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Self-Tuning Engine Management System From Professional Products
 Sounds like Professional Products has created an R2D2 for your car's engine. Their Stage 2 Engine Management System (EMS) tunes a variety of engine configurations for a wide range of driving styles and conditions. But the most impressive aspect of this product is that it does all this automatically. All you have to do is drive it for 30 min. and the EMS figures out the correct adjustments as you drive.
Superlift Level-It Front Strut Leveling Kits
 Got a saggy front end on your 4x4? If it's got coilover front struts, then chances are that Superlift's Level-It kits are the solution. These easy-to-install kits are made from 6061-T6 billet aluminum and 7mm plate steel. They're also easy to remove if you have to return your truck back to stock trim.
Superlift's 2008 Ford Super Duty Suspension Systems Available in 2"-10" Heights
 Superlift's 2008 Super Duty 4x4 Lift Kits provide a wide lift range, starting from 2" and going all the way to 10". But more importantly, they do it while retaining complete factory steering geometry so your truck's handling, comfort, and reliability don't suffer. And no matter which lift height you choose, their kit will ensure that your front suspension's caster is adjusted back to within factory specifications.
Justice Brothers Super Radiator Cooler
 Yeah yeah, I know this sounds like "racing air" for your tires but trust me, this is the real deal. With today's 200-plus degrees engine operating temperatures, and high performance engines, many times your radiator will need a little help keeping the temperatures under control. This is particularly true on hot, humid days or when you're stuck in traffic. Justice Brothers SUPER RADIATOR COOLER improves the wetting ability of water, resulting in superior heat transfer in the radiator and cooler cylinder head temperatures within the engine.
MBRP Performance Exhaust 2008 Jeep Grand Cherokee 3.0L Turbo Diesel Filter Back Exhaust
 We first drove the Jeep Grand Cherokee 3.0 Turbo Diesel at a press junket put on by Chrysler/Jeep over a year ago. At that time we came away very impressed with this vehicle. Excellent power, very good fuel mileage rating and all wrapped up in a very comfortable and capable vehicle. But we've been quite surprised by the lack of buzz about this vehicle. Perhaps that will change with MBRP Performance Exhaust's "filter-back" exhaust system.
BDS Suspension Jeep XJ Cherokee 8.5" Lift System
 BDS Suspension has another entry in the "big" lift kit market. Owners of 87-01 Jeep Cherokee XJ's now have another option with the release of this all new 8.5" long arm system. BDS has been designing their kits with the dual usage owner in mind, meaning this kit will work well off road but still be useable by those that use their trucks for the daily commute as well. A quick look at this kit will show that it doesn't use heim joints which in practice will make this kit last longer and require less maintenance.
ARB Winch Bumper for Hummer H3
 It looks like ARB has come up with another great bull bar to add to their line up of winch bumpers. With the recent introduction of H3's in Australia and the continued popularity of these rigs ARB saw the need for an aftermarket bumper and winch mount and stuck their engineers in a windowless room until they designed this bull bar. Well it might not have been that severe but we do like the results.
Pakk Ratt Recovery Gear Organizer
 The bane of any offroader is disorganization. When your high-centered 4x4 is about to roll down an embankment, the last thing you need to be doing is rummaging through your truck, looking for your winch control or your tree saver. It's crucial to know where you recovery gear is located so you can get it in a snap. Organizing your gear has just gotten easier with Pakk Ratt Off Road's spare tire cover that features a large recovery gear storage pocket. Besides aiding in organization, there are two other reasons why their spare tire storage is such a great idea: 1) It's a safe and secure way of storing items like clevis hooks and snatch blocks which could be deadly if not safely stored within your vehicle, and 2) the gear is instantly accessible to people outside the vehicle so the driver, who has his leg pushed for dear life against his brake pedal, doesn't have to dig out the recovery gear himself.
Superlift Level-It Coil Spacer Leveling Kits
 Let's face it, not everyone has the cash or the need to step up to a full-fledged (and full-priced) lift system. Sometimes, all that is needed is a little bit of budget boost to clear those bigger-than-stock tires. Superlift understands this and to fill this need, they've released their Level-It coil spacer leveling kits. They provide an affordable, cost-effective way to lift or level the IFS on Ford F-150s, Super Dutys, 1/2-ton 2WD Chevys and 4x4 Dodge Rams.
Sackwear.com Providing Relief for Naked Cruiser Heads
 Sackwear.com has announced instant relief for Cruiser Heads with nothing to wear. Their new T-shirt designs feature classic Toyota Land Cruiser models with seriously cool '60's style graphics. They're one of the few pieces of off-road apparel that doesn't look like it was designed for rednecks. Hell, even Jeep drivers would be happy to own one of these shirts.
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August 2008 Cover Shot
 Dolores Gooch on Apex Mtn
GPS Talk: An Annoying Blast From the Past
 Last evening I spent an hour or so helping my friend, Rob, plan a 4x4 trip to explore some trails on Apex Mountain. In preparation, I set up my computers to display two separate map types (Garmin's Topo Canada and Mussio Ventures' BC Backroads Maps - Digital Edition) and overlaid on them my track and waypoint data from my last two visits to Apex. When Rob showed up, he had his Garmin eMap GPS but it used a proprietary data cable for transferring data, and he couldn't find it. Even if he had, I wouldn't have been able to transfer data to his unit because the cable required an RS232 serial port which today's laptop computers don't use anymore.
