Best Off-Road Vehicles of All Time

Good off-road trucks require a mix of attributes because off-roading is, well, just anything off-road. As we know, roads cover all manner of surfaces, which means anything off-road means any terrain covering this big, beautiful world. That said, most drivers tend to focus on getting an off-road vehicle that works well for their local environments. The great off-roaders tend to have most, if not all the attributes listed below:

Ground Clearance

What does ground clearance mean? Ground clearance is exactly what it sounds like, the distance between the lowest part of your vehicle’s underbelly and the ground. 

Why do you want your pickup truck to have more ground clearance? Higher ground clearance allows a truck to navigate over obstacles like rocks and uneven terrain without damaging the undercarriage. It helps avoid getting stuck or high-centered.

Approach and Departure Angles

Approach and departure angles often go hand in hand with ground clearance. The approach angle is the steepest angle a truck can climb without hitting its front bumper, while the departure angle is the steepest angle it can descend without hitting its rear bumper. Higher angles reduce the risk of damage or getting stuck when tackling steep inclines or declines.

Off-Road Suspension

A robust suspension system, long-travel shocks and higher-articulation allows the truck to handle rough terrain by absorbing impacts and maintaining wheel contact on uneven surfaces. Systems like multi-link or coil-over suspensions are often preferred. Suspension also comes into play with ground clearance, tires, and many of the other attributes listed here.

Tires

Off-road tires with aggressive tread patterns provide better traction on loose or uneven surfaces. The right size and type of tire, such as all-terrain or mud-terrain, are crucial for optimal performance. Many of the best off-road vehicles of all time have come with taller, wider tires to better conquer a wider range of obstacles.

Four-Wheel Drive (4WD) System

A reliable 4WD system is essential for off-road driving. Features like full-time 4WD, part-time 4WD, and high/low range transfer cases provide versatility in different conditions. Advanced systems with locking differentials enhance traction. In short, 4WD links the engine to all four corners of the vehicle, giving it more powered points of contact to keep the off-road truck moving in the direction you want.

Durable Build

Last of the non-negotiables is a truck built with high-quality materials and robust construction. Off-road driving is harsh on nearly every part of a vehicle. The best off-road vehicles must be built to withstand the constant stress the terrain puts on all these moving parts.

What are the Best Off-Road Vehicles?

Toyota Tacoma

The Toyota Tacoma is set firmly in the pantheon of off-road trucks. Toyota 4x4s are great off-road across the board, in large part, thanks to the brand’s legendary reliability and off-road. The Tacoma is special because of its size. Its shorter, more narrow frame allows it more maneuverability on tight trails, but despite its small package, it is built heavy and tough. 

While you can get the Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro these days, with more durable suspension, skid plates, and terrain management systems, even in its most basic form, it’s been a favorite among off-road enthusiasts for over three decades.

Land Rover Defender

A stock Land Rover Defender has everything it needs to be a great off-roader. Its ground clearance, toughness, torque, and spirit needed for dirt roads and off-road excursions is there in spades. In fact, many lovingly liken the Defender to something closer to a tractor than a car. 

The Defender is one of the best off-road vehicles because it was already built to conquer dirt roads, trails, and rugged paths the world over. The Defender relies on a simple design born from war-time utility and decades of 4x4 engineering. The Defender's history is rugged, brutal, and pragmatic. For all these reasons and more, the capabilities of the mighty Land Rover Defender are not to be questioned.

Mercedes-Benz G-Class (G-Wagon)

Before the Mercedes G-Class was the choice run-around for silly people with more money than sense, it was a bare-knuckle brawler on the trail. Much like the British Defender, the origins of the German G Wagen are brutal and purpose-built. You won’t find a hint of luxury or comfort in the G Wagens of yore. These boxy bog eaters are not to be mistaken for the mall crawling waste of space that is its six-figure iteration. The early Mercedes G-Class is certainly one of the best off-road vehicles of all time. 

Chevrolet Silverado

You’ll certainly find fewer automotive enthusiasts waxing poetic about the Chevy Silverado as you might some of the other, more hip entries on this list, but that doesn’t make it any less great. 

In the deep south, a war rages between a special breed of off-road drivers. The mudshed between the two camps is over trying to answer the age-old question: Chevy or Ford? 

The Chevy Silverado 1500, in all its many forms, is simply one of the all time greats of the off-roading world. It can make piles of power, has more aftermarket support than you can shake a stick at, and more than so many others on this list, is out there walking the walk. Despite the many controversial and hot takes surrounding the Chevy Silverado, nothing can take away the fact that it is simply one of the goats. 

