Bentley has created the ultimate angling accessory

by Keith Morgan on Thursday, August 4th, 2016

Hand-crafted by Bentley’s bespoke coachbuilding division, the Bentayga Fly Fishing by Mulliner feature houses all the equipment required for a successful day on the river. (more…)

Top selling sedan offers safer and calming drive experience

by Bob McHugh on Thursday, August 4th, 2016

Ford continues its quest to bring us ground breaking new active safety technologies in affordable automobiles (more…)

Putting Your Truck on the Level

by Ian Harwood on Thursday, January 15th, 2015

“You can raise your truck a few inches or all the way up to nosebleed levels…”

Your new truck looks great in front of your home, but why does the front sit lower than the back?

If you find yourself pondering this question, you are not alone. This “feature” is very common with the trucks of today, but there is a solution to this problem.

Revtek Industries was founded in 2000 to market unique Toyota suspension lift systems, but since those early days, the company has gone on to develop systems for the Ford Super-duty truck, the Ford F150’s, Ram, Jeep, Nissan Titan and the Toyota Tundra.

Suspension upgrades and improvements are becoming tougher and tougher to manufacture. The days when you could throw away your stock leaf-springs and stick in the largest leaf-spring you could find are over. Now you have to worry more about steering geometry and wheel-alignment specs.

Revtek offers a complete line of suspension systems designed to level your vehicle, and offer you the option to increase tire size. Most levelling systems maintain the original springs, so you can maintain a smooth ride.

In my view, Revtek has the most installer-friendly kits available and the manufacturer utilizes the best materials – billet aircraft aluminum (higher grade of aluminum with no imperfections), powder coated cast aluminum, and specialty polyurethane, which meet or exceed original-equipment specifications.

Whether you choose a complete lift, or just to level the front end, Revtek likely has a solution for many of today’s most popular vehicles. Check out www.revtek.com.

If you are not happy with the overall ride height and not satisfied with just levelling the front-end then Pro Comp Suspension may be an alternative. It has a full line of suspension lifts: you can raise your truck a few inches or all the way up to nosebleed levels.

One kit in particular is the 8.5-inch for Ford Super Duty trucks. This lift has enough clearance to clear 37-inch tires, and will cost you $2,400 with shocks. With lift kits of this size, you should definitely make sure you make any necessary improvements such as a spacer kit to lower the carrier bearing on vehicles with two piece drive-shafts.

This will reduce high-speed driveshaft vibrations, and is well worth the investment of $60.

You should also consider a steering stabilizer to control those large tires bouncing down the road. There are a few options available from a single application or a double stabilizer setup, depending on the vehicle. Price $89 to $165.

Another good upgrade to consider with a lift of this size is a traction bar system to prevent wheel hop or axle wind up. In the old days, these bars would limit your wheel travel, but now the ends are equipped with reverse hourglass-shaped urethane bushings that allow the traction bar to flex for articulation.

The final upgrade to consider is the addition of stainless steel brake lines. Such brake lines not only give you the correct length required with these massive lifts, but also will not swell under increased braking pressure demanded by larger tires.

For more information check out www.explorerprocomp.com.

Contact: ian [dot] harwood [at] drivewaybc [dot] ca

UTVs Are Hot Summer Fun!

by Ian Harwood on Thursday, July 3rd, 2014

Watch out for local ride-and-drive events… you may just find out how much fun life can be!

The explosion of utility terrain vehicles on the market the last five years has been incredible.

Popularity has never been this high. The 2014 Polaris RZR XP 1000 is at the top of its class. Rarely do you see a UTV like this offered to the public. Often you would have to go to a Baja race to see these machines perform. 0-30 in 2.26 seconds and 0-50 in 5.33 seconds without any aftermarket add-ons. Wow.

The XP delivers excitement at any speed. The on demand AWD system makes cornering at high speeds incredibly easy. The long travel suspension makes the bumps feel like pebbles on a highway. All the instruments are conveniently located so you can access them quickly without losing site of the trail ahead of you. I noticed how much leg room the XP has leg. After having driven an earlier model that was always a concern.

Interior

The interior features a high performance tilt able steering wheel that is easy to grip and performs very well at high speeds. LED interior lights and very comfortable seats that have being beefed up to hold you in position and feature a new dry seat technology the resists moisture. They also have sliders on them to adjust for legroom. The factory installed doors have an easy one handed security latch and offer an optional accessory lower door section which I recommend to purchase right away. This keeps a lot of debris of your legs.

Having driven many off-road vehicles in my career and in many challenging conditions, I found UTVs to be an extension to the off-road experience. You can go places that you would not normally attempt because of road conditions or overgrown vegetation that limits most vehicles without extensive body damage.

The fact you can take a partner along with you in an open-air cockpit is a big plus and really adds another dimension to 4 wheeling. Although this model is a high-end machine there are plenty of other makes a models at reasonable prices that you can check out at your local ATV shop. Watch out for local ride-and-drive events then go out and experience one for yourself. You may just find out how much fun life can be!

Engine

Type: 4-stroke, DOHC, twin-cylinder

Displacement: 999cc

Liquid cooled

Fuel system: Electronic fuel injections w/ dual 48mm throttle bodies, which respond very quickly. The engine runs on 87-octane fuel without the need for premium.

Starting system is electric

Drivetrain

Drive system: On-Demand AWD/2WD

Transmission: Automatic PVT w/ high/low range, and reverse

Price as tested $22,699

Contact: ian [dot] harwood [at] drivewaybc [dot] ca