Off roading XC-70

[Joe1542]

Anyone have much experience with off-roading or fire roading their XC-70?

[JRL]

Be careful, there are not really off road vehicles except for the occasional dirt road

[01V70XC5A]

I have done quite a lot with mine. With some larger tires these things are pretty awesome up to a level 3 or so trail. Beyond that you will need a lift, a transmission swap (at minimum a fan-fed cooler for the AT) and undercarriage armor. As JRL said, care should be taken when driving off-road. I have a lot of experience off-roading and in the right hands these XCs are as capable as a standard Grand Cherokee(circa 2004). When the trails are tough, I take my lifted Sidekick Sport. If you are really concerned about serious off-roading, I would recommend a 99+ V-6 Grand Vitara. Quality lift kits and 4WD hardware are inexpensive and easy to find, and the vehicles are extremely reliable.

[StuntmanMike]

That's not true. I can tell you from experience as a former Grand Cherokee owner that a GC can go places these XC's couldn't dream of going. Between the extra clearance and suspension articulation, not to mention low range gearing, the Grand is far superior offroad. A XC is fine for dirt roads, but can't handle rocky trails like a proper 4x4 can.

[01V70XC5A]

Because of the low range a Grand Cherokee Limited will be easier to drive off-road when the going gets tough, however by the time low range becomes necessary, a stock Grand Cherokee will have insufficient ground clearance to be considered ideal. As I said, an XC with the largest tires possible will run a Traildamage.com trail rating of 3 or so. I have parked my XC next to a 2006 GC, and with bigger tires the ground clearance is actually better on the XC with exception of the body sills being a bit higher on the GC. An XC with the tiny stock tires should not be taken on much beyond a forest road; the primary reason I immediately installed larger diameter tires was to increase ground clearance to an acceptable level (a level higher than a stock GC). Remember that the XC70s start with 8.2 inches of ground clearance, an 06 GC has 8.3 in stock form. I used to drive my father's GC Limited off road frequently when I was younger, the feel between the 2 is very similar, so much so that a friend of mine said that it felt like a GC the first time he drove in my XC to go shooting.

I do know for a fact that an XC will go farther on a steep rocky grade than a base model 4WD Grand Cherokee that does not have low range. A guy in my off-road club has one with OME Springs and ARB bumper, he couldn't make it up a 25-30 degree grade with a running start, it was quite laughable (and he was embarrassed). The messed up thing is that most people would swear his GC is more capable by looks alone.

I don't intend to give inaccurate advice, in the right hands they have similar capabilities up to the point where damage may occur, in which case the Jeep may be more sturdy but you would be doing stupid things by this point anyway. If you want a proper off-roader, neither are good options. Ideally you would have some manner of truck lifted 6 to 8 inches on 35s with locking front and rear differentials, but not everyone has the money or desire for a rig of this type.

All things aside, use caution when driving an XC off-road. If there are rocks large enough to require armor and make low range desirable, its probably best to leave the stock SUVs and XCs at home. I use a lifted beater Suzuki for these harder trails and works quite well and has been very reliable.

[StuntmanMike]

Not going to argue with you, but the ground clearance numbers you are giving are deceptive.

That 8.3" on the Jeep is measured at the rear differential, which is the lowest point on the vehicle. Every other point is higher, and if you have half a brain, you'll drive as to not snag the rear diff on a rock.

And IMO and GC w/out low range is not a Jeep. Anyone with a single speed t-case Jeep should really have just bought an AWD wagon.

You used the '04 as an example....if you take a 2004 GC with Quadra-Drive (all 4 tires get power at the same time), that slope your buddy couldn't make it up would be cake. The MY04 also has the advantages of solid axles front and rear as do all ('93-'04 GC's), so there's more suspension articulation than in the Volvo. And not to mention they're easier to lift. A 2" lift for a solid axle Jeep will cost about $100. With a 2" lift and 2" larger than stock tires, you'd be amazed as to where my solid axle Grand went.

