Tag: Off-road

  • Ford Bronco Off-Roadeo school announced to teach owners off-roading skills

    Owners of the 2021 Ford Bronco or Bronco Sport looking to get the most out of their SUVs will soon be able to attend Ford-operated off-road schools. The first Ford Bronco Off-Roadeo opens June 28 near Austin, Texas, with three more locations scheduled to open in the coming months.

    Initial registration is open to all Bronco two-door and four-door order holders, as well as Bronco Sport Badlands and First Edition owners, Ford said Wednesday in a press release.

    Silly name aside, the Bronco Off-Roadeo should give owners plenty of off-roading experience. Each location features 50 miles of trails, designed with input from Vaughn Gittin, Jr. and Loren Healy, two drivers currently racing Broncos in the Ultra4 series.

    The day-and-a-half driving school is designed for both off-road novices and experts, according to Ford. It starts with a 90-minute tutorial explaining the Bronco’s various tech features, such as Trail Control, the G.O.A.T. driving modes, and the Terrain Management System.

    2021 Ford Bronco Off-Roadeo

    2021 Ford Bronco Off-Roadeo

    Other tutorials cover trail etiquette and recovery techniques, including use of recovery straps, winches, and high-lift jacks. Participants can then take two-hour or four-hour trail drives, or even ditch the Broncos and go kayaking, fly fishing, whitewater rafting, or mountain biking.

    The first Bronco Off-Roadeo is located in Horseshoe Bay, Texas, with additional locations planned for Mt. Potosi, Nevada, Moab, Utah, and an unspecified site in the Northeast. They’re scheduled to open in late summer or early fall, Ford said.

    Ford provides the vehicles, but attendees must cover travel and hotel costs. Ford plans to offer packages with nearby hotels and resorts, and the first reservation holders get a $250 credit that can be applied to optional extras during the trip, or the cost of bringing a guest.

    This will likely be many Bronco owners’ first time driving the SUV, as deliveries have been delayed due to pandemic-related supplier issues. The 2021 Bronco will be more powerful than originally stated, at least, so hopefully it will be worth the wait.

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  • Modified VW ID.4 is running the NORRA Mexican 1000

    A modified Volkswagen ID.4 is racing in the NORRA Mexican 1000 this week. VW claims it’s the first production-based EV to compete in the off-road race, which started April 25 and wraps up April 29.

    VW sent a stock ID.4 First Edition to Rhys Millen Racing, which modified the suspension with rally-style coilovers, tubular lower control arms in front, and boxed lower links in the rear. The ride height was raised by 2.0 inches, skid plates were added, and the radiator was moved to improve approach angles and cooling capacity, a VW press release said. The stock 19-inch wheels were swapped for 18-inch rims, with Yokohama Geolander A/T 255/70R18 tires.

    Typical for a racing conversion, the interior was stripped of all convenience features and fitted with a roll cage and racing seats. VW kept the 1st Edition’s white steering wheel however, which will probably be different a color at the end of the race.

    Volkswagen ID.4 NORRA Mexican 1000 off-road racer

    Volkswagen ID.4 NORRA Mexican 1000 off-road racer

    No powertrain modifications were made, so the ID.4 off-road racer still uses an 82-kwh battery pack, with a single 201-hp electric motor. That motor is mounted in the back of the vehicle and drives the rear wheels, not unlike the Beetles and Meyers Manx dune buggies that have been a fixture of off-road racing for decades. A Manx won the inaugural Mexican 1000 in 1967.

    While the name suggests a 1,000-mile race, the 2021 NORRA Mexican 1000 is actually 1,141 miles long, with 893 miles off-road, according to VW. To charge the ID.4, the race team is using a portable 50-kw DC fast-charging station, powered by a biofuel generator. The race will also be run in loops, rather than point-to-point, due to coronavirus restrictions, and the team will attempt to complete about 98% of the stages in each loop without charging, according to VW.

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  • Dodge almost made an off-road version of the Caravan

    SUVs have decimated minivan sales in part because of their rugged appearance and the promise of off-road capability, but what if you could imbue a minivan with those same qualities? It almost happened with the Dodge Caravan in the 1990s.

    First spotted by The Drive, this Dodge Caravan off-road concept was penned by Michael Santoro, who had just finished working on the Dodge Stratus and Chrysler Cirrus “cloud car” sedans at the time. Santoro would go on to work for doomed supercar maker Vector, and help hatch the Jeep Easter egg, but in the mid 1990s he was a minivan specialist.

    “One of the best parts about being in a studio that designs the best selling vehicle a company makes is, there is always interest from upper management in spin-offs and line extensions,” Santoro said of the off-road minivan’s genesis on his personal website.

    Dodge Caravan off-road concept (via Michael Santoro)

    Dodge Caravan off-road concept (via Michael Santoro)

    Tasked with creating a new Caravan variant “without spending any money,” Santoro added grille bars, side steps, a light bar, a roof rack, and blacked-out B-pillars. The design progressed far enough for a prototype to be built and shown to dealers.

    While Dodge dealers loved the concept, Jeep dealers didn’t. They were afraid a production version of the off-road minivan would cannibalize sales, Santoro said.

    Regardless, the prototype was “a step away” from debuting at the Chicago Auto Show, but “the plug was pulled at the last moment,” Santoro said. Adding off-road styling cues has helped boost the sales of other types of vehicles—just look at the Subaru Outback and Audi Allroad wagons—but could it have worked with a minivan? It seems we’ll never know.

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