Brian1 91 XLT 4x4

Brian1's 1991 Ford Explorer
Moab Edition

Drivetrain:
4.0 V6
BrianBuilt intake adapter with AEM Dryflow filter and Pre-filter
Dynomax cat back exhaust with
High flow cat
Spectre 3" Aluminum intake
BBK Throttle Body
5 speed manual trans With custom transmission mount
4.10 gears
Front D35 TTB, locked
Rear 8.8 with disc brakes, Powertrax No-slip locker, welded tubes to diff, Riddler Cover
Warn manual hubs
Manual BW1354 Transfer Case (swapped in)

Chassis & Suspension:
Skyjacker 2" coils and add a leafs
1" custom aluminum body lift
Quick disconnect front swaybar
Bilstein 5125s 10" shocks rear
Bilstein 5125s 10" shocks front
F250 Shock Tower Conversion
Custom Extended Radius Arms

Interior:
PRP daily driver seat
Cobra CB
E-track cargo tie down system
Lowrance HDS 5 Baja GPS for offroad explorations
Yaesu FT2800 HAM Radio

Wheels & Tires:
LT265/75R16 Dick Cepek Trail Country EXP tires (currently, Cooper STT and BFG MT in the past)
16" GenII teardrop wheels, formerly had 15" stock Gen II teardrop wheels

Misc:
Warn 9000lb multi mount winch with synthetic rope
Onboard Air using Viair 480c compressor and 2.5 gallon tank
Front diff guard from BrianBuilt
Rear u-bolt skid plates and raised shock mounts from BrianBuilt
Raised axle and t-case breathers
Custom Bolt-on Rock Sliders (version 2.0)
Custom Winch bumper
Custom rear bumper with tire carrier
9" Vision X ADV Cannons LED Lights (Old: 9" import LEDs and 7" HID Lights)
Reverse light
Pro-comp extended brake lines
9007 Headlight conversion
Fuel Pump Access Panel
Replacement Door Weatherstripping
Dual Batteries with auxillary fuse block
ARB Awning
ARB Fridge
Maxtrax Recovery Boards
Trasharoo Spare Tire Trash Bag

Project Super Stock

 

[Fix4Dirt]

I like your style...

well, i dont have autocorrect and i type on mobile, so why would i write off-roading too long, and plus froadin sounds cooler if i got a custom plate probably wouldve either made it say fix4drt or froader, so ya stole one idea (granted ya had it before i even got a hint of idea) so guess fix4drt it is if i ever get one either that or ill sneak o'er and take ya plate

 

[BKennedy]

...or froader, so ya stole one idea (granted ya had it before i even got a hint of idea) so guess fix4drt it is if i ever get one either that or ill sneak o'er and take ya plate

He has had that plate since before you were born..

 

[CDW6212R]

He has had that plate since before you were born..

Me too, a plate I got in 1987 for my Ranchero, and it became my password for many things. Some times you get old, or forget, but some things you can't forget. Who writes down a ton of different passwords?

 

[Fix4Dirt]

He has had that plate since before you were born..

exactly so technically i stole his idea i guess!

one downside of being young: no more novel ideas that being said many good things about being young, although the back and knee pain is starting to set in already

 

[Brian1]

Just a small update, my Bosch AGM battery that is my auxiliary power mounted above my rear axle died and wouldn't hold a charge sometime in late summer to early fall. I had at least two trips where my fridge wouldn't run overnight because the voltage dropped too low but it would work as soon as my alternator was charging it. I went with a Duracell AGM from Batteries + this time because I got a good deal on it during the Black Friday-Cyber Monday weekend. The battery took forever to come in, finally got it a week before Christmas and I just installed it yesterday. It fit just like the Bosch did in my custom tray but I had to slightly oval the holes where the terminals poke out of the top cover of my bracket.

Back in October 2022 I finally made it to a unique part of NM that I have wanted to check out for years. It is a canyon where the Canadian River cuts through the red rock and used to be an orchard before a flood wiped out the whole operation in 1904. A few old buildings remain along with some great camping.

 

[Rick]

I'm pretty sure I have the Duracell AGM in our Ram. So far so good after 4 years or so. I also got mine from Batteries +. They replaced Diehard Platinums which lasted 7 years.

Love the night sky photo.

