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I've seen a picture from years ago of a modified for off-road GL. Haven't seen anything other than that one picture. Has anyone done some sort of overlander conversion? Particularly a lift, wheels/tires, bumpers?
I'm looking to build a modest rig, nothing too extreme, mostly camping, trails, and road trips to CO in the winter. I'm looking at all terrain tires/wheel combos, unfortunately there are no good all terrain tire options for 21inch wheels. The only option I've seen are the Nokian WRG 3 SUV's, which are all weather tires. I've purchased slim LED bars for the grill, which I'll be connecting next week. Also looking at roof carriers/baskets for more cargo room.
As far as roof racks go - Front Runner Slim Line 2 for the GL is costly, but seems the most useful. I've tried the cheap racks and wouldn't trust them with any load.
For tires, I have Goodyear Wranglers in the stock 18" size on mine - quiet on road but grips fine on grass and loose sand.
The GL is a decent base for an overlander type vehicle - now cheap, good fuel economy for its size, cabin air filter for those dusty trails, great turning circle and height adjustable suspension for getting over obstacles. Where it falls short is the aftermarket support - not much there; so you'll have to skimp or get creative.
As far as roof racks go - Front Runner Slim Line 2 for the GL is costly, but seems the most useful. I've tried the cheap racks and wouldn't trust them with any load.
For tires, I have Goodyear Wranglers in the stock 18" size on mine - quiet on road but grips fine on grass and loose sand.
The GL is a decent base for an overlander type vehicle - now cheap, good fuel economy for its size, cabin air filter for those dusty trails, great turning circle and height adjustable suspension for getting over obstacles. Where it falls short is the aftermarket support - not much there; so you'll have to skimp or get creative.
Thanks for the input! I've seen the front runner slim line 2, yes it's costly but very nice. I'd like more space for gear when I go camping and such, but how much do I need? Maybe a roof basket like the Thule Trail XT or Rhino Rack cargo basket would suffice.
You're right, theres very little aftermarket support for the GL, most will have to be custom made or fitted. Would like to get 18's and KO 2's, I had them on my f150 and loved them. The all weather Nokians WRG3's in 265 44 21 for my stock AMGs would be a cheaper option, they're meatier and slightly taller then the stock 295 40 21 Scorpions Zero's.
I am interested in this as well. Have a 2010 GL550 with off-road pack and been dreaming of making it a bit more overland focused but fall short on options re aftermarket support. So far I just mounted a pair of Rigid LEDs and would like to find a good wheel/tire combo that will fill in the wide flares and have reasonable on-road comfort/noise. But none of the off-road wheel makers produce 5x120 bolt pattern wheels!
Other dream is a practical winch solution and a roofrack with tent. Tent is easier but i've seen nothing on winch mount options.
Mine has a light overlander set up. So far I'm very pleased with it. It handles back roads of colorado just fine. Mine does not have the off-road package either.
It's not too bad. You do hear the tires on certain pavement. Handling isn't quite as crisp, but then I know that and expected that.
I do love how it handles off-road, and the looks I get....
I get an unbelievable amount of hate when Jeeps, Trucks, and Toyota's see it. No, I'm not doing technical trails however it's handled some challenging roads and trails just fine, often times impressing myself and those watching.
Nice set up Bimmer777 and Mathew S, I'm in the black GL club as well. I mounted 2 slim LED spot/flood combo 8 inch bars to the grill, had to custom make the mounts. Added a fairing to the cross bars, currently looking for a roof rack and possibly wheels. Owned ko2's on my f150 and they were awesome.
Tires are a 275/55 20. I've had no rubbing issues at all. Wheels are TSW Rotary Forged.
This is a great thread, thanks for posting your experiences! I really want to get my GL450 to the point where I can take it more dirt. I mess around a little bit in the desert and on fire roads around Big Bear, but am really paranoid that I will bend a rim/blow a tire. It currently has 20" rims, with 285/50 street tires. A narrower/taller tire like you have would be an improvement. I'm also kicking around the idea of finding some 18" rims and going with 285/60 tires. Seems like the extra volume as well as reduced unsprung weight would both be positives.
So tires/wheels, and a portable compressor to air back up are on my to-get list. Just don't know which way to go with the wheels. Any thoughts one way or the other?
From the Frontrunner site... This is about as burly as I'd like to get, probably not even this much:
Last edited by StradaRedlands; 08-29-2019 at 01:00 AM.
I've got the Viair portable compressor, which is awesome btw. That's a tough call regarding the wheels. I'm very happy with how my 20's handle everything. Knowing I don't have an off-road pack GL I didn't see the need for 18" set up.
I know what the GL can and can't do and felt the 20's on BFG's were just right.
