Help For Beginners

[Wanderlost]

My wife Merri and I have been at this overlanding thing for a few decades. We've made just about all the mistakes possible and have gotten ourselves into some mighty sketchy situations. Recently we thought that some of you could maybe benefit from some of our advice on how to get started. So, we decided to put together some videos on the topic! This is the first of many we have planned. In a few days we'll be releasing a video where we detail what mods you should make to your vehicle, and some you probably shouldn't. LOL
We hope you enjoy it!

 

[MidOH]

Good video.

But possibly the Cooper stt was too large for the FJ. On a fullsize they're quite good in snow and ice. But a Firestone mt2 is better, because the Firestone has a weaker sidewall. Everything is a trade off. Being in the midwest snow belt, I can run heavy duty MT's easily.

 

[wasoares]

Hello everyone! I am new here! I'm going with my family to Kanab, Utah for our first overland adventure, does anyone have any tips on that part of Utah? or someone who will be there between the 6/30th and the 7/15th to join us

 

[MOAK]

Hello everyone! I am new here! I'm going with my family to Kanab, Utah for our first overland adventure, does anyone have any tips on that part of Utah? or someone who will be there between the 6/30th and the 7/15th to join us

If you’ve never been there, the heat you will experience will be nothing at all like the heat you’ve experienced in Mass

 

[MOAK]

My wife Merri and I have been at this overlanding thing for a few decades. We've made just about all the mistakes possible and have gotten ourselves into some mighty sketchy situations. Recently we thought that some of you could maybe benefit from some of our advice on how to get started. So, we decided to put together some videos on the topic! This is the first of many we have planned. In a few days we'll be releasing a video where we detail what mods you should make to your vehicle, and some you probably shouldn't. LOL
We hope you enjoy it!

Agree with all of your points. Including your opinion of diesel engines in small vehicles. I too am retired from the transport industry and the last thing I ever want to hear, feel, or see again is a diesel under the hood in front of me. The old school mechanicals are loud, rough running and noisy. The modern electronic, DEF diesels are horribly unreliable and take a lot of preventive maintenance. Here in Pa diesel fuel is a dollar more a gallon. Between that, the necessary PM, the premium paid for a diesel, and the non availability of low sulfur diesel in some regions make a gasser the logical choice.

 

[Wanderlost]

Agree with all of your points. Including your opinion of diesel engines in small vehicles. I too am retired from the transport industry and the last thing I ever want to hear, feel, or see again is a diesel under the hood in front of me. The old school mechanicals are loud, rough running and noisy. The modern electronic, DEF diesels are horribly unreliable and take a lot of preventive maintenance. Here in Pa diesel fuel is a dollar more a gallon. Between that, the necessary PM, the premium paid for a diesel, and the non availability of low sulfur diesel in some regions make a gasser the logical choice.

When I retire in a couple years I hope to never smell another diesel or see the color Caterpillar Yellow ever again. LOL

 

[Uniquely Us Adventures]

Agree with all of your points. Including your opinion of diesel engines in small vehicles. I too am retired from the transport industry and the last thing I ever want to hear, feel, or see again is a diesel under the hood in front of me. The old school mechanicals are loud, rough running and noisy. The modern electronic, DEF diesels are horribly unreliable and take a lot of preventive maintenance. Here in Pa diesel fuel is a dollar more a gallon. Between that, the necessary PM, the premium paid for a diesel, and the non availability of low sulfur diesel in some regions make a gasser the logical choice.

When I retire in a couple years I hope to never smell another diesel or see the color Caterpillar Yellow ever again. LOL

Haha that’s funny!

 

[Wanderlost]

So you've got your vehicle. Now you'll need to modify it, or should you? We talk about that in this episode of "How To Get Started Overlanding."

We hope you enjoy, and maybe even learn something from this series. Merri and I have a lot of fun passing on what we've learned over the many years we've been doing this. There's an episode dropping this afternoon where we talk about shelters, pros, cons, and our opinions.

 

[ChristinaPotts]

My wife Merri and I have been at this overlanding thing for a few decades. We've made just about all the mistakes possible and have gotten ourselves into some mighty sketchy situations. Recently we thought that some of you could maybe benefit from some of our advice on how to get started. So, we decided to put together some videos on the topic! This is the first of many we have planned. In a few days we'll be releasing a video where we detail what mods you should make to your vehicle, and some you probably shouldn't. LOL
We hope you enjoy it!

