Magpul Industries builds upgraded parts and accessories for assault rifles. When they decided to build an off-road vehicle for promotional purposes, it was a pretty safe bet that they’d opt for the baddest ORV on the planet as a starting point. Working with Couch Off Road Engineering in Denver, CO, Magpul commissioned the custom Unimog you see here. Powered by a turbo diesel motor, this ‘Mog features 15,000 pound hydraulic winches on the front and rear, 8mm thick sliders and skid plates, a super-duty bull bar, a custom 27 gallon fuel tank and a spare tire carrier that doubles as a wheelie bar for climbing particularly steep grades.
In case you had any doubt on my choice of the Unimog as a zombie apocalypse vehicle of choice, this video should convince you. I’d sure love to take this beast for a drive across the Switzerland Trail.
Shopping for an end of world vehicle, but don’t want a big honkin’ V8 that greedily suck down the last of the go-juice you can scrounge? Lusting for a Range Rover Defender, but afraid desperate survivors will steal your ride? Want to drive the the apocalypse with Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyries” playing loud enough to make your eardrums bleed? Search no more, because this may be the apocalypse-mobile you’ve been looking for.
I’ve always been a fan of the original FJ 40 series Land Cruisers, since they made no apologies for being a stout, well built truck that would get you anywhere you needed to go. Need to check the cows in the back pasture, but three feet of snow is in the way? No problem for the Toyota FJ. Want to climb the third Flatiron in Boulder, Colorado, but you’re out of shape? No worries, just make sure your FJ has a winch (for safety) and drive it up the face from eyebolt to eyebolt.
Thanks to a shoestring budget and a disposable income that is disposed of rather quickly, I tend to keep my standards low when it comes to the pursuit of precious performance metals. I’ve been in the market for a new car (read: heavily used but “new” to me) recently and I’ve discovered that despite my rather inhibiting budget, I can still afford to get behind the wheel of even the most prestigious luxury cars – as long as said car has extremely serious mechanical issues. Beggars can’t be choosers though, which means despite the fairly severe issues the water logged Veyron in the clip below will inevitably experience, I’ll be keeping a keen eye on the Texas used car classifieds.
As is often demonstrated in the automotive industry, just because you didn’t have the idea first doesn’t mean you can’t still attempt to profit from it. Case in point: the Silverado ZR2. Not only is it heavily geared towards the SoCal Broskie, amateur Baja-rallier segment, Chevy’s design engineers didn’t even attempt to disguise the heavy Raptor design cues. Beneath the hood, the pseudo desert hauler boasts a 550-horsepower LS supercharged engine, which conveniently mimics the output numbers on the recently unveiled 6.2L 411-hp Raptor powerplant unveiled at SEMA yesterday.
What’s more, the unique grill, friendly-with-the-carbon-fiber bodywork, and heavily modified stance of the truck itself are more than just a creative copycat – they’re a preview of what Chevy would purportedly like to see on future production models. “There’s more to this concept than meets the eye,” said Chevy chief Brent Dewar. “Some of the components are being explored for possible inclusion in upcoming models.”
Set to appear alongside the troupe of tuned Kizashi’s at this year’s SEMA show is yet another pleasant surprise from the often underestimated Japanese manufacturer: the ICON Vehicle Dynamics Suzuki Equator. Without the hefty aftermarket off-road package the Equator would still find a special place in our hearts but with Wrangler MT/R tires and a grill-mounted LightForce bar, we consider ourselves head-over-heels. Part of our fascination stems from the fact that, as of late, rare has been a Suzuki vehicle with more than 2 wheels that we’d permit ourselves to be seen in. With the Suzuki Equator, that unpopular stigma seems to be slowly ebbing and the result is a rally-ready truck that could satisfy the needs of even the most discerning Raptor bro (alright, maybe that’s pushing it).
Surprisingly enough considering the quality issues plaguing its parent company, Chrysler, the 2010 Jeep Patriot managed to walk away from the unforgiving Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) with top honors as the official Compact SUV of Texas. “The TAWA Truck Rodeo is the most comprehensive evaluation of new trucks and SUVs in the country,” explained TAWA President Harold Gunn, “Manufacturers consider it a great honor to win their category.” As well they should, since the only two things that come of Texas are trucks and socially awkward jokes…but we digress, yet again.
More than a just a quick jaunt through a patch of overgrowth, the two-day tests which the various candidates are subjected to are designed to test the limits of their off-road capability and separate the true SUVs from the grocery-getting city slickers. “This is certainly an honor for Jeep,” said Michael Manley, President and Chief Executive Officer – Jeep Brand, Chrysler Group LLC. “We’re proud the Patriot proved its off-road prowess at the Texas Truck Rodeo. The Trail Rated® Jeep Patriot 4×4 is hands down the most capable and affordable SUV in the compact segment.”
For the 7th year in a row, the Blue Oval has managed to claim the hearts of the seasoned auto aficionados of the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) with the 2010 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor’s sweeping victory as the 2009 Truck of Texas. In addition to the prestigious title as king of the work horses, the Raptor also managed to snag best “Full-Size Pickup” and help the entire F-Series lineup clinch “Truck Line of Texas.” Combined with the Raptor’s strong finish and the impressive debut of several new models, Ford managed to walk away from the winner’s circle with a total of 18 awards, including best “Mid-size CUV” for the Lincoln MKX, “Full-size CUV” for the Ford Flex, “Luxury Pick-up Truck” for the Ford F-150 King Ranch, and best “Full-size SUV” for the Ford Expedition.
At one time the thought of GM auctioning off HUMMER for anything less than a billion would have been a mildly amusing joke, but circumstances have changed and The General is desperate. According to reports, the long negotiated sale of HUMMER to China’s Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co. is expected to be finalized within the next 24 hours to the tune of a paltry $150 million. This is significantly less then the $500 million plus resale value GM CEO Fritz Hendersen conservatively estimated for HUMMER last year, but experts suspect that the recent Saturn/Penske failure may have GM anxious to wrap up the deal, even if it comes at a loss.
Comrades, if you think the Jeep started the SUV craze, you’re wrong. It was in fact the glorious people’s GAZ M-72. While the Jeep was indeed a popular 4WD vehicle, it wasn’t until the Grand Wagoneer came around in 1963 that the United States fully embraced the full-on SUV bodystyle. But in this particular arms race, we were behind the Ruskies, who’d created this trucklet behind the iron curtain by stripping down a GAZ “Pobeda” (“Victory”) car shell, and grafting it onto a GAZ-69 military 4WD truck chassis.
