October 20, 2005
Practical 4x4 Off Roads Information
Hi
Welcome to this edition of the 4x4 Newsletter!
Remember that your opinion matters and I am open to suggestions and ideas regarding the web site and the contents of this newsletter.
If you like this e-zine, please do a friend and me a big favor and FORWARD it to them.
TOPICS:
- A note from the editor
- On the drawing board
- Readers Rigs Are On!
- RSS - Real Simple Syndication
- New Stories
- Article - A-B cars and 4x4s
- Your single biggest wish?
- Submit your 4x4 article!
- Tip - Driving on the Pavement
- Do you have a passion?
4x4OffRoads.com
As the number of readers of this e-zine increase I am planning on spending more time on it as well as the web site. Today the number of readers is up to and incredible 2.305 and the average number of daily visitors to the site is getting close to 3000! For this I am very grateful - THANK YOU!
Having the first 38 inch Sport Trac in Iceland gives me lots of envious looks. I have also received a number of positive remarks on the Sport Trac project through the web. Here are some examples:
Thrandur you guys do some good work on the vehicles in Iceland. Every time I visit you site I spend time looking around, the scenery is awesome up there. You sure don't see any built like that here in the states.
-Kevin
That is one badass truck! I always thought that the Sport Tracs would look good lifted ever since I seen one. Now my suspicions have been confirmed. I must also point out that you are a very handy bunch of guys!
Great job.
-NJ Ram
Thrandur,
Very nice build up! The Icelandic truck style is very interesting. Very LARGE tires with a small lift, you guys do nice work I ran across your website about a year ago and check in from time to time. The last time I saw the write up on the SportTrac you had just started ripping the front end apart and installing air bags. I am glad to see you finished it. Very Nice
-guidolyons
I am looking forward for taking it to some more off road use - hoping to have lots of snow this winter.
eBook about 4 wheeling
Forum for 4x4s
Let me know what your biggest wish is by taking part in the SURVEY.
If you have a 4x4 you feel proud of and want to show others - please don't hesitate to submit pictures and descriptions.
Already there are a number of nice trucks up. My plan is to make these pages high-quality and accessible and I need your help in doing so. Almost all 4x4's are unique and I am sure yours is in some way. Share your experience and allow the rest of the 4 wheeling world to see your truck and how it is used...
Take some time in describing your 4x4 and how you enjoy it. Use as many words as needed. As more rigs are added I get more picky - choosing only interesting rigs with lots of information.
Here is the page for submitting your 4x4 and looking at other readers trucks.
You may have noticed a set of graphics below the navigational buttons. They are for subscribing to all changes to the 4x4OffRoads.com site. Using an RSS reader or MyYahoo! or MyMSN it is easy to see immediately any new pages added to the site or changes made.
Those little orange RSS or XML buttons are "the next big
thing" -- you can use them to get newsfeeds from CNN or BBC, as well as
just about anything else, including news on upcoming movies, DVD
releases, your favorite musician's tour updates, etc.
Once you get started, it's like having your favorite parts of the Web
come to you. No need to go out and check for updates all the time.
"RSS" means "Really Simple Syndication." What it means to you is that
when you subscribe to a site that has an RSS feed, you can keep
up-to-date without having to check the site every day or week.
How do you get started? Easy!
Download a free RSS Reader first. This is special software that
reads the RSS feeds...
Windows -- RssReader
http://www.rssreader.com/
Mac -- NetNewsWire
http://ranchero.com/netnewswire/
Once you're set up, here's all you have to do...
Right-click (control-click for Mac users) on any orange RSS
button on a site, blog or news source that interests you. Start by
right-clicking on the orange button below. Then...
Select Copy Shortcut ("Copy Link to Clipboard" for Mac, "Copy
Link Location" for Firefox browsers), and paste that URL into
your RSS Reader.
And that's it! You're subscribed.
To add the 4x4OffRoads.com feed to your:
Here is the URL of the 4x4OffRoads.com RSS file: http://www.4x4offroads.com/4x4-off-roads.xml
I appreciate if you try this out and since this is a new feature of the site - I would also appreciate if you let me know about any issues you have in using the feed.
YO Ranch Texas Wheeling Weekend
The Historic Y.O. Ranch, located in the splendid Texas Hill Country just outside of Mountain Home, played host to the Y.O. Wheeling Weekend.
