THIS PAGE LEFT BLANK INTENTIONALLY

Written by
PENNY WORMS
First published in 2010 by Thanks to Felix Wills, Simon Belton at Yamaha Motor
Franklin Watts (UK) Ltd,, Mark
M Nevils at Polaris Industries, Urs Eiselin
338 Euston Road at Sand-X
X and Ross Walker at KTM.
London NW1 3BH
Pic Crredits
007 MAGAZINE ARCHIVE/EON PRODUCTIONS: 27
Franklin Watts Australia
botttom (from The Spy Who Loved Me © 1977 Danjaq
Level 17/207 Kent Street
LLC and United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved.)
LL
Sydney NSW 2000
AFP/Getty Images: 16/17 background. James Cheadle /
Alamy: 15 bottom. King Features Syndicate, Inc: 15
Copyright © Franklin Watts 2010
centre. KTM-Sportmotorcycle AG: 24/25 all images. Land
Rover: 18/19 background, 18 right. Mitsubishi Motors
All rights reserved.
Corporation: 20 centre, 20 bottom. National Geographic ic/
Getty Images: 23 bottom. Polaris Industries, Inc: 10/11 all
Series editor: Jeremy Smith
images. Sand-X Motors: 12/13 all images. Shutterstockck: 6/7
Design: Graham Rich
all images, 14, 18 bottom, 20/1 background, 26, 27 ceentre.
Cover design: Graham Rich
Transtock Inc/Alamy: 23 centre.www.carphoto.co.u .uk: 17
Picture research: Penny Worms
right, 22.Yamaha Group: 8/9 all images.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available Every attempt has been made to clear copyrig right.
from the British Library. Should there be any inadvertent omission,
please apply to the publisher for rectificati
tion.
ISBN 978 0 7496 9274 2
Printed in China
Dewey classification:
Franklin Watts is a division of Hachett
tte Childrren’s Book
oks,
an Hachette UK company.
The author would like to thank Felix Wi
Wills and the
www.hachette.co.uk
following for their kind help and permi
mission to use
images: Jeremy Davey from the Thrust
Thrusst team; Dave Disclaimer: Some of the ‘Stats annd Facts’ are
Rowley from the Bloodhound team m; and the media approximations. Others are cor
orrect at time of writing,
teams at Audi, BMW and McLarenn. but will probably change.
 CONTENTS

OFF-ROAD VEHICLES 6
ALL-TERRAIN VEHICLE (ATV) 8
SNOWMOBILE 10
SAND-X 12
JEEP 14
HUMVEE 16
UTILITY VEHICLE 18
SPORTS UTILITY VEHICLE 20
OFF-ROAD RACERS 22
OFF-ROAD MOTORBIKE 24
AMPHIBIOUS VEHICLE 26
GLOSSARY 28
INDEX 30
0
OFF-ROAD VEHICLES
ff-road vehicles are poweerful and dextero ous.
They can climb and scramble upp hills, and can
drive through deep ditches or water witho out
damage. Their largge wheels or powerful tracks cann
cope with toough terrrain. They can be fun to drive, too,
because whatever nature throws at theem, litttle slows
them down.

GAS GUZZLERS
G
Big off-road vehicles need llarge, powwerfful
o
engines that burn a lot of ffuuel. Many run
on diesel because diesel enngines are less
likely to break down than petrol engines,
which is not something yo ou want to do
in the middle of nowhere.

6
 4X4
4
Most offf-rroad vehicles have four-wheel
driive (known as 4x4), which means the
eengine drives all four wheels at once. So, if
one wheel gets stuck, the other wheels will
still turn to get the car out of trouble. Moost
car enngines only drive the front or back wheeels.

ACCESS ALL A REAS

Therre are some places where there are no roads or the roads
are not surfaced properly. Rain can turn these tracks intto mud.
Also, heavy snowfall in some cold places can makke roads icy and
impassable to normal cars. Off-road vehhiclees are vital for the
people living and working in these places.

