If you have recently purchased a new or ‘new to you’ 4WD and are excited to start making modifications, these are the MUST HAVES for any new 4WDer!

Firstly, its always good to drive your new vehicle offroad a few times to ensure you know what it is capable of, and what it’s limitations are, this is definitely the first step in deciding what upgrades you need for the style of driving you prefer.

For instance, if you like hitting hardcore tracks and getting your vehicle crossed up on heavily rutted tracks, perhaps a new set of suspension springs will do the trick they will allow your suspension to absorb the undulations and keep grip on tough sections of track and whilst you are at it, might as well get a little more clearance with a 2 inch lift kit, nothing beats being able to crawl in low range over the top of obstacles you couldn’t imagine tackling in standard gear.

When shopping for suspension, it is definitely wise take into account the weight of all your permanent accessories like steel bull-bars and rear tyre carriers as if you don’t do your research properly from the start and get a light duty spring and shock combo you will end up with sagged out springs in no time. Alternatively if you go too heavy duty, your on road ride will be harsh, and you will loathe hard packed dirt road corrugations and even speed humps and potholes around town.

The next must have modification is a good set of tyres, it’s one of the most common questions in the 4WD world ‘do I need bigger tyres?’. Despite what every man and his dog has to say about this issue, its always best to stick with the size your manufacturer recommends, there are plenty of options available for most modern 4WD’s and they can usually suit your needs perfectly.

With that being said, some people prefer to go to a  bigger size and install a larger set of donuts to their rig, which improve off-road performance but affect fuel economy and braking performance, and could give reductions in low end torque outputs.

Bigger shoes are not all bad news, the benefit of larger rubber is the ability to drive up and over larger obstacles.

There are many options regardless of the size you choose to run, there are 3 main categories that people refer to;

– The first is ‘H/T’ which stands for Highway Terrain, typically gives excellent road holding but lacks good grip when off paved surfaces.

– Next is A/T which stands for All Terrain, these are designed for a bit of everything, they will give excellent offroad performance whilst maintaining good road handling and often give the best mileage out of offroad tyres.

– And lastly M/T which stands for Mud Terrain these usually have softer rubber compounds and deeper tread lugs, this makes them ideal for grip in full on hardcore offroad driving, however they sacrifice some of the longevity that A/T’s offer and can wear out fast and make lots of road noise when used ‘on road’.

However, the lines are getting blurry between these variants due to recent developments in chemistry and engineering you can have some excellent all-round performers, that work well on nearly any hardcore terrain and outlast your standard traditional H/T tyres.

Whatever tyres you choose for your 4×4, it’s a good idea to know how to use them to their best ability.

Whenever you leave the bitumen, it is a good idea to reduce your tyre pressures to allow the largest tread footprint possible, this helps in a few ways, it will increase your contact patch, allowing more horsepower to get to the tracks, it will also allow you to grip steep rocky steps and other similar terrain by conforming to the surface and will give you more buoyancy on soft sand and greasy mud, making it less likely you’ll need a recovery.

Reduced tyre pressures will also protect your sidewalls from puncture from sharp sticks and roots and save you from using your  Tyre repair kit, and give you more confidence with your vehicles off-road performance.

There are a few ways to drop your pressures, but having a reliable tyre deflator with a gauge like the Kwiky Tyre Deflator, makes life easy, by simply removing your tyre’s valve core it can dump lots of pressure quickly and in control, but using the integrated gauge you can make sure you are running the right pressures all around.

Once you’ve had your fun and its time to move on, it is best to get your tyres back up to your vehicle manufacturers recommended pressures before you hit paved surfaces.

A simple portable air compressor like the Thumper MkII or the Thumper Max will allow you to pump up all your tyres to the right pressure without needing a service station handy, after all, there aren’t many servo’s where you are likely to be dropping pressures.

Using these tricks will get the most life out of your 4WD tyres and get you further offroad without damaging your new pride and joy.

Another modification that you cannot live without, is a quality set of LED Spotties regardless of your vehicle, standard high beams simply don’t cut it when there is a risk of hitting wildlife at high speed in remote areas.

A set of good quality LED Spotties will throw clear, bright white light hundreds of metres down the track, and even out wide, making even the youngest joey clearly visible with plenty of time to slow down.

The Adventure Kings LED Driving light range offers excellent value for money, they are competitive performance-wise with many of the more expensive brands available on the market, but find themselves ranked as one of the most affordable. You can get a pair of 9” Adventure Kings Spotties and wiring harness combo for under $200 including delivery.

There are plenty of accessories beyond these that you can add to make camping better, but for the fastest offroad performance increases, the Adventure Kings Range cannot be beat!