Driving Up Kingston Peak in an AWD HONDA (should this be illegal?)

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

Hey all, thanks for tuning in. Make sure to check out the videos on the official @No-Lo Designs KZbin Channel. Get another point of view and a more personable experience. (video's produced by Zack Zorn @zzaproductionsva) No-Lorado 2024 Day 1: Kingston Peak: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nXjMp4qcf6ybr7csi=ozqi7688vnUzFx1I No-Lorado 2024 Day 2: Peru Creek: kzbin.info/www/bejne/h565cqd_pa5ritE&t

[@VideosOffRoad]

I have no problem with any vehicle being on any trail so long as the design inadequacies of the vehicle don't cause a problem on the trail, such as a stoppage or significant slowdown. Lose a bead or get a flat tire? That can happen to any vehicle. But rip open the oil pan because of a lack of clearance and no skid plate, that's a preventable problem. Block a narrow trail because your undamaged and functioning normally transmission system is overheating? That's a preventable problem (e.g. you shouldn't be on that trail). Basically, I struggle with people who come improperly prepared, or don't do their homework, or otherwise bring knives to gunfights. Especially plastic knives.

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

@@VideosOffRoad it’s a good idea to always actively keep tabs on other vehicles around. One of the reasons I pulled over where I did on the climb was because we saw 2 vehicles in the distance behind us. I knew my vehicle wasn’t operating normally because of the Scangauge 2, most people don’t even have one. I knew to wait the 10 minutes to let my malfunctioning transmission cooling system “air cool”. They never caught up to us, but I took the steps to get out of their way. Some people just straight up don’t have the consideration. Our Subaru friend didn’t join us for this trail because of the lack of clearance, so he was responsible in that regard. The rocks on this trail are pretty tall, hopefully people heed the warning. Watching other videos, the rocks didn’t look that large, but in person, they are.

[@pennmikael]

i agree. i don’t care what kind of vehicle you have as long as it’s appropriate for the trail. jon- your awd is more built than 99% on the road and i understand your desire to prove a point, but we both know they mean stock awds.

[@owequitit]

His system wasn’t functioning normally though. It was a prototype that hadn’t yet been tested. Because no Jeep or Toyota parts ever broke while being developed. The red Ridgeline had a stocking cooler and no issues.

[@VideosOffRoad]

@owequitit I am fully aware that his system was having problems. THAT'S WHY I SAID "UNDAMAGED AND FUNCTIONING NORMALLY". 🙄 Criminy. Some people's kids.

[@owequitit]

@videosoffroadyes because there is a way to know that it is going to malfunction under those conditions without actually testing it. You know as well as I do that at some point, things have to be proven in the real world and kinks worked out. Every major engineering program goes through this phase. Here was his, and not only had it not had issues, but they are now worked out and the system is functioning as intended. Some people’s parents…

[@Gandalf_The_Jacked]

I sure hope not lol. I did Kingston Peak (North to South, the harder direction) in a Subaru Wilderness and it was pretty easy. There's no reason other AWD like your honda shouldn't be allowed. Had some wheel spin in the rutted steep climb after the James Peak Trailhead (the same spot you got hung up in briefly), but the rest is legitimately easy (at least in recent conditions). No sway bars, 31" tires, aired down, 2" lift--so pretty standard set of mods.

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

The thumbnail and video title was meant to “catch attention”, my video before this of Bill Moore lake was more consistently difficult, but the Kingston peak climb did have bigger rocks. There was just the 2 challenges, but everything was chill. The Hondas had a lot of ground clearance and good off-road angles, I’m definitely curious how your experience was. I did a google search before making this video to see if any other AWD has driven up and came across a Reddit post, I think that may have been you? Having a KZbin channel, I feel it’s my responsibility to accurately describe the difficulties of these trails. My slogan is “I keep it real, not highlight reel”. Did your Outback Wilderness hit rocks at all? Did you have to use momentum? For someone making these videos, I’d be crucified for calling this an easy trail. If this was an easy trail for you, have you done the level 5 “difficult” red cone trail? Would you consider that of medium difficulty? Thanks for sharing your opinion. Everything is subjective, and I’m captivated by hearing about everyone’s experience on the same trail.

[@coloradomallcrawlers]

I had that coolant issue with my 2000 Jeep TJ… dang hoses. Great job on the vid man! I’ve tried filming kingston twice and just can’t get shots good enough… I think I have finally figured it out tho and will retry in 2025.

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

Thanks Dewey!! It definitely helped to have a full time videographer shooting footage, this story would be very bland without Zack’s drone and extra camera footage.

[@jg8263]

Yay new video!