I'll admit there is one place my Volvo really impresses me. I was playing in the snow last week, and I see that it's capable of spinning all 4 tires at once. Most "real" SUV's and 4x4's can't do that. My '97 Grand sure couldn't. Open diffs meant one front wheel and one rear wheel would spin. I put a locker in the rear to cure that, but that still only gives me 3 wheel drive. Score 1 for the XC. I'll even say that because of that, and the traction control, my Volvo is better in light snow than my Jeep was.

Anyway, I loved my Jeep, and I love my XC. But one of the reason I got the XC to replace the Jeep was that due to lack of local places, my offroading days were done with the Jeep. That capability was no longer on my "needs" list.

Yeah I might take the XC down a fire road to get to a mountainbiking spot, but I'll never take it "off road", just to go off road.

And it occurs to me everyone's definition of "off road" is different. Mine is not traveling down dirt or gravel roads at speed, but rather driving over large rocks and ledges at no more than a walking pace. Actually, some times LESS than a walking pace. For this my XC wouldn't make it past the trailhead.

[IVIUSTANG]

I've done some very steep rocky ascents in my XC70, the AWD was flawless. The only thing holding me back was all the nasty scrapes from bushes. I've since put a steel skidplate ony my car and lifted it 2". Between the 2" and the bigger tire combo I have on the car, I have more than 12" of ground clearance to the bottom of my skidplates!

Jesse

[budrichard]

When I purchased my 1999 XC70 I had a Cherokee Sport with Selec-trak. Of course the Jeep could outperform the XC but I had a Volvo skid plate(tubular device) and we started using the XC to go about 90% of where I would go with the Jeep. Problem with the 1999 was ground clearance and the tubular plate dragged on heavily crowned trails but it sure was more comfortable than the Jeep on the way to and fro hunting etc.
The 2003XC with more clearance also has a Volvo skid plate and goes effortlessly off road for me. Only stuck once on a snowmobile trail after a heavy snow. Now I don't go 'off roading' to go off road but drive these vehicles as part of my hunting, fishing, canoeing/kayaking etc. I certainly wouldn't be driving the XC or any other vehicle for that matter on big rock trails just to go off road.
BTW My Jeep is long gone and won't be replaced.
By 'fire roading' I assume you mean fire lanes in National Forests. No problems in the Nicolet Forest bear hunting.
You do need a tire with aggressive blocks for mud or you will slide around a lot.
I used to worry about the paint when we moved through heavy brush as limbs etc scraped against the side of the vehicle but the paint on these Volvo's is very hard and it has held up on the 1999 and 2003.
My wife drives the 2011, so it hasn't been off the pavement much.-Dick

[TiredGeek]

IVIUSTANG, we need photos :)

[IVIUSTANG]

IVIUSTANG, we need photos :)

Just check my profile album. Sadly I wasn't able to really get any good offroad photos other than on snow.

Jesse

[TiredGeek]

Nice.
It's in the best colour, but you need a rear spoiler :)
What size tyres are you running now then?

[mapper]

01V70XC5A What size tires did you manage to squeeze onto the XC?

For winter I'm running 225 65 16s but I'm now starting to think about the AT tire for summer months. I have a set of 235 70 16s that I would REALLY like to use on the XC but I have my doubts about squeezing them on.

IVIUSTANG
Since lifting your XC have you put larger tires on? Again, if so how big did you manage to fit. I'm not at all opposed to adding the BAD SWEDE kit but before making that investment I need to decide if I want to lift the XC or just move over to an actual SUV.

[01V70XC5A]

StuntmanMike, my measurements were taken while parked next to an 06, my dad had a previous generation limited which may have had more clearance. Either way the type of off-roading you are describing is the same type of terrain that I advocated against taking a Volvo. The fact that you had your GC lifted on big tires is more or less the point I was making that for proper off-roading you need more than even a stock GC so the comparison between the 2 in virtually stock form is valid. To use a stock GC, or a Sidekick, or an Xterra, etc on the trails you've described, pretty much requires that the truck be lifted on big tires.

Mapper, I have Yokohama Geolander A/T-S 225/70R-16s installed...