 

[Brian1]

Haven't been doing much with my Explorer this year but hoping for a great few months of exploring coming up. Some maintenance was in order and a general once-over of everything. Biggest issue I found was a loose wheel bearing on the passenger side. I took it apart to find the wheel bearings rusty and of course, loose. I took the rotor off and found it was below the minimum thickness by a lot so I went to my parts cabinet and pulled out an entire knuckle and brake assembly, it pays off to hoard Explorer parts Got the new races put in the used rotor and the rotor put on. Brake caliper was fully compressed and super tight going on but I went with it. I took it on a test drive and came back to an extremely hot hub. Decided to toss out the brake caliper as defective and put on another used part from my cabinet as I also hoard used calipers with the steel piston (phenolic plastic pistons are junk in my experience) Went for the same test loop and came back with much better hub temps so I called it good.

Tomorrow I am leaving to go to the most remote part of Utah I have ever been to. I will be carrying an additional 10 gallons of gas. I was originally planning on going to a different state to explore but had a friend call up and say he had an opening on his backcountry permit for Canyonlands Maze district so I'm looking forward to an epic trip!

 

[Brian1]

Awesome trip to Canyonlands Maze District, Lake Powell and Cedar Mesa area. Explorer did great the whole trip and this was probably the hardest I have 'wheeled it in years.

First up was Arch Canyon, it had a massive flood within the previous few months and was very challenging with lots of loose sand, steep embankments and it was very overgrown. I wound up with a ton of pinstriping in my paint from the overgrowth.

The next few days were spent in the Canyonlands Maze district. 30 miles of fast-ish roads and then 20 miles of 3mph rough trail with rocky ledges leading up to our campsite at Dollhouse at the end of the road. The scenery was spectacular in every direction.

One of the hard spots at Teapot Canyon, the photo makes it look flat but its about a 2-3ft tall ledge and you are right on the edge of a drop into the canyon.

Leaving the Dollhouse

We had to cut our trip short due to some mechanicals with a vehicle in our group and also had to go back out the way we came in since the vehicle wouldn't be able to negotiate the trail ahead. We stopped at a Lake Powell access point thinking about making camp within sight of the water but it was just too low. This would all be underwater if the lake was full (water would likely be a few more miles down the canyon above my roof)-

I havent crawled under the Explorer yet to check for any more damage. I did smash my exhaust tip, scratched one of my wheels pretty bad, put some scrapes into both bumpers and sliders, broke a cover on my light and it went flying off going down a dirt road, and bent up my t-case skid plus all the pinstripes in my paint. The Maze district was never really on my radar but I'm glad I went and I definitely want to go back and explore more of the area!

 

[Brian1]

Got it home and I couldn't stand all the scratches in my paint so I gave it a good wash and then used some cutting and polishing compound to all the sides and roof which got the majority of the scratches out and gave it a mirror finish it hasn't seen in years. I finished it up with a coat of wax which I also haven't done in a long time.

Just one example of the before with all the scratches-

After the cut and polish but before wax, picture from the same location.

And after finishing with the wax of the same panel taken out in the partial sun -

I'm pretty happy with the results, it didn't get all the scratches out but did a good job on about 85% of them. Its not perfect but good enough for a vehicle that gets used out in the dirt. It took me around 5 hours from the wash to finishing the wax on all of it. Now I need to clean the inside

 

[410Fortune]

That thing continues to be a beast!!!! Thanks for sharing

 

[Brian1]

Took a day trip about 2 weeks ago to a cool canyon about an hour south of me. I put together a ~4 minute video of the drive through the canyon.

 

[Brian1]

It has been 6 years since I have taken this Explorer to Moab and the last time was at an Easter Jeep Safari so I decided to take it to another EJS this year! I went on the Skyjacker 50th anniversary trail run up Kane Creek driving my friends F150 on 42s and then rode around Hells Revenge with another friend before leaving EJS around 3PM to start a route I have been driving by all these years and never took the time to explore until now. I did about an 80 mile loop around the canyon rim county where I explored some dirt roads, hiked around some viewpoints and then found a spot to camp. The next morning I packed up camp before the sun was up and went to one more point of interest before hitting the highway back home. Here are some photos from the trip -

First stop at an arch-

Miles to go before finding a camp -

Some wicked weather with the canyon rim backdrops-

So that's what Hurrah Pass trail looks like from above!

Stopped at the Hatch Point overlook

Needles Overlook, Lockhart Basin trail snakes its way through the valley floor. One of these days I will drive that trail!

I wanted to camp on a rim but it was just too cold and windy so I found a more sheltered place to camp for the night just as the sun was setting-

 

[gmanpaint]

Wow... Those are incredible overlooks. You really can't take a bad picture out there, but man, these are sick! Good on you for getting off the, off the, off the, off the beaten trail. Love it!