Off-road vehicle explained

An off-road vehicle (ORV) also referred to as an off-highway vehicle (OHV), overland vehicle, or adventure vehicle, is any vehicle designed to drive on non-paved roads and surfaces,[1] such as trails and forest roads, that have rough, uneven, and low-traction surfaces. Off-road vehicles have been popularized through competitive off-road events, such as the annual Dakar Rally,[2] which challenges drivers to navigate a variety of terrain across various countries.

History

One of the first modified off-road vehicles was the Kégresse track, a conversion undertaken first by Adolphe Kégresse, who designed the track while working for Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, between 1906 and 1916.[3] The system uses a caterpillar track with a flexible belt, rather than interlocking metal segments. It can be fitted to a conventional vehicle, converting it into a half-track for rough or soft terrain.

After the Russian Revolution of 1917, Kégresse returned to his native France where the system was used on Citroën cars between 1921 and 1937 for off-road and military vehicles. Citroën sponsored several overland expeditions with vehicles crossing North Africa and Central Asia.

A huge wheeled vehicle designed from 1937 to 1939 under the direction of Thomas Poulter, called the Antarctic Snow Cruiser, was intended to facilitate transport in Antarctica. The project featured several innovative aspects but faced operational challenges under harsh conditions in Antarctica, leading to its eventual discontinuation.

Early off-road vehicles, such as the U.S. Jeep Wagoneer and Ford Bronco, the British Range Rover, and the station wagon-bodied Japanese Toyota Land Cruiser, Nissan Patrol, and Suzuki Lj's series all had bodies similar to those of a station wagon, on a body comparable to that of a light truck, with four-wheel-drive drivetrains. During the 1990s, as off-road vehicles became more popular, more companies started to produce their own line of what became known as Sport Utility Vehicles.[4] Manufacturers began to add more features to allow off-road vehicles to compete in the consumer market with regular vehicles. Over time, this evolved into modern SUV. It also evolved into the newer crossover vehicle, where utility and off-road capability were sacrificed for better on-road handling and luxury.

Technical details

To be able to drive off the pavement, off-road vehicles need low ground pressure, high ground clearance, and a way to keep their wheels or tracks grounded on uneven surfaces. Wheeled vehicles manage this by using large or additional tires, combined with high and flexible suspension. Tracked vehicles have wide tracks, and flexible suspension on the road wheels.

The choice of wheels versus tracks is one of cost and suitability. A tracked drivetrain is more expensive to produce and maintain, but has greater off-road performance. Wheeled drivetrains are cheaper and enable higher speeds.

Tires play a significant role for any wheeled off-road vehicle, with off-road tire tread types varying depending on the terrain type. Common types of off-road tires are A/T (All Terrain) and M/T (Mud Terrain). While the A/T tires perform well on the sand, they are less capable in mud. Sand Blaster and Mud bogging tires can be used for the most challenging terrains such as dirt, sand, and water to maintain traction at high angles and speeds (off-road motorsport).[5]

Most off-road vehicles are fitted with low gearing, allowing the operator to optimise the engine's available power while moving slowly through challenging terrain. An internal combustion engine coupled to a standard gearbox often has an output speed too high, resolved using either a very low ("granny") first gear (like the all-wheel drive Volkswagen Transporter versions) or an additional gearbox in line with the first, called a reduction drive. Some vehicles, like the Bv206 in the picture on the right, also have torque converters to reduce the gearing.[6]

Criticism

Safety

See main article: Criticism of sport utility vehicles. SUVs have a higher center of gravity,[7] so they are more likely to be in rollover accidents than passenger cars. According to a study conducted in the United States, SUVs have twice the fatality rate of passenger cars and have nearly triple the fatality rate in rollover accidents.[8]

In the United States, light trucks (including SUVs) represent 36 percent of all registered vehicles. They are involved in about half of the fatal two-vehicle crashes with passenger cars, and 80 percent of these fatalities are to occupants of passenger cars.[8]

Environment

In the United States, the number of ORV users since 1972 has climbed sevenfold—from five million to 36 million in 2000.[9] Government policies that protect wilderness but also allow recreational ORVs, have been the subject of some debate within the United States and other countries.[10]

All trail and off-trail activities impact natural vegetation and wildlife, which can lead to erosion, invasive species, habitat loss, and ultimately, species loss[11] [12] [13] decreasing an ecosystem's ability to maintain homeostasis.[14] ORVs cause greater stress to the environment than foot traffic alone, and ORV operators who attempt to test their vehicles against natural obstacles can do significantly more damage than those who follow legal trails.[15] [16] Illegal use of off-road vehicles has been identified as a serious land management problem ranked with dumping garbage and other forms of vandalism.[17] Many user organisations, such as Tread Lightly! and the Sierra Club, publish and encourage appropriate trail ethics.[18]

ORVs have also been criticised for producing more pollution in areas that might normally have none, in addition to noise pollution that can cause hearing impairment and stress in wildlife.[19] In 2002, the United States Environmental Protection Agency adopted emissions standards for all-terrain vehicles that "when fully implemented in 2012... are expected to prevent the release of more than two million tons of air pollution each year—the equivalent of removing the pollution from more than 32 million cars every year."[20] [21]

Civilian use

Common commercial vehicles used for off-roading include four-wheel-drive pickup trucks and SUVs such as the Ford F-Series, Jeep Wrangler, and Toyota Land Cruiser, among others. Typically, owners will perform additional modifications to the wheels, tires, suspension, and body to improve their performance off-road. Several decommissioned military vehicles have also been used by civilians, including the Jeep CJ and the AM General Hummer. Some, like the early Land Rovers, were adapted to military use from civilian specifications. Specialised off-road vehicles include Utility terrain vehicles (UTVs), All-terrain vehicles (ATVs), dirt bikes, dune buggies, rock crawlers, and sandrails.

