p. 1

$5.99us $6.99can march 2010 volume 44 n0.3

[close]

p. 2

[close]

p. 3

[close]

p. 4

[close]

p. 5

photogr a phy derek a dour aspiring young photographer derek adour got off a good shot of steve sourapas competing in the trophy truck class in the score terrible s primm 300 race in nevada back in september 2009.

[close]

p. 6

owner s manual.

[close]

p. 7

[close]

p. 8

march 2010 volume 44 number 3 74 features 26 garage fab-ulous departments off-road rant off-road unloaded off-road rides off-road hardware long-term updates desert dirt race results on the cover this month harry wagner got a great shot of jack stanko s 09 chevy 2500 4x4 we ll be looking into some more solid axle swaps soon a 20-year-old s 05 chevy prerunner 30 36 original slim an f-250 gets its second chance photoshoot storm trooper a brand new chevy 2500 solid axle truck 12 14 16 18 22 24 90 events/adventure/misc 58 other people s projects tech inspections 50 instant support truck keeping your gear in the rear 48 49 play it cool making sure transmissions stay cool 74 78 80 82 tighten up your ifs worktruck bracket-style lift kit for an hd chevy buying someone else s abandoned ride keeping the raptor gated up installing a tiregate on the new ford haulin air an airbag adjustable ford suspension 52 securing the hard parts keeping everything safely secure in your 4x4 62 66 68 71 theme heavy duty trucks original super duty lifting leaf-sprung super duty suspension bully dog rapid flow exhaust new ceramic-coated exhaust technical 42 living with 47s part two we make our growlers fit a little better hd steering for hd chevys fix your chevy s steering woes permanently fixing a powerstroke adding an egr cooler and oil cooler kit a dodge triple threat affordable high-end dodge suspension 86 87 ditch the death wobble ford track bar fix 44 8 brake job servicing drum brakes march 2010 a better 6.0 turbo more reliable power out of a 6.0l dt-profab heavy duty track bar upgrade dodge track bar fix off-road

[close]

p. 9

[close]

p. 10

editorial jerrod jones senior editor jordan may managing editor patrick vuong contributing editors jon acuff kevin blumer lindsay dennis frank gilliland jay kopycinski dirk saters editor-in-chief web producer jason gonderman art direc tion design art director brad crowder the truck group on the web www.off-roadweb.com www.4wdandsportutility.com www.4wheeloffroad.com www.dieselpowermag.com www.fourwheeler.com www.jpmagazine.com www.minitruckinweb.com www.sporttruck.com www.truckinweb.com subscriber services 800 926-5783 international phone 386 447-6385 offroad@emailcustomerservice.com p.o box 420235 palm coast fl 32142-0235 please include name address and phone number on any inquiries back issues to order back issues log onto www.simbackissues.com or write to source interlink media back issues 2900 amber lane corona ca 92882 cost $7 each plus $3 shipping and handling please specify which magazine and issue date if this is not specified your check money order will be returned to you allow 3 4 weeks for delivery editorial contributions welcomed but editors recommend that contributors query first contribution must be accompanied by return postage and we assume no responsibility for loss or damage thereto manuscripts must be typewritten on white paper and all photographs must be accompanied by captions photo model releases required on all persons in photos off-road reserves the right to use material at its discretion and we reserve the right to edit material to meet our requirements upon publication payment will be made at our current rate and that said payment will cover author s and contributor s rights of the contribution contributor s act of mailing contribution shall constitute an express warranty that the material is original and no infringement on the rights of others mail contributions to off-road magazine 2400 e katella ave ste 1100 anaheim ca 92806 occasionally our subscriber list is made available to reputable firms offering goods and services that we believe would be of interest to our readers if you prefer to be excluded please send your current address label and note requesting to be excluded from these promotions to source interlink media llc 261 madison ave new york ny 10016 attn privacy coordinator advertising information please call off-road advertising department 323 782-2649 related publications classic trucks custom classic trucks european car 4 wheel drive sport utility magazine high performance pontiac gm high tech performance honda tuning hot bike import tuner lowrider lowrider arte mini truckin muscle mustangs fast fords off-road popular hot rodding street chopper street rodder super chevy surfing truckin vette and other specialty magazines reprints for inquiries of 100 or more call reprint department at 281 419-5725 audit bureau of circulations printed in u.s.a copyright © 2010 by source interlink magazines llc all rights reserved printed in the usa.

