3 of the best vintage off-roaders

Make no mistake – old off-roaders often look, feel and drive like solid tanks. While the 4×4 of the modern time is more likely to be seen in an office car park or a school pick-up, the classics were made with something more rugged in mind. 

There are so many classic options that it can be tricky to narrow it down, but here are three classic off-roaders that are meant to slide down a hill, have upgraded bars, and some sweet Nitto all-terrain tire upgrades too. They are fit for the task, and you can throw anything at them. 

1992-2006 AM General Hummer H1

A car that looks like a tank and performs like a beast; the AM General Hummer H1. What makes this model stand out is that it needed very little in the way of upgrades – that is to say, straight off the factory line, it offered sweet off-roading capabilities. 

You will want to check out Hummer aftermarket off-road parts for hardcore off-roaders. When the Civilian Hummer H1 came out, it was tough to come by and expensive to get hold of if you did. It’s not an exaggeration to say that the price of them was something you should have seen on limited-run exotic cars. 

The original Hummer was purchased as a status symbol – but wasn’t fit for purpose as a street car. 

Unlike other 4WD cars, the Hummer’s ability to adjust tire pressure directly from the cab allowed this four-ton monster to achieve beautiful slides down the sand. 

The H1 also came as a convertible – a four-door hardtop wagon super rare pick-up – the Recruit. 

Most people consider the 2006 Alphas to be the best models, though. 

A car that packed a punch for sure and looked fabulous doing it. 

1971–1980 International Scout II

The International Scout II was always going to be a sizable beast because it came from a factory known for agricultural tractors and heavy-duty equipment. 

The International Scout II was a heavy truck; it came in at around 3500 pounds of pure capability. 

The Scout II wheelbase was 10 inches longer than the Jeep FJ and 6.5 inches longer than the Jeep CJ. This meant it became one of the most-wanted pretty quickly and remained a classic long after it’s release.

If you wanted to take a lot of baggage with you, then the Scout II with the full-metal hardtop was the motor of choice. But if you wanted a Scout with a bigger wheelbase stretch, then the one that you’d choose was the Traveller. With all of the options, the Scout II was massively popular – and there was one to suit any off-road adventure. 

Although all of the special-edition Scouts were spectacular, the Soft Safari from 1977 to 1979 might just be the coolest one. 

A full convertible top, built-in roll bar, and bigger tires on white spoke wheels were all standard. The metal doors were swapped out for partial fiberglass windows.

1993–1997 Land Rover Defender 90/110

They were and still are unusual and sought-after. In 1993, Land Rover only imported 500 vehicles, each painted white and priced at about $40k at the time.

They were slow but highly capable of tackling the hardest terrains and looked incredible. The Land Rover Defender was even heavier than the Scout, coming in at about 5000 lbs.

The massive 110-inch wheelbase meant that you could fit up to 9 passengers and was ideal for long-distance off-roading trips. 

The shorter and stumpier Defender 90 was imported between 94 and 97 and came with a soft top or removable fiberglass hardtop. The automatic transmission came up in the later models, as did a full-metal hardtop. The Defender is a classic when it comes to off-roading and still feels every bit as solid as it did at release.

But there are so many incredible classic off-roaders, including the Isuzu Trooper from the 80s, Suzuki Jimny, Nissan Patrol, and the Jeep CJ.