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

I gained an hour of sleep from Daily Light savings time and was able to complete the edit this morning before work! Haha

[@bruceyyyyy]

I randomly caught a user here on KZbin that built an electric Land Cruiser and took it up Imogene. Since I'm a fan of both EV's and off road I immediately started watching their stuff. They didn't make the climb. I told them it was great and conveyed my personal experiences with Imogene when you and I did it in the Subes and Honda's last year. They just got on a point about how AWD shouldn't go anywhere and by doing it I'm ruining it for everyone. It was really kind of a bummer. He had a vehicle that couldn't do what plenty of AWD's did and I commended him for trying. They just kept with the point of banning it so I just dropped it. But it brings me to my real point: I think there is always gatekeeping in any community and I'm generally not a fan. The built JK/JL guys say you need 44s to do a dirt road. The Rubicon guys say a Willys can't. The guys with 35's say the XJ on 31's can't. The guys with built Razors say you need portals to do a 2' mud pit. The guys with solid axles front and rear say an AWD ruins it. Etc etc. It's endless and I think it's a shame. But ultimately it's just human nature. As long as adventures are done in a responsible manner I'm all for it. Solo a trip like this? No way. But in a convoy with 4WDs I'm not sure why there would be an issue. (I won't name them for obvious reasons) I do have to appreciate the blue Ridgeline. It looks like it has more solar power than my entire farm. -A guy with an AWD Subaru, 3 true 4WD's, one being a Jeep, one getting a solid axle swap, and one with an 11.5" rear end. PS I love the di-electric grease repair on the petcock.

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

@@bruceyyyyy it’s always been a problem right? I’ve heard about how bad the gatekeeping was in the off-road community well before I first hit a trail. The whole “overlanding” movement was welcoming, because it’s not suppose to be about competition and conquering obstacles, but we share the same trails, so the gatekeeping is unavoidable. Eventually, I’ll tell the story of this years Imogene pass experience. There was a guy upset that Javier’s Subaru was going to drive up. While it looks stock, it has dual range, a rear locker, a front Cusco lsd and a functioning traction control system. There wasn’t any need for any of that, Imogene pass isn’t exactly a very difficult trail, although, this year it was harder and upgraded to a level 4, Javier’s Forester drove up like a boss.

[@seanwatson3790]

That was the point of the Colorado mall crawler channel when it was first made was to show you don't need to be super built to do things. It can help put less stress on the vehicle at times but being super built also causes other weaknesses that go against OEM reliability. Not to mention being too built up voids warranties , as I have experienced first hand myself . Our Rubicon is on 35s, that's basically the only off road mod we did lol. And even though it is extremely capable as is we don't act like we're better than anyone else, we don't gate keep anyone , we don't judge anyone else rigs cuz people but what they think is best for them and who am I to judge that. And I personally just want people to be out exploring and seeing things. If we have to help someone along to help them get to what they wanna see, then so be it. We refuse to be the problem of off road gate keeping. But I do obviously acknowledge that it exists. I think that my mindset however comes from the fact that I offroaded and overlanded out of a crossover before and so I still have that mindset ( albeit a capable one ) so I don't judge cuz I was the one people were like you can't do this and you shouldn't be here. Until I did. And was. Lol

[@Rich-eg6qb]

It should not be illegal. Keep the government out of 4 wheeling. What would be next, a minimum of 10 inches of ground clearance, no IFS rigs, only solid axles, no A/T tires, only M/T tires etc. Never under estimate how stupid the government can be, no matter the party.

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

@@Rich-eg6qb 1000%, for all the people that think getting the government involved to add restrictions, eventually everything will be banned. Every year, more and more trails close to off-road travel, for everybody. Pointing fingers and asking for regulation is only going to expedite the closures.

[@ZR2BIZON]

Can't wait to get my off-road endorsement at my local DMV

[@ever2gut1]

I believe that guy at the end is called a trail angel

[@JohnWeik]

Awesome video Brother!! Great job in the production. Hope to join in some time!!! 💪💪💪💪💪

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

On one of these comments, someone linked a video from Arkansas Overland. They take a very large convoy of 4WD vans, Sprinters and Ford Transits up this trail. A lot of these gigantic vehicles really struggled, much more than the Hondas. I’m constantly thinking about what vehicle I would like to build out in the future, and as of late I’m leaning more towards a Honda Ridgeline and a camper like yours. I had never considered one before because I thought I wanted something with 4Lo and lockers, but after test driving some body on frame 4WDs I was reminded how incredibly important the onroad aspect is. 4WD sprinter vans have capable drive trains but just too unwieldy. Comparing this video to the Arkansas Kingston peak video will really show that the Honda platform with the ZF9 is in a good spot for capability. Your Ridgeline might be lighter than the blue one in this video.

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

I’ll also add that he had a very basic setup. Both sway bars still connected. All he had was the 3.5” Traxda lift.

[@dennisl6198]

Kingston is harder than people think. Any real four-wheel drive with decent tires is not going to have a problem however. I personally would not take a crossover up that road but as long as you handle your own stuff do whatever you want man.

[@OverlandOverloaded]

STRAIGHT TO JAIL!!!!!!

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

🥺

[@albetherechillin]

My Man 💪

[@rener44]

Loch lomond was a song my Irish grandmother would sing to me

[@rener44]

This song is Jon’s theme song now lol

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

@@rener44 haha! I love this free license song 😂

[@lonecamper1806]

Jon, have you seen the promos for the 2026 transport? thoughts?