HOT4x4's Apex Mtn Turtle Jam 2008
 The last time I participated in a Herd of Turtles 4x4 event, I ended up breaking a front u-joint and destroying an outer shaft. That happened at their GPS Challenge earlier this year. But the trails weren't that tough and the breakage had more to do with my very old u-joints and the fact that I'm running 37" bias ply tires on a Dana 44 front end. So I wasn't expecting any damage when I accepted their invitation for their 2008 Turtle Jam on Apex Mountain, in the sunny southern interior of B.C. Besides, I had just finished rebuilding the front end with new ball joints, hub bearings and seals, Yukon alloy axle shafts and Super Joints, and fresh u-joints for the front driveshaft. No way was I going to break anything.
Galbraith Road To Be Closed For Bridge Replacements
CRANBROOK - The public is advised that beginning Wednesday, Aug. 20, the Galbraith Forest Service Road will be closed to all traffic for about six weeks to facilitate the replacement of six bridges along the road. The Galbraith Forest Service Road provides access to Summer Lake recreation site. The closure begins at the road's beginning at 'Kilometre 45' of the Bull River Forest Service Road, northeast of Cranbrook. The closure will be in effect until the end of September.
 A pilot project on radio communication protocols aims to improve safety and reduce collisions on resource roads, Forests and Range Minister Pat Bell announced today. The goal of the project is to improve road user safety through standardized radio call procedures for forest service roads. A block of dedicated resource road radio channels along with standardized call procedures and road signage is being piloted on Vancouver Island, Sunshine Coast and one road system in the Tumbler Ridge area. Previously truckers needed to reprogram their radios to gain access to local radio channels as they moved around to different work locations. In the pilot areas, only a single set of radio channels is being used on forest service roads. New communications signs posted on the pilot roads indicate which radio channel to call, call frequency, direction being travelled and vehicle type. The new radio procedures were implemented earlier this year and the findings from the pilot projects will be evaluated this fall prior to considering provincewide implementation.
 For anyone with an interest in Jeeps and fourwheeling, Tom Moor's "The Joy of Jeep" is highly recommended reading. It's an ambitious book that aims to be an all-encompassing reference to get even the greenest of Jeep owners up to speed on Jeep models, Jeep modifications, and Jeep activities. The fact that it succeeds is a testament to the author's depth of knowledge as well as his ability to distill such a wide-ranging body of information into a concise 160 paqes of information.
Garmin's Oregon GPS
 Hot on the heels of the Colorado line that was introduced only 6 months ago comes the Oregon line-up. Besides cosmetic differences, the main differentiator between these two units is the fact that the Colorado uses Garmin's "Rock 'n' Roll" click-wheel while the Oregon features a touch-screen interface to input data and make menu selections. While I've been a long-time fan of Garmin, the Oregon line, like the Colorado line, leaves me feeling ambivalent about the company's direction.
Dodge Ram Mega Cab 4x4
 In this day and age where the word "mega" has been widely over-used and mis-used, it's a nice surprise to see a case when mega really does mean MEGA. The Dodge Ram Mega Cab 2500 Laramie 4x4 is one such example. By any measurement this is a mega-sized truck. I grew up with Chevy Suburbans and Ford Supercabs, and this Mega Cab really pushed me to the edges of my comfort zone when it came to parking and driving on city streets. But despite its mega size, this was a very enjoyable truck to drive and I really hated having to give the keys back to Chrysler.
Public Encouraged To Help Protect Local Habitats
Off-road vehicle users (that's right, YOU) and ATV riders are being encouraged to help protect critical wildlife habitat by staying out of sensitive ecosystems such as wetlands, streams, grasslands and alpine areas, or risk enforcement actions. To provide further encouragement, provincial enforcement officers will be conducting random inspections at known off-roading sites. The goal of these inspections is to encourage responsible recreation and to educate the public about how their activities may be affected by recent legislative changes.
 While billions of dollars are spent on alternative fuel sources and hybrid and electric vehicle research, some North American drivers are taking immediate steps to dramatically improve their fuel economy, sometimes even doubling it. And they're doing it for free.
Resource Road Act Introduced
From the viewpoint of a recreational user of Forest Service Roads, I'm not sure if or how this impacts us. But I suppose consolidating everything into one act will make it easier to decipher the regulations. Of particular interest to recreationists is the mention of the creation of the Resource Road Authority that will "resolve disputes and restrict the use of high-use resource roads in order to improve safety."
A land use agreement between the Lil'wat Nation and the Province was signed on April 11, 2008, and features the creation of a winter non-motorized zone in the Upper Callaghan Valley. This doesn't appear to affect 4x4 recreation but since many of our readers are also avid snowmobilers, we are presenting this information for their benefit.
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