Rock Crawling Ranger

[Jms81661]

Just came back from a quick trip up to Sedona. I was finally able to check out the 4 wheel drive controls. I aired down to 24 lbs,was going to go lower but found it wasn’t necessary, it was very smooth over the washboard fire roads. We hit a few good stair steppers and I set the terrain management control to gravel and then the trail control to 3-4 mph for some of the steep/deeper steps. The Ranger climbed these effortlessly and at times where I wanted more speed you just give it some gas and take over and let off and it goes right back to your set mph setting. I’m also extremely happy with the Nitto Ridge Grapplers as the highway ride was very smooth and quite and they never slipped one bit off road. I would not have felt comfortable doing any of these steps or going over sharp rock beds with the stock Hankook tires!

This truck has exceeded my expectations and the technology just blows me away and I’m glad I splurged and went with the Lariat and all the options. An even better surprise was after washing it there was no desert pin striping which was amazing as there was a few very tight brush areas. All in all it was a really fun day and it was the first time I actually got to put some miles on since taking delivery back in July.

One last observation. I’ve made this trip many times in my Tacoma and hated every minute of it. You leave the valley at around 970 ft and Sedona is at 4800 ft so it’s a constant uphill climb. The Tacoma would always be reving very high (3500 rpm’s+ and sometimes up to 5000) and constantly shifting in/out of gears where as the ranger was so smooth, it was a consistent 2200 rpm’s for the most part,the highest I saw was 2500 but I was doing 85 up a steep incline. I really like the lane assist and all the other sensors but didn’t use the adaptive cruise control.

That looks like an awesome trail.?

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[Jms81661]

Hi Dave,

There a bunch of places here in Green Valley that are challenging. Our local Off Road Club had weekly events.. One of the fellows bought a Jeep and thought he was the "cat's Meow". The group approached a rather difficult transition and this guy tried to show the way but flipped the new Jeep on its side. They dragged it out of the transition on its side....Brand new and some $13,000 later (not paid by insurance) this jerk learned the hard way.. The other jeeps and Rangers made it through just fine. Take away is approach. get out, study, plan and then carefully navigate...Go through boldly and maybe you will just be embarrassed enough to have a catastrophic vehicle event. He was banished from the club.. A two star General in the Air Force that "knew everything" better than anyone else. When I taught the advanced off road school...this two star violated all of our teachings... He has no clue of my "skill set" because my father was just a lowly Major... We have no current relationship due to his embarrassment.

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

If not sure, "always" get out, assess the situation, and plan your tracking. Experienced spotter is always a plus.

 

[AzScorpion]

That looks like an awesome trail.?

It is a fun trail and there are a few other goods ones out there too. You don't need to use the trail control but I wanted to test it out as I never used one before. It's a good idea to get familiar with it just in case you run into a situation where you need it. Years ago we rented a side x side and hit a bunch of these trails which was fun at much faster speeds. ?

 

[peterson1604]

Great pics! I may be from Michigan but Sedona is one of my favorite places. ?

 

[AzScorpion]

Great pics! I may be from Michigan but Sedona is one of my favorite places. ?

What's nice is I'm only 90 minutes away so we go there at least 1-2 times a year. We usually stay just outside of Sedona in Cottonwood as it's half the price for lodging and food. Jerome is another cool little mining town to go to if you're ever back out there. There's rumor it's haunted. ?

 

[dondonbabyraptor]

Would you recommend staying away from trails like this without a skid plate? I want to go towards Sedona in a month but reading this thread made me a little more nervous since I have a basic lariat with no fx4 just 4x4. Really new to off roading beyond washboard and some minor rocks, nothing crazy.

 

[AzScorpion]

Would you recommend staying away from trails like this without a skid plate? I want to go towards Sedona in a month but reading this thread made me a little more nervous since I have a basic lariat with no fx4 just 4x4. Really new to off roading beyond washboard and some minor rocks, nothing crazy.

I would recommend getting one if you're going to try any of these trails. My skid plate has a few good scrapes in it and while I'm not sure if they're just from Sedona I can bet some are. There are several other trails there that are easy too where you should be fine going off road without one. If you stop any one of the off road rental places (they're everywhere on 89A downtown) just ask them for an off road trail map and have them show you some of the less rocky trails.