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

I think it looks great!! It’s interesting hearing about the philosophy of intentionally not giving them a crazy amount of ground clearance, and instead using high strength steel “BASH” plates. The new Passport will get a stronger version of the Honda 10AT transmission. Not sure if the gearing will be different (which is already class leading at 22.8:1), but the feature I want to know about is if it will “HOLD” 1st gear and keep it there no matter what. We can do this with the ZF9, but I hear the Honda 10AT in the Pilot Trailsport won’t do this.

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

One thing I’d love to see in a future version of an iVTM4 midsized Honda is a “FRONT TWINCLUTCH DIFFERENTIAL”. Any vehicle that can implement front and rear twin clutch differentials would be absolutely amazing!!! The automotive journalist say that the rear twin clutch differential is the closest thing to having a locker, and the cool thing is it also makes for an amazing onroad experience. Just imagine having this in the front as well? It would be a clutch pack version of “triple locked” and it would be glorious!!!

[@edgarandreasyan521]

2:08 that’s some pretty scary stuff

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

It sucked. Very frustrating experience. At the end of the video we fix the issue, and ran an easier level 2-3 trial the following day, BUT, when we pushed it on a level 5 difficult trail, the loose hose clamps couldn’t contain the coolant and it started to steam out. Then we did cinnamon/california pass and it ran flawless. Then Imogene again the following day.

[@ZR2BIZON]

Sucks. I missed Kingston this year

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

@@ZR2BIZON it’s a beautiful trail! I released this video just days after it closed 😂. Hope people can plan it for next year.

[@ZR2BIZON]

@JonDZ_Adventuring Yes I noticed that. Good timing on your end lol. We just ran Bill Moore yesterday and the fresh snow really had us testing the skills

[@montyjcm]

One of the reasons I ended up with awd transit (over a sprinter ) was watching this video of some sprinters (struggling) and transits (not having many issues ) heading up Kingston . Cool to see it with different vehicles kzbin.info/www/bejne/rGqlpIynjJ6IgtEsi=yKKT73w_hkvnFGLs

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

@@montyjcm I watched that video to get a better idea of this trails technical challenges. I just rewatched it again from your link and Oh boy, made be feel grateful that all I was dealing with was transmission temps from a malfunctioning cooling system. Those Transits did well! Looks like they have good traction control systems. Do they have low range?

[@montyjcm]

@ transits have a 10speed. The 1st is low-ish, but not a low range. Tbh sprinters with their “lo” don’t have that low of a ratio , and the new awd is closer to the transit . These transits have the eco boost engine (310hp, 400ftlb ), which help a lot at those altitudes as you can see in that video. But tbh I wouldn’t do that trail with mine as the clearance is the main issue. I would go for my rivian. Fun to see the different vehicles’ lines though!

[@nickt9467]

I dig your channel and I like your ride/ethos, but pardon me for a sec while I steal a chuckle at the 'some toyotas showed up and offered to ... do tacoma things' P.S. no coolant? c'mon man... for a known issue? anyway, my bad for the armchair QBing, at least you're out there doing stuff

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

@@nickt9467 I explained in detail that we didn’t know what the issue was until the end of the trip. We found that the special super charger hose clamps needed to be tighter. They were tight enough for normal load, but when pushed the pressure would release as steam and empty out.

[@seanwatson3790]

I was actually comically annoyed cuz I wanted to tow him up but I had forgotten the key to my recovery box so I couldn't get to my tow stap. I didn't want the tacos to do something I could have done better lolol

[@TyMoore95503]

I wonder if vehicles could benefit from a water boiler: a kind of emergency cooling system for hydraulic systems used on the Space Shuttle. The idea is to circulate transmission fluid through a small can...a two pass stainless steel coil in something the size of a soda can or a small coffee can, and spray water on it. A pound of water evaporated will take away 1000 Btus of heat. Use it on the highest mechanical demand to keep the transmission temperature down. Just a thought.

[@PavementOptional]

When the sign says 4x4 only, AWD is not 4x4

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

What’s 4x2? When you answer that then you’ll realize that 4x4 means 4WD or AWD, and 4x2 means either FWD or RWD. Become familiar with signs. A white and black sign is “regulatory” a brown and white sign is an “informational warning”

[@desertdaves]

​@@JonDZ_Adventuringno AWD is not the same as 4x4. Maybe you should learn the difference before asking questions like these.

[@JonDZ_Adventuring]

@@desertdaveswhat’s 4x2 then? It means 4 wheels with 2 wheels driven. What’s 4x4? It’s 4 wheels with 4 wheels driven. What’s 6x6? It’s 6 wheels with 6 wheels driven. Saying AWD isn’t 4x4 is like saying 1 dollar is not $1.00.

[@desertdaves]

@JonDZ_Adventuring a dude in a dress is not a woman, learn the difference.