Thanks for the video :)

 

[AKASubway]

My wife Merri and I have been at this overlanding thing for a few decades. We've made just about all the mistakes possible and have gotten ourselves into some mighty sketchy situations. Recently we thought that some of you could maybe benefit from some of our advice on how to get started. So, we decided to put together some videos on the topic! This is the first of many we have planned. In a few days we'll be releasing a video where we detail what mods you should make to your vehicle, and some you probably shouldn't. LOL
We hope you enjoy it!

Hi Wanderlost and Merri, I'm a novice overlander one could say. I'm living in Buenos Aires and with a couple of friends have started to plan to drive the Pan American Highway during the summer of 2024-2025. We are college students and thus have a time constraint so we'll make the trip one way and fly the other. Would appreciate any veteran tips on the decision of starting off in Argentina and driving to Alaska or the other way around.

Is there any forum or website where overlanders buy and sell vehicles? Because our idea was to either buy a car in the US and sell it to an overlander in Argentina or vice versa. Also, how should we go about finding insurance? I'm under the understanding that car insurance is really costly if you are under 25 (which is our case), is there any way to circumvent this?

In conclusion, we don't have a clue what we are doing and would appreciate any suggestions regarding budgeting, routes, sites to visit, things to look out for when buying a car, saftey tips, etc... (basically anything)
Kind regards,
Subway

 

[Woodsman56]

So you've got your vehicle. Now you'll need to modify it, or should you? We talk about that in this episode of "How To Get Started Overlanding."

We hope you enjoy, and maybe even learn something from this series. Merri and I have a lot of fun passing on what we've learned over the many years we've been doing this. There's an episode dropping this afternoon where we talk about shelters, pros, cons, and our opinions.

Thank y’all for the info!! This is super helpful - I am looking to build a hunting/camping rig and could use some expert opinion…the main use of this vehicle will be a daily driver, however I want to throw the RTT on and skedaddle for a few days when I get the chance. BLM roads and Forest Service roads primarily, but I do find myself in some pretty thick back country. I have zero plans to do what you see Jeeps doing on crazy rock walls, but I do want to have confidence in rough places. I primarily travel alone for hunting or exploring with my dog in deer/elk country, so a front bumper with bull bar and winch would be nice.

I’ve looked at Tundra TRD Off-Road and Ford F150 Tremor. However, the video made me seriously rethink everything. Would I be better suited / save money getting a more barebones model and putting the few mods I would really need (tires, shocks, bumper, etc)? These off-road oriented packages do have some software for driving modes that seem helpful…My current Tacoma has a rear locker that I have put to use a couple of times when I got in a pinch. The Tundra has a pretty low payload compared to the F150, and I think a leaf spring upgrade would be needed for all the gear I’d want to bring along.

I know this is a wide net and I apologize!! Thank you for any info/insight shared!!

 

[North American Sojourner]

So you've got your vehicle. Now you'll need to modify it, or should you? We talk about that in this episode of "How To Get Started Overlanding."

We hope you enjoy, and maybe even learn something from this series. Merri and I have a lot of fun passing on what we've learned over the many years we've been doing this. There's an episode dropping this afternoon where we talk about shelters, pros, cons, and our opinions.

Nice video. Thanks for sharing.
Zim

 

[Wanderlost]

Nice video. Thanks for sharing.
Zim

Thanks for watching! We're glad you enjoyed it.

 

[Wanderlost]

Thank y’all for the info!! This is super helpful - I am looking to build a hunting/camping rig and could use some expert opinion…the main use of this vehicle will be a daily driver, however I want to throw the RTT on and skedaddle for a few days when I get the chance. BLM roads and Forest Service roads primarily, but I do find myself in some pretty thick back country. I have zero plans to do what you see Jeeps doing on crazy rock walls, but I do want to have confidence in rough places. I primarily travel alone for hunting or exploring with my dog in deer/elk country, so a front bumper with bull bar and winch would be nice.

I’ve looked at Tundra TRD Off-Road and Ford F150 Tremor. However, the video made me seriously rethink everything. Would I be better suited / save money getting a more barebones model and putting the few mods I would really need (tires, shocks, bumper, etc)? These off-road oriented packages do have some software for driving modes that seem helpful…My current Tacoma has a rear locker that I have put to use a couple of times when I got in a pinch. The Tundra has a pretty low payload compared to the F150, and I think a leaf spring upgrade would be needed for all the gear I’d want to bring along.

I know this is a wide net and I apologize!! Thank you for any info/insight shared!!

Our advice: Choose a vehicle that's just big enough to haul you and your gear. Bigger rigs tend to result in "over packing". Keep your rig and camping gear as simple as possible to reduce breakage and to keep the weight down to a minimum.
When making modifications to the suspension, keep it simple and don't go cheap.