[danlalan]

Heres the video if using a winch. Adervesh(altaf) Has an electronic winch which has been fitted on to his Gypsy. This helps him to get his car out if stuck. It comes with a remote. So all you do is sit tight in your Gypsy and with a wiggle of a few buttons you get your self out of the muck and on your way.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Az3uACW_2qE

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by danlalan

1) A winch
This really helps in pulling your own car out of a tight situation. Will post a video of Adervesh(Bhpian) getting his car out of the muck. To an extent you can also use to to pull out another vehicle on trouble.
This mechanism is usually bolted on to the front end of the car and can be controlled via a remote.

Winch can be very useful, but a good winch is also very expensive, almost half the price of the Jeep itself. Therefore many guys manage with just tow ropes.

Originally Posted by danlalan

3)Differential Guards.
These act as a protective cup for your axles. Since these are probably the lowest points of your offroading vehicle. It could if damaged leave you stranded.

Never seen these on any Jeep, do you have a photograph.

Originally Posted by danlalan

4) Hooks
The ones where your car gets towed away with by traffic cops. Make sure to have atleast one at both ends of the vehicle. This helps in pulling your jeep out or even pulling or towing others out. Also see that they arent weak. The last thing you want is a hook breaking, the only thing that can help you to remove your car from the muck.

The front one are called D rings. The rear one is usually a pintle hook.

Originally Posted by danlalan

6) A REALLY REALLY GOOD SET OF OFFROADING TIRES.
Very important to have the right psi and a good set of tires.
Stock tires would send you skidding all over the place. Once covered in muck even though you steer right you would go against that or in the direction of where the cars momentum is.

The best off-roading tyres are mud or M/T tyres, but they are dangerous on road since provide very little grip on tarmac. Most make the compromise and settle for A/T or all-terrain tyres which gives OK performance in on-road and off-road.

Originally Posted by danlalan

12) Bull bars and Grab rails.
So we at the back can hang on for our dear lives and enjoy the ride.

I don't see why bull-bars are needed. But roll-bars are very important.

[khan_sultan]

Diff Guard:

Originally Posted by Samurai

Never seen these on any Jeep, do you have a photograph....

Here is a picture of a duff guard. Can be fabricated here in India easily and I would say that it is a good add on/mod to have.

[Samurai]

Thanks, now I remember seeing this. This part was available for GV in some web site.

[khan_sultan]

Originally Posted by danlalan

... ive actually gone a couple of times with these hardcore Enthusiasts to lonavala(Rajmachi).

Its a lot of fun. But 1st timers have to be very very carefull also. You do get carried away sometimes knowing little that one wrong step could be really fatal for you and the others.

Good inputs danlalan. Thanks for sharing them here.

Can you share more from the perspective of a person 'who doesn't have a 4x4 and is accompanying 4x4 enthusiasts for an OTR'.
This way lots of folks here who DON'T have a 4x4 and want to go along on an OTR with a 4x4 owner can get a feel of what to expect and watch out for and how to get 'introduced to this adventure sport called off-roading.

Things that you mentioned; such as "winch, shovel, Diff Guards, Spare tire and puncture kit etc..." are things that the 'accompanying' person would NOT bother about. These are for the 4x4 owners/off-roaders to worry about -- nevertheless these are important points.

Keep your inputs flowing here.

[DirtyDan]

Originally Posted by khan_sultan

Here is a picture of a duff guard. Can be fabricated here in India easily and I would say that it is a good add on/mod to have.
Attachment 37875

**************
duff... noun, slang, offensive U.K. and Aus. term meaning a person's posterior or buttocks.
**************

Originally Posted by khan_sultan

..... and believe me; you haven't seen the "Dirty side of Dan". He will write a one-liner that will....

Shanawaz, my brother, I am the meekest, mildest and least offensive of all God's furry little animals. Why, just last month I led all Team-BHPers in the number of smiley faces used in posts.

New guys, some off-roaders carry extra gear oil in case their gear box or rear end starts leaking. If you run out you can temporarily use coconut milk, vegetable oil, bananas or best yet, motor oil. The place for these is in your diff (differential), not some other place the sun rarely blesses with its bright countenance.

[khan_sultan]

Originally Posted by DirtyDan

**************
duff... noun, slang, offensive U.K. and Aus. term meaning a person's posterior or buttocks.
**************

Shanawaz, my brother, I am the meekest, mildest and least offensive of all God's furry little animals. Why, just last month I led all Team-BHPers in the number of smiley faces used in posts.

New guys, some off-roaders carry extra gear oil in case their gear box or rear end starts leaking. If you run out you can temporarily use coconut milk, vegetable oil, bananas or best yet, motor oil. The place for these is in your diff (differential), not some other place the sun rarely blesses with its bright countenance.

OT:

.. Oh My God... Dan you are a wicked monster... incorrigible .!!!

[DirtyDan]

Originally Posted by khan_sultan

OT:

.. Oh My God... Dan you are a wicked monster... incorrigible .!!!

Oh, yeah? Well, I like your Gypsy, so there! I may PM you in the near future about that. Am considering buying one, in lieu of building up a Mahindra. Dunno which way to go right now.