7
ALL-TERRAIN VEHICLE (ATV)
ippy, light andd powerful, the all-terrain vehicle
(ATV) or quuad bike is used by people who
work ouutdoors and by those who enjoy
outdoor activvitties. They are also ridden for fun and
for sport. ATV racing is fast, thrilling and dangerous.

FARM
M ER FUN
N
The ATV is thee farmer’s friend. It can power across
muddy fieldds and dusty groundd with the speeed off a
motorrbikke, but is more com
mfortable annd stabble. ATVs
are easy to drivve and strongg eno
ough to pull a trailer.r.
Sheep farmers even use them for ro ounnding up shheep.

S UPER SUSPE
E NSION
Most ATVs have an ‘iindepenndent suspension’..
This meanns that the wheels are joined to
thee body of the vehicle by separate arms.
So if one wheel goes over a rock, it doesn’t
affect the other wheels or cause the vehicle
to tip. Shock absorbers soak upp thee buumps,
shock arm tooo, to save the rider from a sore botttom!
absorber
V e h i c l e : Ya m a h a Y F Z 4 5 0 R
To p s p e e d : o v e r 1 2 0 k m / h ( 7 5 m p h )
Country of origin: Japan
Cost: £8,200
Claim to fame: A motocross winning
AT V t h a t y o u c a n b u y r a c e - r e a d y .

RA
A CING QUADS
Thhiss ‘teerrainn-sswallow
wing’ Yamaha YFZ450R looks like
a Transfformer but it is actually one of the best
racing ATVs. Powerful, lightweight and tough,
it is most at home on a motocross track,
racing other ATVs at high speed.

9
SNOWMOBILE
nowmobilees are
a viitall form of
transpport in
parts of thee world
where snow is on thee
grounnd for a lot of
the yeear. Innsteadd of
wheelss, they haave
skis att thhe front and
trackks at the baack.
The skiss stteer the
snowmo obille, while
the trraccks gripp
thhe snnoww.

SN
N OW RIDIN
NG
The Po olaris 600 Rush is a
snowmobile builtt for fun
and sport. The Rush is light,
agile and powerful. It has a
front and rear suspension, so
it can speed over uneven snow
and land smootthlyy and safely.

10
 Vee h i c l e : P o l a r i s 6 0 0 R u s h
To p s p e e d : o v e r 1 6 0 k m / h ( 1 0 0 m p h )
Cost: from £6,200
C o u n t r y o f o r i g i n : Unitedd States o f A m e r icc a
Claim to fame: It has a unique and
advanced rear suspension.

COMFORT TOURING
G
The Po olariis 600 IQ Tourinng iss a
snowm mobile built for tho osee wantting to
traveel in comfort. They are heavy and
s t a b l e , w i t h p a dd e d s e a t s a n d l a r g e r
fuel tanks. Touring snowmobiles cann
usuallly seat one or tw wo people annd
they have a useful reverse e gear.

re
ear
suspennsion
n
ROL
L LING TRAC
CK
The flat, rubbber-llikke trackks have raised,
mo
oulded ‘luugs’ that act liike footballl boot studs.
They dig into the snow to give the snowmobile
traction or grip. The tracks go round
and rounnd, from fro ont to back, pushing
the snow wmobile forward.

trrack
k

11
SAND-X
he Sand-X is a tracked all-terrain vehicle that is a
quad bike and snowmobile rolled into one. It has
two front wheels and a single track at the back.
It is mostly a fun vehicle for those living in the
desert countries of the Middle East, where
saand dunes are plenttiful. It is capable of
185 km/h (114 mph) and has suchh amazing
grip that it can do 0–60 in 2.8 seecondss!

DUNE BUG
G GY
The Sand-X is more stable thaan a no ormmall
ATV
V beecause it sits very low to the grouund and the front
wheels aree far apart. This means it is no
ot ass likely to tip over,
and is saffe even when poowering over steepp sand dunes.

