Pick-up trucks are a fantastic class of vehicles with a high level of versatility that trumps other classes. If you’re an avid traveler, there is a good chance you have traveled using a truck, especially when off-roading. In the U.S, pick-up trucks are well appreciated and remain the best-selling vehicle in the country. Automakers have strengthened their abilities to ensure you don’t get stuck somewhere in the middle of nowhere. If you’re in the market for a traveling truck, you may want to choose a pick–up truck for many reasons. Let’s discuss them below.
Excellent Traction
Going off-road means driving with limited traction. The regular roads offer a consistently smooth grip for your vehicle tires, but the natural world doesn’t offer grip at all. To get off-road traction, use a good set of all-terrain or mud-terrain tires. These can grip surfaces like wet grass, mud, rocks, and sand, while road tires only grip pavements.
Most pick-up trucks come with good tires for all types of roads. If yours aren’t so good, you can get the all-terrain tires and run them at an appropriate pressure. The right tires should provide traction while cornering and braking. For better performance, your truck should combine four-wheel drive (4WD or 4×4) with good tires. All-wheel drive or AWD is not adequate for boosting your vehicle’s ability off-road, regardless of the vehicle.
Adequate Clearance
The grip is not enough to get you out of trouble when driving in rugged terrain. You need good ground clearance to maneuver through the dangerous ditches while keeping the vehicle sturdy. The high ground clearance’s main job is to protect the bottom of your vehicle from scratches or getting caught on low obstacles. Since you’re also sitting high up, you also have better visibility of the ground ahead and can make better judgments.
Good Gearing and Articulation
Pick-up trucks have good gearing to help make it up to steep obstacles. Gears multiply the influence an engine has over its wheels. The lower the gear, the more the multiplication. That means, with low gear, you can slowly descend a steep mountain while maintaining full control and safety. Any 4WD vehicle has a low-range transfer case that switches between mid and very low gearing.
Articulation is the ability of a wheel to go up and down relative to the wheel on the opposite side of the vehicle. When you encounter an uneven obstacle, a good amount of articulation can help you keep most of the wheels in contact with the ground, maximizing traction. While you won’t need articulation for general off-road travel, it can come in handy when you need to visit new areas such as off-road parks.
Can Be Customized
The best thing about trucks is that you can customize them to fit your traveling and storage needs. These modifications can help improve performance, safety, style, and fuel consumption. What you choose depends on what you want to achieve. Note that you don’t have to adjust anything in your truck if you don’t have to.
Remember, every component or part you install adds weight to your truck, and weight is an enemy of performance, braking, fuel economy, ride quality, and handling. Adding or modifying these things can significantly improve off-road capability but reduce performance on paved roads. Therefore, you have to think critically and determine whether you need to make this adjustment or not. Ideally, this would only be a perfect idea if you drove only off-road or simply need to add some style to your pick-up truck.
For instance, if you want to improve style and comfort in your Ford F150, you can get a headache rack, tonneau cover, and bed liner. You can also install the F150 running boards to help ease getting in and out of your truck. Some of the items you can add or change to your truck include:
- Tires
- Suspension
- Differentials
- Gearing
- Recovery gear
- Protection
- Lights
- Rack
Easy To Maintain
The main reason why many people choose to travel using trucks is that they’re quite easy to maintain. With a few tools and extra spare parts, you can easily do the repair and maintenance yourself using your manual. Cleaning is one of the easiest ways to maintain a pick-up which is easy to do regardless of where you are. Fitting parts is also straightforward as the vehicles are designed to allow simple modifications. The cost of maintaining a truck is much lower than most vehicles because trucks are built to handle difficulties.
Plenty of Storage
Apart from seating up to 6 people, a pick-up truck can carry everything you will need for your 3-month camping trip, including a mattress, sleeping bag, stove, dirt bike, tent, clothes, food, and everything else you need. That means you can go camping with your entire family using a single pickup. With the availability of drawers and boxes, you can improve organization in your truck. If you prefer to sleep in your trailer, you can get your pick-up truck to tow it to where you want.
