The reliability of your vehicle is more important than the brawn or pedigree of your rig. I've seen guys build up $75,000 rigs to drive to Prudoe Bay only to be passed by a 10 year old Nissan 2wd pickup....me(June). The roads are actually in pretty good shape and aside from being snow packed and potentially slicker than all hell (in March), you really don't need an assault vehicle to traverse those roads. Even in my 4wd Tacoma, I followed a Dodge Caravan through a snow storm that had me freaked. He seemed pretty casual about it all.

You definately want to be comfortable on snow, know how to shoe up chains and be prepared to dig yourself out of a snow bank or ditch. A little lift will help with drifted snow and maybe make extraction from a ditch a little easier, but all in all, any vehicle with good traction will do.

I still contend, this is about reliability. Scott's Tacoma is an impressive machine and I know for a fact, Scott selected that rig in part due to its reliability.

So, you probably know the answer to your question better than anyone. Having driven thousands and thousands of wintery miles up there myself....I'd worry. But...my DII has been a fickle beast. Good luck! Sounds like fun.

 

Good discussion. I lived in Alaska for 3 years and drove my '77 Dodge Colt with 230,000 milesup the haul road to the Brooks Range, out to Manley Hot Springs, and even on down to Homer. Never had a problem except a flat tire outside of Livengood.

I don't know why folks worry so much about the possibility of a breakdown. So what if it happens? The sun is still gonna come up the next day and chances are you'll still be around to enjoy it Bring proper survival gear anytime you travel in the north lands and the risk is minimal of you having any problems that can't be handled with some patience, even in March. At best you'll have some good new stories to tell, at worst you're out a few large for repairs. Neither are life threatening.

People in Alaska and along the Alcan are typically very helpful to folks that run into trouble. I stopped for lunch north of Fairbanks once along the side of the road and had 2 trucks in an hour stop to ask if I needed anything. I said thanks but the only thing I needed was pepper. Damned if the 2nd trucker didn't get a good laugh andhand me a pepper shaker.

Your truck is relatively new but even with an older truck the key to reliability over the road lies in taking care of the well known failure points before you leavethat have have the possibility of stranding you. For example,a head gasket leak won't likely strand you on the side of the road if it crops up enroute, but a shelled U-joint could.

Lots of folks drive the Alcan every year in vehicles far less reliable and in much worse shape than your '04 Discovery.

Send pictures!

Dave

 

Go for it. You cant worry about the what-if's. Lifes short, live it.

 

Exactly!

 

I wouldn't advocate being overly cavalier about the potential troubles that could find you in those remote areas of the arctic. One of my buds had a break down outside of Toad River that nearly cost him his toes. Temps hit -19f while he waited for 13 hours for someone to find him.

Cover your bases, go in over prepared and have fun.

 

Good advice. Isuspect one of the key things in my post got buried in the context, and that is to "Bring proper survival gear anytime you travel in the north lands". That goes for winter and summer.

Candles are an excellent source of heat. They don't consume much oxygen but give off enough heat to warm a car above the danger point. Basic food, good blankets, lots of water, a heat sourceand basic first aid supplies are an absolute must in any vehicle.

Dave

 

They sure are, but don't do like my sister did and put the candle on the dash near the windshield. In a few minutes, the uneven heat shattered the whole thing into bits no larger than 1/4"!

I agree with Geotrash, be prepared, but then ya just have to give it a go. Most issues that can crop up typically don't get ya stranded. I drove back from CA to WI (rock crawled in Moab and did a few mountain passes on the way) in a D1 that had about 1/2 dozen issues I resolved when I got home. Heck, I didn't even have a jack!

Love to hear the stories if ya go.

 

I guess that a satellite phone would be one of the most important things to bring, along with GPS, extraoil, coolant, clothes, first aid kit, tow rope,traction ramps, snow chains,gallons and gallons of premium fuel,food........

 

Don't forget the condoms....Safety first!

 

Well, check out www.findmespot.com they're inexpensive personal emergency locator beacons, far cheaper than a satphone and when you're in a serious emergency you've even got recovery insurance... really, pay the extra few dollars for insurance. Dying of exposure when the technology to get help quickly is out there is Darwin Award material.

These will even let your famility monitor your progress on Google Maps.