12
 Vehicll e : S a n d -X X
To
T o p s p e e d : 185 km/h (114 m p h )
Co ountr y of origin: U n i t e d A rab Emirr ates
Co o s t : £ 16,000
C l a i m t o f a m e : Thh e S a n d -X
X caa n doo 0 – 6 0
faa stt e r t h a n a Ferrarr i Enzo!

ALL-T
T ERRAIN
The Sand-X can travel on tarma ac, mud and
snow, but performss best on sand. It can carry
3000 kg (6661 lbs) of equipmment and itts large fuel
tank meanss it can travel over 350 km (217 miles))
before needing fuel. That’ss important when
you’re in the middle of a desert!

MISSION IM
M M POSSIBLE
The Sand-X has serious uses, too.
It can be used for border patrols and
search-aand-rrescue missions in the desert.
Thherre is also an armoured version with a
T
gun mounted by the hanndle bars.

13
JEEP
eep is the oldest nam me in off-road vehicles. It made
its first appearance dduring World War II (1939–45)
as part of the US A Army fleet. A war reporter at the
time called it ‘as ffaithful as a dog, as strong as
a mule, and as agile as a goat’.

WILLY’S-- OVERLAND
With the war raging inn Europe, the
U Army put a challengge out to car
US
makers to producee a 4x4 vehicle
fit for war. Wi
Willy’s-Overland
beat Ford witth their vehicle,
whi h llater bbecam
which ame
known as
the Jeep.

4
 Vehicc lee : J eepp W rangler 2.8 C R D Sporr t
Topp s p e ed: 172 km/h (107 m p h )
C o u n t r y of origin: U n i t e d S taa tes of Am merica
C o s t : f rom £18,600
C laa i m to fame: A dess c e n d a n t of the o l d e s t
andd m o s t p opular off f -road v e h i c l e s e v e r.

EUGENE THE JEEP

E
T name Jeep seems to have come ffrom Eugene
The
tthe Jeep, a Popeye cartoon characte ter. Eugene
has the ability to appear and disapppear, going
anywhere he wants to, just like tthe Jeep.
The less interesting story is tha
hat the name
came from G.P. or General PuPurpose vehicle.

FUN IN THE SUN

Jeeps have noww been replaced by Humvees (see (s
page 16) in the US Army. However, the Jeep J
Wrangler hhas become a popular road and nd off-
road veh
ehicle, especially in the United Statess.
Thhey have soft tops and doors that
t caan
be takeen off for the ultimate open-ai
air drivi
ving.

155
HUMVEE
he High Mobility Multipurpose W Wheeled Vehicle, or the
Humvee as it is knnown, is a four-wheeled drive vehicle
used by the US Arrmy and otherr armies around the
world. It can drive overr deserts, acrooss rocky ground and
through jungles safely and for long peeriods of time without
stopping. It is a beast off a vehicle witth a great many uses.

CLIMBING AND
D SWIMMING
A Humvee can climb upp a 600 degree slope andd can
drive at a 40 degree sideways aangle. It can go thrrough 40%

water up to 1.5 m (4.9 ft) deeep. It can tow andd haul

heavy loads. What it cannot do is go any moree than
8.5 km on one litre of fuel (or 20 miles per gaallon)!
60%

MULT
T I-PURPOSE
The Humvee is adapted for maany uses – as a tro oop 1.5 m
4.9fft
4.9

and equipment carrier, an ambulance, even as a

missile launcher. However, the bbasic vehicles are the
same. This is of great benefit to
o the mechanics who
need too keep theem in working ordder.

16
 Vehicc l e : H u m v ee M 1151A1 w// B 1
To
T o p s p e e d : 113 km/h (70 mpp h ) u n a r m o urr e d
Co o u n t r y of origin: U n i t e d S tates o f Am merica
Co o s t : £ 38,000 unarmoured
Cll a i m to fam m e : A mii l i taa r y ve h icle s o suu c c e s s f ul
thh a t i t i s n o w used byy armies all l o ve r t h e world.