[close]

p. 11

publisher advertising jeff nasi 310 531-9888 jason bukolt nick green david hamilton dvin keshish miguel moreno scott newell virginia wright glenda mack associate publisher advertising sales representatives advertising operations coordinator administrative assistant anaheim 2400 e katella ave ste 1100 anaheim ca 92806 714 939-2400 los angeles 831 s douglas st el segundo ca 90245 310 531-9900 new york 261 madison ave new york ny 10016 212 915-4000 detroit 31700 telegraph road suite 250 bingham farms mi 48025 248 594-5999 chicago 500 n dearborn st ste 1100 chicago il 60610 312 396-0600 tampa 9036 brittany way tampa fl 33619 813 675-3500 truck group doug evans howard lim vp sales operations warren kosikov editorial director douglas mccolloch group art director robert munoz group operations director amy diamond senior operations director pauline atwood svp/group publisher vp/group publisher officers of sourceinterlinkcom pa nies i n c chairman and gregory mays chief executive officer president and chief operating officer president source interlink distribution chief financial officer general counsel james r gillis alan tuchman marc fierman cynthia l beauchamp president of digital media source interlink media llc greg goff chief operating officer chris argentieri svp chief creative officer alan alpanian svp chief revenue marketing officer svp digital brad gerber svp business development john cobb jacqueline blum svp manufacturing kevin mullan production vp finance colleen artell co n su mermarketing sou rc einterlinkm ed i a l lc svp single copy rich baron vp circulation planning arlene perez operations consumer marketing enthusiast media subscription company inc vp consumer marketing tom slater

[close]

p. 12

by jerrod jones it felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders when i recently buttoned up the last few things on my red 94 dodge ram after more than 10 years of this truck being a project and a pain looming over my head my old red truck has reached daily driver status once again i m sure a lot of you understand there is something so satisfying about finishing a long-time project relief is the only and best word i can think up for what came over me and only one year late the truck is ready to take its trip north towards canada that i ve been itching to go on snow is already on the ground again and as soon as we get next month s magazine issue out the door i m heading toward some white fluffiness in my old truck as i was driving it around the other day i realized how happy i was to put my 16-year-old ride back together instead of buying some new fancy truck long ago my dad ingrained it into to my head to take care of my stuff instead of just trashing it and buying new stuff every few years in fact upkeep and maintenance to your belongings is one of the best types of environmental conservation that s part of the reason why i m not buying into these green marketing campaigns that claim you re being eco-friendly if you run out and buy a new car isn t it more eco-friendly for me to just properly maintain an already-existing vehicle instead of paying for another vehicle to be produced from a bunch of precious resources in fact i wonder how many miles i d have to drive to make my already existing truck s emissions 12 off-road march 2010 do more environmental damage than producing an entirely new vehicle and driving it for the same amount of miles while you re thinking about this remember to include the natural resources and energy used for production the energy needed for shipping parts for production shipping the vehicle to a dealership after it s produced and any other incremental environmental costs i m certainly not recommending to stop buying new vehicles as a new vehicle is often the most practical and logical choice for some people and there is no question that a new vehicle puts out less harmful emissions than an older vehicle but don t be fooled by some crafty marketing strategy that makes you think you re a sinner if you re driving some old ride there are many valid reasons to purchase a new car but saving the world should not be one of them that s how people end up driving ugly hybrids or this month we worked on a bunch of heavy-duty fullsize trucks and addressed a lot of issues that they sometimes see we also delved a little further into our daily driver with 47-inch tires a cherokee we ll be putting some 1-ton axles on next month i like this it s just funny now and i am growing fond of the running joke or nonrunning joke of a truck that amazes us if it doesn t break down call me sick but i think i like this truck more every time it comes back from a shop it makes it more exciting to drive when it s actually working and yes here is the super duty on the side of the road again we re not yet sure what happened this time i was on my way to the clean-dezert.org barstow cleanup when the truck just shut down and wouldn t restart this might be an instance in which just buying a new truck might be more practical but then again who wants practicality when you could get to know a bunch of diesel mechanics really well instead?

