Tennessee Toy
Ed Maniotes is a frequent flyer at the popular four-wheel-drive playground in Tellico, Tennessee. He has been rebuilding his '84 Toyota 4Runner over the past few years and has turned it into his dream machine. His ride sports a custom-made 4-inch suspension lift (that Ed and his friends came up with) running Rancho RS 9000 adjustable shocks. Both the front and rear pumpkins are stuffed with 4.88 ring-and-pinion gearsets as well as Detroit Lockers. For additional power, he added a K&N cold-air induction system, Thorley headers, a Centerforce II clutch, and a MagnaFlow exhaust system. Under the Toyota you will find 33-inch SSR Swamper tires with an ARB front bumper, Ramsey RE 8000 winch, and All-Pro Off-Road rock sliders for rock protection. As you can see from the photos, Ed is no stranger to pushing his ride's limits.
Family Wagon
Randy Swartz and his family definitely like having a good time in the woods near their home in Sinking Spring, Pennsyl-vania. When stopped on the trail they even bring along the off-road toys for the kids to play with. Check out the remote-controlled rockcrawler Jeep vehicle that we featured a few months back in our Off-Road Alternatives section.
Randy's '94 Ford Explorer Sport is equipped with a 4-inch Trail Master suspension lift, a 4-inch body lift, 35-inch Mud King radial tires, and 15x10-inch Mickey Thompson alloy wheels. To keep his right foot happy, he added a K&N charger system and Raven Performance exhaust. His Explorer is also set up to run an onboard air system for quick refill of tires on the trail, as well as a Uniden CB for communication with other vehicles in his party. Future plans for Randy's Ford include the addition of 4.56 ring-and-pinion gears, a set of rock sliders for protection, and a roof rack for more storage space.