THE
E HUMMER
Huummers are road-going versions
of the Huumvee. They have the same
basicc technology. The tyres can
deflflate and inflate at the touch of
a button when driving. This is useful
wheen drivving on mud because flatter
tyres have more traction.

17
UTILITY VEHICLE
and Rover is one of the most fam mous names in off-road
vehicles and the Defeender is the brute of the pack.
Comfort is loow down on its list of quaalities, as is speed.
It makes it from 0–660 in an unimpressive 14.77 seconds.
Buut itt can clim
mb a hill, wade through water andd pull a
heavy trailer without breaking into a sweatt.

ARMY SURPLUSS
The Defender first appeared in 1948, just after
World War II. It was the first non-military utility
vehicle but was painted army green because the
paint was cheap and plentiful. The body was madde
from aluminium because steel was in shortt supply.

INDESTR
R UCTIBLE
Manny Defenders went to Africa, Asia
annd Australia – anywhere where
they needed tough cars to cope
with bad roads. Over 60 years later,
it is saiid thhat three out of four
Defenders are stilll running. They
are so solid and simply built thatt
it is hard to destroy them. Also,
aluminium doesn’t rust like steel.
 Vehicc lee s: L ann d R over Defenn d e r
Topp s p e ed: 132 km/h (82 mpp h )
C o u n t r y of origin: G r e a t B rii t ain
C o s t : f rom £19,055
C laa i m to fame: An off f - r o a d c lassic wii t h o v e r
600 y e arr s of service.

P ICK A STYL
LE
The new Defender is still a favourite with farmers, explorers,
scientists and park rangers – people who o need a vehicle
that can go
o anywhere and won’t let them down. They can
choose different styles depending on
whether they need to o
carryy equipment or
people or both.
SPORTS UTILITY VEHICLE
he Mitsubishi Pajero is a Sports Utility Vehicle or SUV.
It is also known as the Moonttero or Shogun, depending
on the country you live in. Likke other SUVs, over tim
me
the Pajero has been made morre powerful, more refinedd annd
moore comfortabble.

OFF-ROA
AD
The Pajeero o has serious off-road
technology. It has a safety
system that controls how the
car brakes and the wayy itt grips
the ground. There iss also a large
displlayy telling drivers where theey
are and at what angle theey are driiving.

ON-R
O ROAD
The Pajerro has been through many
cchaanges to o make itt more ciity and
rrooad frienndly. It now appeals to
families just as much as the serrious
off-roader because it is roomy andd
ccom
mfoortable innside.

20
 Vehicc l e : M i t s u b i shh i Pajero 3 .22 D i a m onn d
To
T o p s p e e d : 177 km/h (110 m p h))
Co o u n t r y of origin: J a p a n
Co o s t : f rom £31,749
Cll a i m to fam m e : T he m o s t s u c cesss ful c a r e v e r
inn t h e D a k a r Rally.

THE DAKA
A R RALLY
The Pajero is the most suuccessfuul vehiclle everr in the Daakarr Raally,, a 10,000 km
(6,2200 milees) enduraancee race. Originnally the raace went from Paris inn France
to Dakar in Northern Africa but in 20008 it moved to South America. The
competitors drive all sorts of vehicles,
but theyy must make it acrosss
deserrts, mountains and
extreme terrain.
OFF-ROAD RACERS
here are many off-road races around thee world.
The Dakar Rally is the most famous, buut wherever
there is an off-road challenge, there arre enthusiasts
who will build machines to tackle it. Oftenn, they are made
using the best parts from different vehicle
les.

BOW
W LER NEMESIS
Thee Nemesis is as tough as a car can get. Part Land Rover but with all-Bowleer
susspension and chassis, it can tackle all terrain with aggression, agility and
speed. If a tyre gets damaged, the Nemesis has a built-in jack to raise all fo
sp our
wheels off the ground so the tyre can be changed easily. And the tyres arre abou out
the only thing on this mighty machine that can get damaged!

