Does Weight Matter For Off-Roading? | Harry Situations

Weight is something you might not give much consideration when you are rockcrawling or overlanding in your 4x4, but it is more important than you realize. When it comes down to it, does weight matter for off-roading? From acceleration and braking to… well, breaking, weight can have a huge impact on how your vehicle performs off-road. Case in point: Harry Wagner’s Chevy Tracker. This vehicle was custom built by Jesse Haines Fabrication to be as lightweight and capable as possible. It uses a combination of common components like the Samurai transfer case, Toyota axles, and UTV winch with race-inspired parts including the heat treated chromoly links, ADS air shocks, and fully fabricated interior from CR Fabrication. Even though the Tracker has a four-cylinder engine, Toyota axles, and 37-inch Nitto Trail Grapplers, it goes places Harry’s Ford truck can’t reach despite a V8 engine, one-ton axles, and 40-inch Nitto Trail Grapplers. There are plenty of reasons why that we will cover in this video, but none more than the fact that the Tracker weighs 2,900 pounds and the Ford weighs over twice as much, at 6,900 pounds. Rockcrawling isn’t the only place weight is a factor, it is just as important for overlanding, where it isn’t uncommon to add a lot of aftermarket accessories to your vehicle. Consider the most popular vehicle for overlanding: the Toyota Tacoma. These trucks weigh 4,500 pounds stock and they only get heavier as you modify them. Little known fact, the gross vehicle weight of a Tacoma is 5,600 pounds. You could reach that with five people in the truck and no extra gear! And typical Tacoma used for overlanding has steel bumpers, a front winch, a rear swing out tire carrier, rock sliders, a roof top tent, drawers, a fridge, and more. All that weight makes the engine, brakes, and suspension work harder. Your mileage will decrease and you are more likely to overtax the drivetrain and break something off road. This is why you should always make weight a consideration in every purchase. They are opportunities to save weight when shopping for everything from wheels to winches, bumpers, batteries, and more. If you make a conscious effort to keep your vehicle lighter you will be rewarded with better performance on and off the trail, along with increased reliability and fuel economy. Drop a comment and let us know what you want to see next from Harry and Mike! Subscribe: youtube.com/c/DrivingLine?sub_confirmation=1 Follow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/drivingline Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/drivingline/ More Articles: www.drivingline.com/ Want to know the different features of the Nitto tires we used? www.nittotire.com/light-truck-tires/trail-grappler… More backcountry content from All-Terrain Family:    / @allterrainfamily   Follow Harry on Instagram: www.instagram.com/harrysituations/ Follow Mike on Instagram: www.instagram.com/allterrainfamily/

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