[close]

p. 13

extreme off-roaders will appreciate the great ride and handling that this mud tire has on the highway the mtz has mickey thompson s powerplytm sidewalls with a special angled third ply to give you high performance handling better puncture resistance and improved towing capability advanced radial construction for high mileage smooth ride self cleaning high-void tread lugs for traction in mud snow deep shoulder lugs provide aggressive traction and bold looks enhanced sidebiters® for added traction protection siped tread lugs for better grip on smooth surfaces ice outlined white letters on traditional sizes the powerplytm is an angled third ply running across the two radial plies linking them together and strengthening the tire in cornering the plies twist far less giving the tire greater traction and faster steering response in addition mickey thompson s powerplytm 3-ply sidewall construction provides greater towing capability increased sidewall protection better resistance to punctures and impacts and better off road performance official tire of baja atz plus baja atz baja mtz baja claw for a dealer near you call 866-943-6742

[close]

p. 14

by jerrod jones realistic wheeler first off i love the new off-road magazine i just received my november `09 copy today and read your rant column i agree totally my younger brother has an `06 chevy 1500 crew cab with a bds suspension lift and body lift 4.11 gears a superchips programmer fancy wheels and 35-inch tires to name a few things it s an awesome rig but he s also in his 20s lives at home and puts every dime into his rig and then some i have a daily driven `97 4runner which i bought wrecked it has a 3-inch all pro lift 285 duratrac tires a swapped in junkyard factory e-locked rear axle custom fabbed prerunner bumpers and a wilderness rack mine is paid for and here in wisconsin it wheels great i also have a family to worry about and my 4runner is a safe reliable family adventuremobile isn t that what offroading is all about he and i wheel together with friends and family and we re all able to go out have a great weekend get home safely and have great stories and pictures for work on monday morning i have not fallen victim to the magazine syndrome yet and instead spend the cash on the places we travel and great times we have and will have in our toy thanks for letting me rant and keep up the great work justin kolbus rosholt wi this issue the letter of the month winner is getting sent a pair of daystar four wheeling is not a crime mudlfaps yes they are awesome get yourself a set at your local 4x4 shop or check out www.daystarweb.com realistic blazer builder thank you so much for your rant in the november `09 issue i get so tired of the response that you have to have a `60 or coilovers etc i know most people don t have that deep of pockets i ve always felt part of wheeling is to make whatever you have last and still get through the trail i run a `77 blazer that is mostly off-road only it has 35s a dana 44 front with an ox locker a 12 bolt rear axle with a lockright locker and 4.88 gears i also swapped in a 383 v-8 tpi from a camaro and a 700r4 tranny and np241 t-case from a suburban i wheel hard in moab on the rubicon in the northwest and it holds together just fine i miss the days when every rig was unique i guess the cookie cutter jeeps have done a lot of good to get people into our sport but we are losing the learning curve that most of us that are old enough went through years ago as we slowly created our rigs thanks for a great mag jay deangelis mulino or sounds like you have a cool blazer jay i m a big k5 fan myself i ve had a 74 a 75 a 73 and right now i own two new `74s i definitely understand what you are saying about the cookie cutter jeeps and the lack of uniqueness in vehicle building nowadays in fact that sounds like another good rant since you re a blazer nut too maybe i ll see you at blazer bash sometime and you can show me off the daystar mudflaps you re receiving since you wrote our letter of the month -jerrod realistic racer `been a long time fan of your magazine i just wanted to say that i agree with you 110 percent about magazine syndrome most of us just want to put our trucks together and get out on the trails yeah it s nice to read about a custom one-off four-link set up but the reality is most of us will never have the disposable income to spend like that anyways my friend and i just finished our `03 toyota tacoma class 1450 truck we built the entire truck in his mother-in-law s garage up in alta loma california i m glad to say we finally made it into your fine off-road magazine october `09 s race results we placed fifth at the mdr bilek 400 #1452 juan sanchez my name is on the passenger door co-driver anyways i love your magazine and keep up the good work ryan venegas ontario ca what it takes to race i just wanted to say that i love reading your magazine i get something from just about every article right now i m in afghanistan but i have a project ranger at home and big plans in my head a v-8 swap full rollcage 37s and a four-link i want to 14 off-road march 2010

