Home Forums Gear Hunting Trucks and Four-Wheel Drives Land Rover vs Ram Cummins

Yeah, too many variables to make a valid statement, but kinda funny on some level?

http://icky-bad.com/loud/tug-o-war-land-rover-vs-dodge-ram/

An unladen truck that didn't have 4WD engaged? No surprise.

Yeah, if they shifted the Dodge into 4x4, it would be a no contest. My Dodge Cummins is pretty light on the rear end and when empty, I often have to lock it to get going on slick surfaces. Once that heavy front end is turning, though, it's a totally different story.

badger;
Top of the morning to you sir, I trust this finds you and yours well.

The first thing that always crosses my mind when I see these videos is that the folks involved must be in an entirely different stratosphere of income than me - as there's no chance I'd be churning $350 each rubber up for a video.

Then too I can't imagine a much better way to spindle drive line components than doing silly stunts like tug o war contests, but again I can only assume the folks involved have more money to spend on that sort of thing.

I noted too that the Dodge in the video didn't have a limited slip rear differential either and that might have some affect on the outcome.

As you and Rock Chuck point out though, they are light in the back and mine is quite useless in snow or ice without the front differential engaged.

We have done a couple vehicle extractions with our though and as expected, a 7500 lb truck with all four wheels grabbing in low range can move quite a bit.

Anyway sir thanks for your comment and all the best to you and yours in 2015.

Dwayne

Some people have the idea that if a 4x4 outing costs less than $1k in repairs, they didn't have enough fun.

I generally have enough "fun" getting to where I needed to be in 4x4, to last awhile.

Reminds me of a story an older gentleman, a friend of mine and our former camp cook told me.

Seems that back in the early 70's he was hanging out at the horse track outside my home town when a friend of his showed up. This fella was touting the towing, pulling, and climbing ability of his brand new Ford Bronco. The little Bronco had a positrac rear end and of course Hi-Lo 4 wheel drive. It had the little 289 and a three speed manual transmission. "It'll pull anything", he said, "lock this baby in 4-Lo and it can't be stopped".

Well my friend, being a betting man, after all they were at a horse track, tells him he's on and what are the stakes. The ante is agreed upon at $20 and the cry goes out amongst the hangers on, "anybody got a tow chain". A chain is procured and the commence to hook their chariots together. On one end is the shiny new Bronco and attached to the other is my pal Jim's Oldsmobile Station wagon. Now this wasn't your normal wagon he explained to me, "I special ordered it with a 455 Olds SuperRocket, low geared PosiTrac axle, and of course the wood side trim".

Someone gave the signal to go and the struggle ensued. The man with the Bronco raced the small block and eased the clutch out with the transfer case locked in 4 wheel Lo range, the tires shuddered and grabbed and he started to gain a little ground. About this time old Jim leaned into the old wood side Olds and really opened her up. I've been led to believe there was tires smoking and engines racing when all of the sudden Jim felt he was gaining ground, he was moving forward and it was starting to get easier! Upon looking in the rear view mirror he saw, much to his surprise, that he'd pulled the little Ford hard enough at such an angle that it had climbed itself into a full wheelie! Sensing that he'd won the battle and not wanting to tear up his friend's beloved Bronco he immediately released the accelerator pedal only to roll back and hear a loud crash as the Bronco came down out of its wheelie. He claimed he knew something was very wrong when the crash was followed by a stream of expletives that would make a retired navy man blush. Upon exiting his mighty Oldsmobile he saw that the Bronco's front axle had suffered a severe failure upon reconnecting with the earth, it seems the axle had broken in half leaving it not just crippled but dead on arrival and unable to move!

It's been a long time since Jim told me that story and every time I see one of these silly TugOWar videos I think of him. My mind draws a picture like one of the old Cowtown cartoons and I can't help but crack a smile!

I had a very similar rig with a GM label...'73 Blazer, 307 engine, 3 speed manual, hi-lo transfer case, but without the positrack.
It pulled ok once you got it moving. It SERIOUSLY needed a 4 speed when towing. There were many times when I had to use low range to get moving with a trailer to keep from tearing up the clutch.

There was a similar video not long ago with a VW Touareg diesel and a jacked up Chevrolet pickup truck.

Lots of similar videos on that link I posted. Many seem to have foreign license plates, so apparently some in other countries have nothin' better to do than rip vehicles to pieces in their spare time?

Have seen a few "hold my beer and watch this" moments with who can pull what.

Didn't get to see it personally, but back in the early 50s a neighbor of one of my farmer uncles had gotten a surplus Jeep and though it was the deal. While most of the neighbors were gathered threshing oats at uncle's place, the Jeep guy boasted that it would out pull any of the tractors present.

He was a boozer and general PITA, prone to loud bragging and generally poor behavior even when sober.

So when they took a break, one farmer took the bet. IIRC it was a 1930s John Deere A or B that they hooked to the Jeep out in uncle's hayfield near the barn.

They took up the slack in the log chain and the Jeep started digging in, going nowhere as the hand clutch was let out on the JD. Pretty soon the JD was going up across the field with the Jeep behind it, jumping up and down and sideways by then.

Jeep boy got mad and went home. No one missed him much when they went back to thrashin'.