARB or LSD in the back it would be fine for what I'm after (desert travel in southwest). Like a previous post said, I rarely used 4wd when I had my 92 and 97 Wranglers.

If anyone has experience with this setup I would love to hear more.

Mr. Moore. Let me know what you do. Good Luck!

 

[Mr. Moore]

I am planning to do the 2" spacers and new stock lengthshocks to start with, and if I dont like how that works out I will save up and get some spindles. from what I have read on the Dodgetalk forum (a great website) you dont have to change control arms or shocks because they simply drop the hub location and don't change any of the suspension geometry. But for cost reasons I am going to start with the spacers and new shocks. I am acctually going to start with tires and then the spacers/shocks..I have to do it in stages due to finaces.