[close]

p. 15

editor s note if you want to say or ask something email unloaded at jerrod.jones@off-roadweb.com or write unloaded off-road magazine 2400 e katella ave ste 1100 anaheim ca 92806 remember we re giving away swag every month to the author of our favorite letter be sure to include your address so we know where to send your goods and because we lost our copyeditor please know that we are not going to be copyediting your letter if you are going to be hating on us so you better check it over well before sending it our way thanks from the sands of dubai balanced on top of a dubai sand dune i ll just give it a little shove to get it moving paul wade dubai race the truck at least once when it s done and i was wondering if you could point me in the right direction to find information on what i can and cannot do to my truck to have it in a certain class also do you know how much registration fees and similar expenses may cost thanks for any help cpl andrew custer usmc r 5/11 andrew i just got this letter but i m hoping you ve already received a copy of the january 2010 issue of off-road that has multiple stories on what it takes to go racing i realize that sometimes mail can be sketchy coming all the way from the usa to the middle east so just in case you didn t get a copy i m sending you one to the address you gave me regarding fees and expenses it is very hard to put a price on these teams spend anywhere from half a million dollars on one race to just a few thousand dollars at a grass-roots level generally the bigger the race circuit the more you ll have to spend you need to incur the costs of fuel lodging and food for you and your support chase team and don t forget about entry fees the cost of broken parts and any extra equipment you ll have to buy helmets race suits etc on the ranger is this possible on a-arm 4wd rangers if so what brand of hubs are they i d like to have manual hubs instead of shift-on-the-fly 4wd just in case it fails in the middle of a silt bed on any race course or secondary road while chasing or prerunning i ve considered trading my `00 ranger for a `97 model with ttb where more wheel travel can be achieved and manual hubs installed but it s not easy getting one of that year in good condition thanks a lot for your advice and your magazine jorge ishikawa mexicali baja mexico jorge our web producer jason gonderman owns that ranger and he tells me that the hubs are from avm and work on trucks with the pulse vacuum hub from 98-tomid 00 also on a side note i d suggest keeping your a-arm ranger i know it is easy to get lots of travel out of the ttb front end but a ttb ranger will never handle as well as your a-arm ranger will mann glassworks fiberwerx perry s and trailer products make fenders for 03-to 06 chevy silverado i ve looked at the difference between the chevy headlight assembly and the gmc headlight assembly and they look as different as a cow and a pig i emailed hannamann fiberglass because they claim to make a fender that will fit a gmc but by judging the contour of where the headlight assembly fits it looks like it was made for the silverado they also told me in the email that i would have to do some cutting to make the fender fit what is your take on this subject should i listen to the pros and hack up a perfect fender to make it fit or is there another manufacturer that makes a fender that will work with no major cutting involved thanks dan furlong oceanside ca dan i guess this has never come up before because i had no idea there weren t gmc fiberglass fenders available after gm split the front end designs of the chevys and gmcs honestly i couldn t do any better with a search engine than you did and i was unable to come up with any gmc fiberglass at all since we have some pretty knowledgeable readers i d like to pass this question onto anyone that might know where to find some 06 gmc sierra fiberglass if you know of a good source please email jerrod.jones@off-roadweb com and i will pass any information onto dan thanks everyone or w w w o f f roadweb c o m manual ranger hubs going back a year or so you had the project 4x4 link based on a `99 ranger in a photo in the december 2008 issue i can see what seems to be manual locking hubs where do you find gmc fiberglass first off i want to say i m addicted to off-road magazine i am building an `06 gmc sierra crew cab and i m having a very hard time finding front fiberglass for it all the fiberglass manufacturers like hanna 15

[close]