Old Army Trucks in Thorsmork
Many old army trucks are surprisingly still going strong. Trucks as old as 1943 models are still here and running. One would imagine they are great museum pieces not good for anything much.
ARTICLE
A-B cars and 4x4s
I tend to look at vehicles primarily from this angle. A-B cars are used to take
you and your passengers from point A to point B. They can be equipped with
various features to make the ride easier, more comfortable and even
entertaining. A 4x4 can of course also be used to take you on the same route. They can
on the other hand also be used to get to locations where it would be difficult
or impossible to reach on an A-B car.
A 4x4 is used for supporting various activities. Some use it to go fishing in
the weekends, others go skiing in the mountains and a number of people use it
just to get to remote and little traveled places. Only a few use it almost
exclusively to take on extremely rough tracks and sometimes competitions.
Apart from this - 4x4s are often higher and therefore easier for elderly and
disabled people to board.
All these uses are good reasons to own and operate a 4x4.
You may as well ask - Is 4 wheeling then a way of life? That may be true - but
the fact is most individuals have there own reasons.
In resent years the trend has been growing on marketing various levels of
in-between cars. Subaru have from the beginning offered cars with drive on all
four wheels. The
recent Subaru Forrester is almost comparable to the Ford Escape. We have also
seen the expensive luxury SUVs like the BMW X5, Porsche Cayenne and the Mercedes
ML. I am not sure I would be comfortable with taking one of them on some
Icelandic tracks I know!
Of note is also recent developments in diesel engines. They are growing fast in
fuel efficiency and power. Take VW Touareg as an
example. It has the most powerful diesel engine in mass produced vehicles. The
V10 TDI with its 10 cylinders that produce 313 hp and 750 Nm of torque - high
speed of 225 km/h and going from 0-100 in 7.8 seconds - sure sounds impressive.
Call me harsh but for me this is still an A-B car.
What worries me most though - is that recent vehicles have more gadgets that can
break down and are also becoming more and more difficult to
fix out in the field - given you use only minimal knowledge and primitive tools.
As always the choice is up to you to select a vehicle that fits your needs and
lifestyle.
Thrandur Arnthorsson is a 4 wheeling enthusiast and the webmaster of
4x4OffRoads.com.
I am adding more and more content and value to 4x4OffRoads.com.
Please... if there's anything IMPORTANT that you wish I would do, anything that will make your life easier and/or bring you better knowledge...
Reply to this e-mail with your biggest wish for the site!
Another option for you is to take part in a simple survey I set up. It should only take a couple of minutes to fill out. Also you get to voice your preferences regarding further development of the 4x4OffRoads.com web site.
I review all wishes and use to build a list for the most wanted, which I then prioritize according to demand.
Driving in 4WD on DRY PAVEMENT is usually not recommended. In many 4x4 vehicles the transmission box is locked when engaged and this causes friction between front and rear since the rear tires travel less distance than the front tires do.
And YES you can drive in reverse in 4WD - but you shouldn't use it for towing or getting another truck unstuck since it is not as strong.
Submit your 4x4 article!
Off-roaders like you usually have their
own strong opinion on how, why and where to wheel. Share the joy with other
readers!
You can write on any topic related to 4x4 off road you feel you have a message
to your fellow off-roader. Stories about 4 wheeling trips are especially
popular. It can also be a review on new trucks, accessories, suspension, lift
kits, wheels and tires, helpful tips and tricks, innovative solutions to
problems, car care tips, etc. Anything that will help your fellow 4 wheeler get
their truck ready and able to perform off roads!
By all means if you know a good joke that would fit in the newsletter PLEASE let
me know :)
If you have issues with grammar and spelling, don't worry. I can make small
corrections. Your story or article is still yours and you keep the full
copyright.
Submit your 4x4
article!
P.S. If you want you can also reply to this Newsletter with your story along
with the pictures you want to share.
I am sure you do!
Are you interested in knowing more about the internet and how to be a part of the fastest growing marketplace in the world?
I have put up a special section for downloading high quality e-books. These e-books have changed the way I look at the internet and the possibilities it represents! I suggest you download the ones that interest you and I would love to hear your thoughts on them.
If you like you can send me questions about how you can go about starting your own site. The space of ideas is without limits. Your experience and knowledge is something you can and should share with the world. It will make the world richer in so many ways.
Best wishes and thanks,
Thrandur Arnthorsson
