Over-landing and going off-roads seem like an exhilarating experience for jeep, SUV, and pickup truck owners. But with great excitement comes the responsibility to keep yourself, your co-travelers, and your vehicle safe and sound during the trip. It’s recommended to be fully prepared and keep your vehicle ready too for your next expedition. In this article, we are going to give you some tips to make your journey smooth and safe. Following these suggestions, you will be more likely to not only enjoy your outing, but it will better prepare you in case you encounter any untoward incident. Read on to know further!
Why Preparing Beforehand for Off-Roading is Important?
While the urge to hit the road any weekend after making sudden plans is strong, we recommend you take some actions before your trip so that both you and your vehicle remain secure and safe during the entire trip. Since most off-roading excursions take people to isolated far-off places, there is an increased likelihood of being troubled if an unexpected and unwelcome situation comes. The situations may be such that the mobile signals are weak in such places, not many other people are moving on such trails, wild animals can be nearby, the steeps are too much for your vehicle, winching may be required and so much more. Hence, it is crucial to keep yourself safe and try to armor your vehicle so that it doesn’t get damaged by dirt, bushes, scrapes, scratches, and dents.
Protection Tips for Your Over-landing Journey
Your vehicle, be it an SUV, a jeep, or a pickup truck, is an expensive belonging and it must have cost you a lot of investment, so you may never want to get it damaged due to your adventuresome spirit. Hence, you can armor it with the best aftermarket parts to help you satisfy your wanderlust without having to worry about damaging your vehicle. We are going to highlight some of these accessories here so that you can make the purchases as per your requirement.
Wash and Wax: This step is extremely critical for your vehicle, as any debris or dirt staying on your vehicle’s body for longer periods may damage its paint. Hence, before hitting the road and after returning from your trip, do take time out to thoroughly wash your vehicle and get rid of the mud, dirt, and debris. Applying a wax layer will help you keep the paint safe from minor scratches. The dust that accumulates on any surface or inside the engine parts may damage your vehicle, hence cleaning and detailing your vehicle is vital and rewarding in the long run. Watch the video below to know more about thoroughly cleaning your vehicle:
Plan the Trip with Others:
One of the most important things to do is plan the trip with other people rather than go all alone. It will be great if at least two vehicles are going for an off-roading trip. The benefits are numerous, for instance, if your vehicle breaks down, the other one can tow it, or if one gets stuck in sand or slimy mud, the other can help it get out via winches.
Taking two jeeps on such expeditions is always a great idea. If you can’t do that, at least take some other people with you on your jeep so that they can help and guide you while maneuvering over difficult obstacles. You may be more secure while traveling with other people. Solo traveling requires much more practice and carefulness.
Bumpers and grilles
The stock grilles and bumpers that come with your vehicle are mostly designed for traveling on urban roads. However, for more rugged trails, consider upgrading these grilles and bumpers for better protection against protruding rocks from the ground, bushes, tree branches, and other obstacles that you may encounter while moving on difficult terrains. These aftermarket bumpers and grilles are made of steel and ABS plastic, respectively, which are much more durable, and corrosion or rust will not harm these. Moreover, such bumpers are designed to provide more tire clearance and let you move over steep grounds with ease. Watch the video below to guide you about installing grilles on your Jeep Wrangler.
Install Skid Plates: This is highly important if you are planning to travel on trails with uneven surfaces, rocks, and pebbles. Installing skid plates will help keep the underside of your vehicle safe from any scratches or damages that than be caused because of moving over steep hills or high obstacles. These are made of abrasion-resistant material and help keep the underside safe whenever it comes in contact with the ground.
Proper Lighting Accessories: While stock headlights, fog lights, turn signal lights, and brake lights are good for normal trips on highways, you may need lights with extra features for your off-roading trips. This is vital for your safety and for your vehicle’s safety. Appropriate lighting while moving on trails with no street lighting to illuminate your pathway will be a requirement so that you don’t get your vehicle damaged in the dark. Aftermarket lights, especially LED lights, are far more bright, durable, and efficient and will help you safely move over unfamiliar routes. You may have to drive during bad weather conditions such as fog, mist, snow, or rainfall and you will need good fog lights to help you safely cover your journey.
Securing Luggage: It is an unsafe practice to keep your belongings inside the vehicle as they may slip off and harm the people inside the cabin. For this purpose, investing in a good roof rack will be a wise decision. There are numerous other benefits of installing roof racks or rails. For instance, you can carry oversized items including kayaks, bicycles, electric bikes, canoes, and surfboards. With the help of proper cable ties, you can fasten the cargo without damaging the vehicle or the passengers and can benefit from the extra space inside the cabin.
Protection from Animals: If you are planning to camp in a natural camping spot, there are always chances of running into wild animals. At night times, it is important to keep yourself safe by taking measures so that you don’t get attacked by any wild beast. You can sleep inside your jeep by placing a sleeping pad inside the cabin of your jeep or truck. You may even set up a camping tent on the bed of your Jeep Gladiator at the rear side. This way you will be at a height safe from both the animals and crawling insects.
In Summary
As the saying goes, better safe than sorry, the same applies to your off-roading trip. Over-landing or off-roading entails many difficulties, which may make you regret your choice to go on it if you are not ready for the upcoming challenges beforehand. Not just prepare yourself but your four-wheeler as well so that you can safely carry on with your plans and even if an unexpected situation arises, you are prepared to face it.
Preparing your vehicle for this journey may mean armoring it with the right guards such as bumpers, winches, and grilles, and equipping it with the right accessories such as bright and reliable LED lights and cargo racks and rails. All in all, only a safe and sound journey can give you long-lasting and wonderful memories of your off-roading trip.