You don't need the Fx4 package for any of these but I do have larger tires (32's) and a front level which helps. I knew ahead of time how these trails were because years ago we rented a side x side and did all of them then. IIRC the very first picture is the Outlaw trail and there's a good size berm you need to go over at the begging of the trail. When I had my stock '16 Tacoma I remember rubbing hard on the rear hitch coming off that but that was with stock tires. I wouldn't worry to much there's a lot of good trails there and you'll love it. Depending on how long you're going for Sedona can get very expensive for food and lodging. There are some really nice hotels and restaurants about 20 minutes from there in Cottonwood which are half the price.

 

[dondonbabyraptor]

I would recommend getting one if you're going to try any of these trails. My skid plate has a few good scrapes in it and while I'm not sure if they're just from Sedona I can bet some are. There are several other trails there that are easy too where you should be fine going off road without one. If you stop any one of the off road rental places (they're everywhere on 89A downtown) just ask them for an off road trail map and have them show you some of the less rocky trails.

You don't need the Fx4 package for any of these but I do have larger tires (32's) and a front level which helps. I knew ahead of time how these trails were because years ago we rented a side x side and did all of them then. IIRC the very first picture is the Outlaw trail and there's a good size berm you need to go over at the begging of the trail. When I had my stock '16 Tacoma I remember rubbing hard on the rear hitch coming off that but that was with stock tires. I wouldn't worry to much there's a lot of good trails there and you'll love it. Depending on how long you're going for Sedona can get very expensive for food and lodging. There are some really nice hotels and restaurants about 20 minutes from there in Cottonwood which are half the price.

Thank you so much for all this information and tips!! It is very helpful. I ended up pulling the trigger on some bilstein 1500's and the skid plate, and the transfer case skid plate since I didn't want to risk hurting the baby. Just need to figure out what tires exactly with the 1500's, it's a lot of new information and I definitely need to research more. Is there a tire you recommend? A lot of people mention k02's. But, I really appreciate the very helpful response already. Thank you.

 

[doug910]

Thank you so much for all this information and tips!! It is very helpful. I ended up pulling the trigger on some bilstein 1500's and the skid plate, and the transfer case skid plate since I didn't want to risk hurting the baby. Just need to figure out what tires exactly with the 1500's, it's a lot of new information and I definitely need to research more. Is there a tire you recommend? A lot of people mention k02's. But, I really appreciate the very helpful response already. Thank you.

Bfg K02's are the gold standard for A/T tires. However they can be pricey. Here are some alternatives that offer great value without sacrificing performance or drivability on-road: Falken Wildpeak AT3W, Nitto Ridge Grappler, General Grabber ATX, and Toyo Open Country AT3. Hope that helps!

 

[dondonbabyraptor]

Bfg K02's are the gold standard for A/T tires. However they can be pricey. Here are some alternatives that offer great value without sacrificing performance or drivability on-road: Falken Wildpeak AT3W, Nitto Ridge Grappler, General Grabber ATX, and Toyo Open Country AT3. Hope that helps!

Great tire suggestions, will look into them. Thank you very much.

 

[AzScorpion]

Thank you so much for all this information and tips!! It is very helpful. I ended up pulling the trigger on some bilstein 1500's and the skid plate, and the transfer case skid plate since I didn't want to risk hurting the baby. Just need to figure out what tires exactly with the 1500's, it's a lot of new information and I definitely need to research more. Is there a tire you recommend? A lot of people mention k02's. But, I really appreciate the very helpful response already. Thank you.

The shocks and skids will be perfect out there. As far as tires go I have the Nitto Ridge Grangers and really like them a lot. They're aggressive for off road but still super quiet on the street. I never had the K02's but heard they great tires too. Mine are 265/70/17 and didn't have to remove or adjust the crash bars and no rubbing at full lock. All the trails in Sedona are manageable even with a stock Ranger (see video below) and just take it slow and you'll be fine.

 

[dondonbabyraptor]

The shocks and skids will be perfect out there. As far as tires go I have the Nitto Ridge Grangers and really like them a lot. They're aggressive for off road but still super quiet on the street. I never had the K02's but heard they great tires too. Mine are 265/70/17 and didn't have to remove or adjust the crash bars and no rubbing at full lock. All the trails in Sedona are manageable even with a stock Ranger (see video below) and just take it slow and you'll be fine.

Wow, very good video. I can see where a skid plate would be very helpful. Although, that trail specifically seems very daunting to a newbie at off roading. I am not sure if I would choose too many stupid lines, perhaps I need to watch more off roading videos to learn more. Thank you for the tire suggestion, I will take a peek at it.

