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Courtesy of ISAK
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Courtesy of ISAK
Turn Your 4WD Into: A Winter Wheeler
High floatation tires are key when wheeling in the snow. The bigger contact patch the better.
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Courtesy of ISAK
Turn Your 4WD Into: A Winter Wheeler
Choosing the right amount of lift to stay on top of the snow, but not sacrifice stability is key.
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Courtesy of ISAK
Turn Your 4WD Into: A Winter Wheeler
Having a shovel and tow rope on board is a must have.
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Courtesy of ISAK
Turn Your 4WD Into: A Winter Wheeler
A compressor also helps to re-inflate tires.
Story by Budd Stanley & Jón Baldur Þorbjörnsson, photos courtesy of ISAK
Basics to make your 4WD Snow Wheeler the Icelandic way
We are starting a new series here at 4WDrive Magazine entitled “Turn your 4WD Into…” For the vast majority of us, we start out this lifestyle with a basic run of the mill stock 4WD. From there we figure out what genre of the off-roading game attracts us most and we slowly tailor our machine into an off-road specialist. However, with so many different ways to wheel, there is a great many ways to specialize your vehicle.
That is why we are going to be talking to the experts. As we are in the dead of winter at the time of writing, and Canada has seen a particularly healthy helping of snow this year, let's start out with the basics one would need to consider to turn their 4WD into a snow wheeler.
Throughout the country, there are entire clubs dedicated to just this one genre of off-road driving. Many snow rigs are built solely for the snow and are often put into hibernation over the warmer months, much the opposite of most 4WDs.
So, what do you need to know to get started? A couple issues back we talked with Jón Baldur Þorbjörnsson, the owner of ISAK (an Icelandic Super Jeep rental and touring company – www.isak.is), about the basics of driving in the snow. Inevitably, our conversation switched from driving, to the machines that get Jon and his tour groups through some of Iceland’s most inhospitable environments.
The ISAK rental vehicle fleet is not your usual car hires. These vehicles are suitably rugged to take you up into the farthest reaches of Iceland no mater how bad the weather. There are unmodified Land Rover Defender 110’s, Jeep Wrangler Rubicons and, just recently, some new Toyota Land Cruiser 76’s for backcountry roads and trails. However, for full winter expeditions, ISAK employ 16 Land Rover Defender 110 “Super Jeeps” that are ideally outfitted to take tours cross-country in deep snow, across glaciers and just about anywhere one might want to go in the dead of winter, no mater how much snow has fallen.
These Super Jeeps are exactly what we wanted to talk to Jon about, as they represent what makes a good starting point when building a winter wheeler. As Jon explains, it comes down to three main areas of focus, which we will now detail:
Tires
If there is one thing that sets a winter wheeler apart from all other 4WD’s, it is tires. Winter wheelers don’t just have large tires to increase the clearance between the ground and the axle, but almost as important is the tire's width as well. When it comes to deep snow, high flotation and aggressive tread pattern is key. When you need to float on top of the snow, the bigger the contact patch, the better.
As such, tires that have a strong internal carcass to handle very low inflation are ideal, as are rubber compounds that will not warm up. Low tire pressures increase the tires temperature, thus running the risk of icing or polishing the surface underneath.
Choosing the right tire depends on the weight of the vehicle, however a common starting point for a mid-sized truck or SUV is a 38x14 tire. A common example found on many Icelandic winter wheelers (and Canadian) is the Dick Cepek Fun Country. Always take into account the dimensions of your vehicle and match the proper size and offset wheel for correct placement.
Suspension
A common trend in Iceland is not to lift a 4WD too high. The first reaction many will have to mounting large tires is that the vehicle will need to be lifted to clear these tires. The problem is that the higher you lift a vehicle, not only do you start to destroy its ride and handling, but also its balance. This hinders its performance and stability in the snow as well.
The nice thing about snow is once everything is covered, previously undulating terrain is flattened out. So, the ISAK Defenders are kept as low as possible with about a 10 cm lift, while also having longer travel. When there are tire clearance issues, the fenders are cut to accommodate the larger tires and fender flares are placed overtop to comply with Icelandic traffic laws, which happen to be similar to our own by the way.
Drivetrain
For the most part, the biggest issue with the drivetrain is to suitably reinforce it to handle the larger tires. In the ISAK’s case, this means a slight reduction in final drive ratios to make it easier to get those big tires moving. If you need to break into the axles, sourcing out a good quality locker for both the front and rear is always a good investment when you might find yourself windshield deep in the white stuff.
Added Equipment
Wheeling in the winter comes with its own set of difficulties and issues when something goes wrong. As such, there are a couple winter-focused pieces of equipment that should always be carried onboard a winter wheeler. In the case of the ISAK’s, Jon ensures they are always equipped with a shovel and a rope, which are the most essential. Also packed inside is a basic tool kit for small repairs, a tire repair kit, first aid kit, an air hose and pressure gauge and a good window scraper.
ISAK Defenders make use of a portable tow hook for the rear or the front bumper, an engine driven air compressor to inflate the tires, a Hi Lift jack and base plate, GPS and a VHF radio. It goes without mentioning that suitable personal survival supplies should also be carried depending on the conditions you might find in the wilderness.
Just remember that this is just a recommended starting point. Once you outfit your 4WD for the snow, experience and lessons learned on the trail will then guide you to further fine tune and specialize your 4WD to your needs. We can give you the starting point, but only you know what you really want, once you start to get to know your vehicle and the conditions you most commonly find yourself in. So get out and enjoy Canada’s winter.