I have a new-to-me 2010 F250 that I use for driving forest roads in the PNW often to get to trailheads. Due to all the rain (and general lack of maintenance funding) our forest roads here are in pretty bad shape with many pot holes and rocky sections. I’m not looking to do any serious off-roading, just drive rough forest roads with confidence.
So far I’m planning on getting better off-road tires since that’s low hanging fruit. Beyond that, I was wondering about a limited slip differential? I’ve definitely had a few times where the open diff would result in one wheel spinning when the other still had good traction. I’m not sure how difficult/expensive that would be, but would it be worth it?
Aside from that, are there any suspension mods to help with the many pot holes maybe? Anything else to consider?
OR/AT tires, obviously.
LSD is okay, it’s not an absolute requirement but if you are noticing your wheels slipping often in the way you drive, an LSD can help prevent that.
You can also look into metal skid plates. They can protect your oil pan, transmission, and other parts close to the ground from rocks/logs that may puncture them from underneath.
A winch can be helpful if you get stuck in mud or a deep ravine or something. Can help you get out by yourself instead of needing to wait for another person to show up and offer to use theirs.
Upgraded suspension or a lift can help too but its highly dependant on if you plan on only staying on roads or not. If youre only going on roads and trails, stock suspension is typically fine. Anything more than that and youll have to upgrade probably.
OR lights (LED) are also helpful if you plan to do a lot of night time driving.
Ah yeah, a winch is a great idea. Yeah, I’m staying on forest roads, but those roads have tons of potholes so I was thinking something for a better suspension would be best even if staying on the roads. I already upgraded the headlights to LEDs which are super bright. I think a candle was brighter than the stock sealed beam ones!