 

[charwest]

Would you recommend staying away from trails like this without a skid plate? I want to go towards Sedona in a month but reading this thread made me a little more nervous since I have a basic lariat with no fx4 just 4x4. Really new to off roading beyond washboard and some minor rocks, nothing crazy.

i'll chime in. we have been offroading and crawling around in a stock truck. the skid plates get a lot of action. but only when we are really offroading, not dirt-roading. now granted its hard to know whether we would really be taking transmission/whatever strikes (the skid plate does lose you some clearance in those areas), but for the price i cant imagine anyone offroading begrudging the purchase. i have heard the stock plates are pretty reasonably priced from the dealer. or you could buy some fancy heavier aftermarket thing im sure.

Thank you so much for all this information and tips!! It is very helpful. I ended up pulling the trigger on some bilstein 1500's and the skid plate, and the transfer case skid plate since I didn't want to risk hurting the baby. Just need to figure out what tires exactly with the 1500's, it's a lot of new information and I definitely need to research more. Is there a tire you recommend? A lot of people mention k02's. But, I really appreciate the very helpful response already. Thank you.

we chose the goodyear wrangler duratrac and have been really happy. there is one or two long threads on it ive posted to. its expensive, but we feel gives us the best balance of offroad-capable/road-friendly tires otherwise. im not a tire evangelist, but since it wasnt on the list posted previously i thought i would chime in.

Wow, very good video. I can see where a skid plate would be very helpful. Although, that trail specifically seems very daunting to a newbie at off roading. I am not sure if I would choose too many stupid lines, perhaps I need to watch more off roading videos to learn more. Thank you for the tire suggestion, I will take a peek at it.

well, my wife and i (newbies ourselves) did that trail. and it was totally doable, if you can tolerate some clanging as the frame/plates take some hits. there was no damage of concern. but it was spicy on that drop and maybe we just got lucky. we were told repeatedly out there by other trucks and jeeps "you wont make it" but we made it. fwiw.

and after that trail and many subsequent others, i feel that one of the reasons that my wife and i can safely grapple with some trickier trails on our own despite our inexperience is that when it gets tricky you can just get out of the car and have a spotter. if the spotter can pick a line and communicate, the driver in a stock ranger can manage all kinds of stuff easily that a lifted jeep on 37s would just drive over without the same kind of attention.

and what makes the ranger so good for that kind of driving is the incredible 4-lo and low range torque, so that if i tell my wife to drive one inch forward, one inch back, turn left, two inches forward, three inches back, on a stiff incline with one wheel in the air and whatever, the ranger just DOES IT. the power in the low range makes it all so controlled and straightforward and gives us the confidence to poke our noses into the unknown.

 

[dondonbabyraptor]

i'll chime in. we have been offroading and crawling around in a stock truck. the skid plates get a lot of action. but only when we are really offroading, not dirt-roading. now granted its hard to know whether we would really be taking transmission/whatever strikes (the skid plate does lose you some clearance in those areas), but for the price i cant imagine anyone offroading begrudging the purchase. i have heard the stock plates are pretty reasonably priced from the dealer. or you could buy some fancy heavier aftermarket thing im sure.



we chose the goodyear wrangler duratrac and have been really happy. there is one or two long threads on it ive posted to. its expensive, but we feel gives us the best balance of offroad-capable/road-friendly tires otherwise. im not a tire evangelist, but since it wasnt on the list posted previously i thought i would chime in.



well, my wife and i (newbies ourselves) did that trail. and it was totally doable, if you can tolerate some clanging as the frame/plates take some hits. there was no damage of concern. but it was spicy on that drop and maybe we just got lucky. we were told repeatedly out there by other trucks and jeeps "you wont make it" but we made it. fwiw.

and after that trail and many subsequent others, i feel that one of the reasons that my wife and i can safely grapple with some trickier trails on our own despite our inexperience is that when it gets tricky you can just get out of the car and have a spotter. if the spotter can pick a line and communicate, the driver in a stock ranger can manage all kinds of stuff easily that a lifted jeep on 37s would just drive over without the same kind of attention.

and what makes the ranger so good for that kind of driving is the incredible 4-lo and low range torque, so that if i tell my wife to drive one inch forward, one inch back, turn left, two inches forward, three inches back, on a stiff incline with one wheel in the air and whatever, the ranger just DOES IT. the power in the low range makes it all so controlled and straightforward and gives us the confidence to poke our noses into the unknown.

Very detailed and appreciate the comments. I will have to look into those tires and you gave me a little more confidence in the trail. of course jeep purists can't believe the ability of other cars ahaha. the whole one tire in the air still frightens me a bit haha. I do truly believe the in the ranger's ability, just not mine

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