Jeep Wrangler

No controversy here. None. The Jeep Wrangler might well be the best truck to ever conquer the dirt. At least, this statement is true enough for the Jeep Wrangler to remain one of the highest-value-retaining nameplates in 4x4 history. 

Wranglers have been around, in name, since 1986. However, its legacy began over 50 years before that. I’ll save the history lesson, but let’s just say, the Jeep’s lineage is painted all over the history of modern America and Europe, thanks to its pluck and grit. 

While many consider the Wrangler TJ (‘96-’06) the most capable of the Jeep Wrangler models, the nameplate has consistently been one of the most popular and segment-driving off-road trucks of all time. They are short, tough, and powerful. 

Toyota Hilux

While Americans don’t have the pleasure of having it here, to call the Toyota Hilux “popular” internationally might be such an understatement that it risks being incorrect. The Hilux is known for its reliability and handling damn-near any terrain you could throw it through. These trucks are tougher than boiled shoe leather. 

These trucks are recognized for their ability to handle a variety of off-road conditions, from rocky trails to muddy paths, and each of its many iterations has unique features that cater to different off-road needs. In fact, the Hilux is so good off-road that it has been nearly controversial in how ubiquitous its employment is in the ranks of paramilitary groups the world over. 

Toyota 4Runner

The Toyota 4Runner, like the Tacoma/Hilux, has been an off-roading fan-favorite since its inception in the 1980s. The 4Runner is one of the best off-road vehicles of all time for many of the same reasons the Tacoma is; it’s relatively narrow, it’s equipped with reliable engines that make plenty of power for the trail, and it’s tough – really tough. 

The 4Runner offers something the Toyota trucks don’t; a long roof. The 4Runner is overlanding royalty, a sub-genre of the off-roading world. These SUVs offer more covered storage, seats, and comfort, making it great for carrying loads of gear and camping. 

Suzuki Jimny

The Suzuki Jimny is a bit of an outlier in this group. It is very tiny and woefully underpowered, yet it remains an objectively excellent off-roader. The Jimny is the JDM Kei version of the Samurai. Other than the U.S. never getting them, this means the Jimny had strange, very tiny engines rarely making more than 70 hp for the majority of the model’s history. 

The Jimny is underpowered, but every once of that power is sent to a hearty undercarriage that somehow always manages to put the power down just enough to get you where you’re going. Its tiny size also has advantages like a low curb weight and a short wheelbase, giving it excellent approach and departure angles. 

Since the Jimny has been around for such a long time, it has a robust and thriving aftermarket and custom community. With some attention to the suspension and tires, the Jimny goes for a great, unassuming 4x4, to a proper off-road legend. 

Ford F-Series

The Ford F-150 and all of it’s increasingly brawny siblings is arguably the most iconic nameplate in the history of pickup trucks. While there are a few reasons for this, one of them is its reputation as “mud truck.” 

Ford has made many many versions of the Ford F-150. And across its many forms, Ford is responsible for hundreds of millions of people taking a truck into the woods, fields, river beds, dunes, trails, and any other stretch of land you can reasonably imagine. 

Dodge Power Wagon

Like most of the other best off-road vehicles of all time, the Dodge (Ram) Power Wagon is nearly unrecognizable from its original military form in 1942. The Power Wagon hits all the same highpoints as the others, tall, tough, and torquey. 

Through all the many iterations over the decades, the Dodge Power Wagon has kept those three points. Dodge has only learned harder into making powerful land-roving battleships than it did in the days of steel bodies and no seat belts. Today’s Ram Power Wagon still brings people deep into the rough track, although, unlike many others on this list, the Power Wagon’s size and weight makes it uniquely gifted at particular off-road terrain where narrow corners and thick foliage are fewer and farther between. 

Four-Wheel Drive Trucks and SUVs are Special

Researching the best off-road vehicles is a little challenging if you only care for empirical evidence. That’s not to say that there isn’t any, but the culture of off-roading is less concerning. The best off-road trucks provided on this list all bring with them objective reasons and evidence for why people trust deep off-road, but, for many, that’s not what helps drivers find their preference among them. 

Unlike other performance motoring, off-roading is led by some objective specs; yes, but is quickly – very quickly – followed by feelings, lore, subjectivity, “a buddy who had one…,” and other such bits of belief. This makes off-roading a rich and wonderful community to be a part of because belief is all you really need to build the machine of your dreams.