All-terrain vehicle

Other applications

Military vehicle

The military market for off-road vehicles used to be large, but, since the fall of the Iron Curtain in the 1990s, it has dried up to some extent. The U.S. jeeps, developed during World War II, coined the word many people use for any light off-road vehicle. In the U.S., the Jeeps' successor from the mid-1980s was the AM General HMMWV series. The Red Army used the GAZ-61 and GAZ-64 during World War II. The Eastern Bloc used the GAZ-69 and UAZ-469 in similar roles.

Commercial vehicle

Scientific vehicle

Expedition vehicle

Vehicles used as the primary transport in an expedition, not for profit, scientific research or personal use.

See also

References

Bibliography

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Off-Road Vehicle Act . New Brunswick Acts and regulations . Attorney General, New Brunswick, Canada . June 27, 1985 . Web . 2007-10-17 . 2007-08-18 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070818192249/http://www.gnb.ca/acts/acts/o-01-5.htm . dead .
  2. Web site: Dakar Rally . 2024-11-08 .
  3. http://www.home.no/migreg/norsk/kiriletz.html MiG-registeret
  4. Web site: 2018-03-05 . Gone without a Trace: These Are the Forgotten SUVs . 2024-11-21 . Car and Driver . en-US.
  5. Web site: Mud terrain vs all-terrain tires – pros, cons & comparison. offroadium.com. 2017-04-17.
  6. https://pioneerrentals.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Hagglund_BV206D6_en.pdf
  7. Web site: Rodney E. Slater (U.S. Transportation Secretary) . Secretary Slater Proposes New Label; Warning of Rollover Danger for Sport Utility Vehicles. . News Release . National Highway Traffic Safety Administration . April 9, 1998 . Web . 2007-05-17 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070213182204/http://www.dot.gov/affairs/1998/nht1898.htm . 2007-02-13.
  8. Web site: Jeffrey W. Runge, M.D. (Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) . The Honorable Jeffrey W. Runge, M.D. Administrator National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Before the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation United States Senate . Testimony before the Committee on Commerce, Science, And Transportation, United States Senate . National Highway Traffic Safety Administration . February 26, 2003 . Web . 2007-05-17 .
  9. Web site: Forest Service Rule Revs Up Off-Road Vehicle Fight. Article. Environment News Service (ENS) . July 8, 2004. Web. 2007-06-24 .
  10. Web site: van Wagtendonk. Jan W. . Role of Science in Sustainable Management of Yosemite Wilderness. USDA Forest Service Proceedings RMRS-P-27. 2003. USDA Forest Service. 2003 . 2007-06-24 .
  11. Web site: Rice. Kathleen C.. National Collection of Imperiled Plants – Pholisma sonorae. Center for Plant Conservation. 8 June 2012.
  12. Web site: Mojave lizard may get protection; off-road vehicles are cited as threat. Los Angeles Times. 12 January 2008 . 2 May 2015.
  13. Web site: Officials seek to protect desert reptile. Las Vegas Review-Journal. 2 May 2015.
  14. Web site: Technical Notes. Conserving Natural and Cultural Resources on Department of Defense Lands; Case Studies from the DoD Conservation Program (Page 13). US Department of Defense . 2004. 2007-06-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070628172159/http://www.fws.gov/endangered/DOD/Tech%20Notes.pdf . 2007-06-28.
  15. Web site: Kristine Sowl . Rick Poetter . amp . Impact Analysis of Off-Road Vehicle Use for Subsistence Purposes on Refuge: Lands and Resources Adjacent to the King Cove Access Project. Izembek National Wildlife Refuge (page 6). US Fish and wildlife services Alaska . April 16, 2004. 2007-06-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070628172200/http://izembek.fws.gov/impanalysis.pdf . 2007-06-28.
  16. Web site: Recreation Management Goals and Strategies. Capitol State Forest Recreation and Public Use Plan—Part II (Page 45). Washington State Department of Natural Resources. 2007-06-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070221172711/http://dnr.wa.gov/htdocs/lm/recreation/capitolforest/plan/pdf/f2_part2.pdf . 2007-02-21.
  17. Web site: Chapter 11. Field Management Status. Land Management (11.5.2 Identified Concerns of the Parks Department). Central Pine Barrens Joint Planning and Policy Commission. Web. 2007-06-24 .
  18. Web site: Codes of Ethics Advocated by Groups Outside of Ontario. Trail Ethics. Trent University. January 16, 2007. Web. 2007-06-24. 2019-02-17. https://web.archive.org/web/20190217112515/http://www.trentu.ca/academic/trailstudies/moreethics.html. dead.
  19. Web site: The Impacts of Off-Road Vehicle Noise on Wildlife . 2009-01-19 . https://web.archive.org/web/20101225234104/http://www.wildlandscpr.org/node/258 . 2010-12-25 . dead .
  20. Web site: New Air Pollution Rules Target Off-Road Vehicles. Article. Environment News Service (ENS). September 17, 2002. Web. 2007-06-24 .
  21. Web site: Final Rule for Cleaner Large Industrial Spark-Ignition Engines, Recreational Marine Diesel Engines, and Recreational Vehicles. US Environmental Protection Agency . March 6, 2006. Web . 2007-06-24 .