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Im going to suggest something different. you dont need to spend +20k on a snow rig.

get a 1990-1994 (non independent suspension front axle years) Ranger 4.0L 5spd. they are good trucks.

spacer/f150 coil spring lift (1.5")
37x12.50 tires
spool the rear axle

Take it to a shop to fit the tires.. it takes some fender mods but I have fit 37s on a bone stock ranger before. You shouldnt be over $6-7k




The good jeeps (rubys) are big $$$. the older jeeps need axle swaps and lots of $$ into them so they dont break all the time. Dont bother.

Chevies need axle swaps. stock 3/4 ton axles wont hold up to big tires at all. you need 14bolt / 44 combo which is stupid heavy.

Toyotas... 85-95 4cyl is good but slow. 96-up is good, the V6 models dont need a lot. 4" lift, locker or spool with 37-40" tires will get you far.

I have two 4cyl toyotas. they never break and they go far without much modification.

Samurais are great.. after setup properly. however they are small inside. They need full toyota running gear at a minimum. $$

I agree that you can easily build something functional for much less than 10-20K. I've got far less than 10K in my bronco, including the bronco. Most of us build up our rigs over the course of many years. Given the circumstances, I think it would be wise to have a fairly built vehicle since he'd be on his own up there. I'm also thinking of a good all purpose vehicle that can comfortably haul passengers and groceries/supplies. I wouldn't depend on a fullsize. Too easy to get stuck, and too much work when they do get stuck.

Really the vehicle requirements will depend on the amount of snow, type of snow, and duration. My biggest concern is hard core sugar snow that sticks around for months at a time. If it's not that type of snow, a pretty mildly built rig will probably do just fine.

How about a skid steer with a snowblower? Hard to get a skid steer stuck, and the snow blower, unlike the snow plow, would shoot the snow away from the narrow road.

Lots of good ideas here. I think you will find what you need somewhere here.

Plowing is fairly easy. I've only done it a few times, but I am getting better at it. Plowing narrow road with trees won't be that hard. You would be surprised at how much snow you can push with a fullsize truck. I have pushed 3' of fresh powder with very little effort. Even the Cement stuff isn't that bad if you can keep a little speed up. Doesn't take much, maybe 5 mph, anything slower and you can't break the frozen drifts that inevitably wind up hidden in the stuff.

My plow rig is an old F250 Diesel with a steel flatbed on it and 255/85/16 Les Schwab brand tires. I bought an old Meyer plow for $1500 and mounted it up. I put in a Lock-Rite in the front and the rear has the factory limitless slip diff. With the plow, my truck weighs close to 8500 lbs. I air down to around 30-40 psi, give or take, since I still have to drive pavement. I try to keep my top speed to 45-50 when aired down that low. Heat buildup in the winter isn't a big problem in tires, so I'm not too worried about short trips around here.

As long as I don't fall into a hole, there isn't many places I cannot get with the plow and that much weight. A snow blower is also an option, depending on your amount of snowfall. If you are looking at keeping around 4' or more steady accumulation, then you have to start weighing your options for a blower. If you are looking at 6-8' of steady accumulation, then you are in the blower range and need to go that way.

My snow rig is a Ramcharger on 35's with a small lift. I can go a lot of places, but the laws of physics still apply. Anything deeper than 3' of fresh powder or 2' of Cement, and reliably getting where you want is less likely.

I'm checking in. Lol! Been busy workin 80 hour weeks and tying to get the axle swap done on the Sammy. As far as samurais go I've had quite a few they are good snow wheelers and reasonable to build. If you want to go any distance down the highway at speed once you clear the road I wouldn't recommend it. As nobody said whatever you get put radials on it I learned my lesson with bias plys last year. My samurai on 33 bias claws did worse last year than it did the year before on 31 claw radials.

Samurai19 wrote:I'm checking in. Lol! Been busy workin 80 hour weeks and tying to get the axle swap done on the Sammy. As far as samurais go I've had quite a few they are good snow wheelers and reasonable to build. If you want to go any distance down the highway at speed once you clear the road I wouldn't recommend it. As nobody said whatever you get put radials on it I learned my lesson with bias plys last year. My samurai on 33 bias claws did worse last year than it did the year before on 31 claw radials.

yota axles???

Yeah yota axles and coils up front

going to be unstoppable. cool