-DD

[jaysmokesleaves]

Originally Posted by Sabareesh

Nice set of tips for a newbie like me. Will certianly follow them on OTR. Tips like these increase the urge in me for OTRs.

I badly need a JEEP now.

Hey !!
Watch out for suspension damage!
The rear suspension on your Avataar jeep seems to be bouncing too much...
or is it the front bouncing too less!!!!

[jacs]

Really useful.....I have already planted a 4x4 in my milestone. Will collate all these useful threads for future reference

[khan_sultan]

Ok, here are next set of tips for folks who want to get started with off-roading but haven't done so.

NOTE: These set of tips are for people who don't have a 4x4 or have a 4x4 but have NOT done off-roading.

Myth -1: You can read about off-roading, off-roading techniques from internet and pick up the required skills, points etc to do off-roading.

Myth -2: You can read posts on off-roading, 4x4 and learn about off-roading from the discussions that other off-roaders are having

Reality:While the posts on off-roading can help you clarify ideas, confusions etc, I doubt if one can ever learn about off-roading from just reading alone


Note the finer points from Samurai' post:

He owns 3 Jeeps (MM540, Armada & CJ340), all are 4x4s and are prepared by him. ....confessed to me that he doesn’t have a clue about offroading...

A person owning 3 jeeps and yet 'honestly' confessing that he had no clue about off-roading.

...you can't learn offroading without being in the field. The forum can only help up clarify ideas, but you need to go out in the field along with veterans and learn the ropes.

Very valid. in your first few OTR(s), once you are at the terrain, with the vehicle engine running, and you look at the terrain and wonder how on earth you are going to tackle that terrain, you would never remember anything you would have read.

A quote from a first timer off-roader who had bought a MM540 (and this person had a true veteran by his side to guide him):

... We had to climb and incline and i was asked to do it with 2nd gear on 4L because we need the momentum. The first gear would not give steady momentum needed to drive through this incline.

But i very successfully stalling the engine numerous times causing the jeep to start rolling back...

The off-roading terrain changes so fast and at times in a single terrain/obstacle one would have to use 2 or more different techniques for tackling the terrain. For example, just look at the picture below.



One of the possible technique that would work here is to place the front tyres very very slowly at the edge of the bamboo branches at the stream edge and once the tyres are there, one should just rip and press the accelerator.

If one is tooo slow throughout of is ripping out from the start itself, one would get stuck or the jeep could get damaged.


So folks interested in picking up off-roading techniques should go out there and be there. that's the only way to learn off-roading.

The forum/internet etc would help folks who have some OTR experience and then can appreciate and understand the 'context' of the discussions.

Cheers,

[ASHISHPALLOD]

as i am true lover of nature, many times i take unknown nonexistent roads. here, i am going to share one such experience.

last year, in the month of October, on Thursday, i reached to mayureshwar sanctuary located just 40 km from my city, baramati. this sanctuary is just 5 sq.km in area with hilly terrain and grassland full of chinkara and fox.
as i donate some books for children taking part in quiz organized by forest department on occasion of world wild life week in October, i have good rapo with forest officers.
when i reached the sanctuary, time was 5 pm. forest officer told me to have look in sanctuary and need some offroading. first, i was concerned then made my mind. myself, officer and one ranger entered in sanctuary in my alto. this was my first offroading. there were no roads, total grassland with two parallel tyre track. sometimes, that was nonexistence. we were moving very slowly initially as our aim was to see animals. i was not able to see or to guess what is under grass between two tyre tracks. we reached a watchtower slowly watching chinkara and fox. reaching to tower was uphill drive with no track. somehow, i managed. now time was almost 6 pm. after leaving tower, we moved further. there was dark. i ignited headlamps. but as there was just tyre track, now it was not possible to even guess the terrain. i was moving through barren land, hill, forest finally reached to tar road at 7:30 pm. i had scraped underbody two time and hitted one bump.






this was my first offroading by alto. i got some confidence and learned something. after this offroading, i had done three/four offroading.
if you have no 4*4 SUV, offroading can be done with your car.
first time, you can try some simple terrain which is known to you.
second time, try some moderate terrain which is known to you.
third time, try moderate terrain which is unknown to you but take company who knows this terrain.
first timer, never try offroading in late evening and night.

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by ASHISHPALLOD

if you have no 4*4 SUV, offroading can be done with your car.
first time, you can try some simple terrain which is known to you.
second time, try some moderate terrain which is known to you.
third time, try moderate terrain which is unknown to you but take company who knows this terrain.

I think you are assuming literal meaning of the title. That way you can do offroading even with a F1 car, what torque it has. Generally, it is wise to use the right tool for the job. For offroading, a 4x4 with high GC is the right tool.

I can use a mobile phone to hammer a nail, but why spoil the mobile phone. Same goes for cars and offroading.

[ASHISHPALLOD]

samurai san,
you are right. right tool for right job.
but what can i do if i have no 4*4 but want some offroading. safe way is knowing my car's limit, i will do it in safe manner untill i get 4*4.

[cooldude1988765]

Couldn't think of a better thread to post. I have a trivial newbie question not related to off roading itself but about jeeps nevertheless.

How are jeepers treated by cops while driving in the city ? Are you stopped often like bikers ?