Btw, I really like that rack. While my GL isn't a daily, it's purely for recreation, I found the rack on long trips with a tire mounted was annoying. Loud, weird vibrations, etc. I'll have to check out this Frontrunner site
I've got the Viair portable compressor, which is awesome btw. That's a tough call regarding the wheels. I'm very happy with how my 20's handle everything. Knowing I don't have an off-road pack GL I didn't see the need for 18" set up.
I know what the GL can and can't do and felt the 20's on BFG's were just right.
Btw, I really like that rack. While my GL isn't a daily, it's purely for recreation, I found the rack on long trips with a tire mounted was annoying. Loud, weird vibrations, etc. I'll have to check out this Frontrunner site
I drive pretty slowly/conservatively in the dirt, but am just sooooo paranoid of a bent rim. If a 55 profile can offer enough protection, I'm not really wanting to swap wheels out. Although the 20" ones are crazy-heavy...
That rack does look nice. And is currently on sale, or at least listed as being discounted. Looks like they use six Thule Crossroad feet to attach it to existing roof rails:
Did you use the wiring harness they are selling, or something else? Did you go straight from the battery, or use an open fuse? Where did you mount the switch(es)? So many question!!!!
Did you use the wiring harness they are selling, or something else? Did you go straight from the battery, or use an open fuse? Where did you mount the switch(es)? So many question!!!!
that also has the option of a fixed switch that can be added to your dash. I decided to use just the wireless remote since I didn't want to drill into my dash, nor could I find a good spot for it.
The switch was super easy to connect. One wire for power (has fuse in line), which is found on the passenger side engine bay and a ground wire to the body, thats it. The remote has an on and off switch and it has different flash options, like strobe, sos, etc.
Making the custom LED light bracket was the most time consuming since it was all trial and error. The brackets that it came with did not fit in the grill they way I wanted them too. I used plumbers aluminum tape (which I had to bend in half for them to fit in the grill holes and painted them black) and zip ties. The lights are on there really good and will not be easy to remove unless you open the hood.
I purchased a wireless remote switch from here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1 that also has the option of a fixed switch that can be added to your dash. I decided to use just the wireless remote since I didn't want to drill into my dash, nor could I find a good spot for it.
The switch was super easy to connect. One wire for power (has fuse in line), which is found on the passenger side engine bay and a ground wire to the body, thats it. The remote has an on and off switch and it has different flash options, like strobe, sos, etc.
Making the custom LED light bracket was the most time consuming since it was all trial and error. The brackets that it came with did not fit in the grill they way I wanted them too. I used plumbers aluminum tape (which I had to bend in half for them to fit in the grill holes and painted them black) and zip ties. The lights are on there really good and will not be easy to remove unless you open the hood.
I love stuff like this, thanks for the info! Very doable!
Nice set up Bimmer777 and Mathew S, I'm in the black GL club as well. I mounted 2 slim LED spot/flood combo 8 inch bars to the grill, had to custom make the mounts. Added a fairing to the cross bars, currently looking for a roof rack and possibly wheels. Owned ko2's on my f150 and they were awesome.
Originally Posted by Bimmer777
I am interested in this as well. Have a 2010 GL550 with off-road pack and been dreaming of making it a bit more overland focused but fall short on options re aftermarket support. So far I just mounted a pair of Rigid LEDs and would like to find a good wheel/tire combo that will fill in the wide flares and have reasonable on-road comfort/noise. But none of the off-road wheel makers produce 5x120 bolt pattern wheels!
JesusV, and Bimmer777, I bought some of the LEDs from ebay and they came in this week.They seem pretty solid and well built. Wondering how you went about attaching them to your grills. Just some backing plate sandwiching the grill/mount, or something more involved? I'm going to attempt to run a switch into the cabin, and mount it next to the panel for the headlight washers. In theory I could mount it to the center panel blank by the seat heater, but I like it a bit more out of the way. I found an open fuse in the block (#119 IIRC), so may wire into that instead of direct. Time will tell how involved I want to get!!! Thanks for the inspiration!!!
JesusV, and Bimmer777, I bought some of the LEDs from ebay and they came in this week.They seem pretty solid and well built. Wondering how you went about attaching them to your grills. Just some backing plate sandwiching the grill/mount, or something more involved? I'm going to attempt to run a switch into the cabin, and mount it next to the panel for the headlight washers. In theory I could mount it to the center panel blank by the seat heater, but I like it a bit more out of the way. I found an open fuse in the block (#119 IIRC), so may wire into that instead of direct. Time will tell how involved I want to get!!! Thanks for the inspiration!!!
I didn't used the brackets that came with the lights, instead I used aluminum plumbers tape, bent it in half the long way, then painted them black and pass them through the grill. Used a combo of zip ties and bolts/nuts to secure them behind the grill. Plumbers tape can be found at any hardware store.
Lights are very solid and are super bright and wide. I live in a rural area with no street lights and lots of deer, the lights help tremendously. The spread of the lights even light up trees. Best of luck!
07-23-2019, 05:55 PM
