Where To Write
Address your correspondence to:
Letters
Four Wheeler
6420 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90048-5515.
All letters become the property of Four Wheeler, and we reserve the right to edit them for length, accuracy, and clarity. The editorial department also can be reached through the Web site at www.fourwheeler.com. Due to the volume of mail, electronic or otherwise, we cannot respond to every reader, but we do read everything.
Wheelin' and Dealin'
Reader: In your November 2001 comparison of the Liberty and Xterra, was the Xterra pictured actually the one you tested? Having just purchased a supercharged 2002 Xterra 4x4, I learned that the supercharged models come with 17-inch wheels, not the 16-inchers pictured; and the front wheel pictured in the article does not appear to be one from a 4x4. Did you actually test the vehicles in the pictures? Did you actually test 4x4 versions of either vehicle?
Bob Crooker
Via the Internet
Editor: This is quite a shocking question. We did indeed test the vehicles you saw in the photographs. Of course they were four-wheel drive. Perhaps some other magazines you may be used to reading may choose to pull their impressions and test results from thin air, but we don't. We forwarded your questions to the good folks at Nissan, who provided us with the vehicle we tested, and here's what we learned: Our test vehicle was a preproduction unit. The wheels on it were 16-inchers, which are indeed available for the Xterra SE, along with the 17-inchers to which you refer. The only difference between these and the production wheels is that the production versions are charcoal in color, instead of polished.
Clubs and Clues
Reader: Two things: First, I want to start a club in my neighborhood but I don't know where any trails are and I don't have a lot of knowledge about the sport. Also, most of the people's rigs who would join my new club would be much better on the trail than mine. So what should I do?
Second, I hear everybody complaining about how the Big Three don't produce a trail-worthy rig. Well, I say, stop complaining and do something. Either start a petition, or if everyone who read your magazine sent in even $20, then went public on the stock market, you could start your own company making just trail-worthy vehicles, even if you buy the stock rigs from one of the Big Three, modified them, and then resold them.
Josh
Via the Internet
Editor: If it was us, here's what we'd do: We'd place ads announcing the formation of a new four-wheeling club in the free and/or low-cost advertisers-around here they're The Recycler, Pennysaver, etc. Probably you have something similar in your area. We'd put cards on bulletin boards at car washes and parts/accessory stores. We might even prepare some el cheapo flyers to tuck under the wiper blades of 4x4 vehicles. We might even crank up a Web site under the name of our new club. We'd invite all comers-this is important now, and speaks to part of your question-because as far as we at Four Wheeler are concerned, the question isn't what you four-wheel, or how well prepared your rig is. Instead, it's that you're involved, that you do four-wheel, and that you're part of the activity. Concerning your lack of knowledge about four-wheeling, what you do is, you learn as you go, just like we all did. That's part of the fun of four-wheeling.
We're not exactly sure that we agree with your apparent contention that none of the Big Three makes what you refer to as a trail-worthy rig. We seem to recall that several members of the DaimlerChrysler family are more-or-less trail-worthy (think Jeep). Also several new members of the Ford family (think Land Rover). Also several members of the GM family (think any pickup or SUV with the Z71 option). Also Toyota (think the Tacoma TRD). Yes, most of these possess IFS, and yes, we're not fans of IFS. We'll have to get over that, unfortunately, because Detroit is not going to switch back to solid front axles, and in some cases from IRS to solid rear axles, just because we bitch at them. There are myriad ways to make these vehicles more trail-worthy. It's up to us to use the aftermarket, just like we always have, even with solid-axle vehicles, to modify our rigs to best suit the way we use 'em.
The Balanced Tire Test
Reader: I just picked up the January issue of Four Wheeler, which contains tests of six tires. After fighting with a set of 35-inch Interco Thornbirds for the last few years and trying to keep up with repairs on the stuff that their very bad road manners had broken, I bought a new set of the Parnelli Jones 38-inch Dirt Grips. When you do a product test on tires or whatever, why not tell us how easy, or how difficult, each tire is to balance? Why not tell us how much weight it takes to balance each tire? Why not tell us how round, or how out-of-round, each one is? You may not think this is important, but the answers to these questions are good indications of how well a tire is made. On the Interco Thornbirds I bought, one tire was 3/4-inch out of round, one was 3/8-inch, one was 1/4-inch, and one was true. It took more than 1/3-pound of weight on the inside face to balance the truest of these tires. That is totally unacceptable.
In all the magazines I've read over the years, no one tells it like it is about the Interco Tires. I've found out plenty about them now, having owned a set, and checking the net for reviews. There are so many products out there, some good, some lousy, that we don't need someone blowing smoke because a company spends a lot of dollars in advertising. Test the products, run them hard, just like we will, and tell us what stands up, and what doesn't. Give us the facts. That way you have the confidence of your readers, and the producers know that they need to improve their products or quit. It is a win-win situation for everyone.
So after reading your tire test I feel that you guys did a fair and honest test on those tires, and would like to see more on other brands as well.
Ken Roll
Minot, North Dakota
Editor: We're greatly in favor of win-win situations. We're even more greatly in favor of situations in which our readers win-even if somebody else doesn't. For that reason, we always write our reviews to reflect what we actually learn. But your comments about balancing tires are well taken. In fact, we have a story in the works that will take a look at what it takes to balance and true several sets of the most popular tires. It's down the road a bit, but stay tuned, and we'll get there together.
A Disbeliever
Reader: I just read the article in your October issue, "Hungry for Power." That article states that the featured Chevy K3500 came out of the GM assembly line with a 4.3L V-6. I don't think so, considering that is a 1-ton truck. A V-6 would not have been an option. I like your magazine, but come on, why didn't you guys catch that one?
Joe
Via the Internet
Editor: Oh, ye of little faith, where is the trust in our relationship? The 4.3L V-6 was what is called a "credit option" on a K3500 in 1990, meaning you got money back, or a reduction in your truck's price, if you accepted the 4.3L V-6 instead of the standard engine for this truck, the 454ci V-8. Probably there weren't many such trucks built and sold, but there were indeed a few. And this was one of them.
Contradicting a Contradiction
Reader: Please clear up an apparent contradiction between two articles. In a January 2001 article entitled "10 Suspension-Related Shortcuts to Not Take," item nine explains that steering stabilizers are worthless. However, in an April 2001 article, "13 Essential Upgrades," item nine states that no truck is complete without a steering damper. Somewhere between "worthless" and "no truck is complete without it" I became confused. I am most certainly not trying to point fingers. I just need a little clarification.
Scott Alvord
Tigard, Oregon
Editor: Go ahead, point away. The prevailing thought around Four Wheeler's offices is that while not essential, steering dampers, or stabilizers, can help minimize the effects of kickback in the steering system caused by very heavy tires and wheels as they work their way over rough terrain. They are no substitute, however, for a well adjusted and properly fitting steering system.