22
 Vehicc lee : B ow
w lee r N emesis
Top p s p e ed: 241.4 km/h (150 m p h )
C o u n t r y of origin: U K
C o s t : f rom £120,000
C laa i m to fame: Bowlerr are Dakar veteraans, first
witth the Bowler WildC Cat and now with the Nemeesis.

WAC
C KY RACERS
Inn North America, there are many
off-road races such as the Best in
the
he Desert series and the Baja 1000.
These races attract the real wackyy
racers – some of the meanest and nd
weirdest looking machines aroun und.

BAJA B UG
Thee iconic Volkswagen Beet etle
is now a classic car, lovedd
bby many. TTo see one rip
ipping
aacross the desert, sommetimmes
with tyres the size o
w of a truuck’s,
is a mad but commo on sigh
ght in
US race, the Baja 10000. Thhey arere
know
kn wn as Baja Bugs.

23
OFF-ROAD MOTORBIKE
ff-road motorbikes are mostly built for racing.
Some models are legal on the road, but it’s on the
dirt where they are really at home. And because
they are so light, agile and powerful, they are the kings of
any off-road track – going faster than any other vehicle
over the steep slopes, hard bumps and tight turns.

KT
T M 50 SX
KTM are one of the
best makers of
off-road bikes.
They produce bikes
for every class of off-road race,
all orange and black. The 50 SX is
the smallest bike they make. It is
used in junior motocross,
where competitors
can be as young
as five years old.

24
Vehicc l e : K T M 5 0 S X
To
To p s p e e d : not known
Coo u n t r y of origin: A u s t r i a
Coo s t : £ 2,545
Cll a i m to fam m e : T hee 2 0 0 9 J u n ior 8 5cc M o t o c roo ss
Wo r l d C h a mpp ion waa s ridingg a K T M .

CLIMB AND CONQUER

Motocross is cross-country racing on specially
built tracks. The bikes have knobbly tyres that
grip the track so they can scramble
up slopes. They also have super
suspensions for a smoother ride.

END
E D URANCE
K
KTM also build bikes
foor long-distance
eenduro races. Enduro
iss like a car rally, with
ddifferent stages on
a variety
i t off ttracks.
k ThThe engines are quieter and
smoother than motocross engines. The bikes
are also more comfortable for longer periods
in the saddle.

25
AMPHIBIOUS VEHICLE
n amphibious vehicle is a road-goinng vehicle that cann
drive right into a sea or riiver and magi
gically traansforrm
into a boat. The mosst famous is now w ‘The Duckk’.
Ducks are army vehiclles that havee beenn trransfo
ormedd into
tour boat-buses inn some of the worlld’s biiggest cities.

TAKE A TOUR
The nam me of thee Duck came from its army name, the DUKW. They were
first built by the US Army to carry troops and weapons from ships to
land during World War II. Many have been adapted to offer tourist trips
around cities, like the one above in Boston,, USA. Theyy drive around thee
city, and then take the tour right into thee water.

26
 Vehicc lee D U K W ( converted)
Topp s p e ed: Land/Water 80/100 km/h (50/06 mph)
C o s t : £ 118,000 (to connve r t f rom
m a military ve h i c lee )
C o u n t ry of origin: United Stt ates of A m e r icc a
C laa i m to fame: DUKW Ws were used in thhe D-D Day
lan
ndinggs, transportingg 160,000 troops to Francce!

W HY DOESN’T IT SIN
NK?
The Duck has a watertighht
hull, a propellerr and a
rudder,, just like a boat.
The truckk’ss engine powers
a spinning propeller, whichh
creates a force stroongg
enough to move thee heaavyavy
truck throug
ugh thee water.

UNDER
U RWATER BOND
Probablyy the most famo ous amph phibiouuss
vvehiclle ever is JJames Bond’s Lootus
EEspriit in the film The Spy Whoho Loved
ed
M (1977). Thhe Lotus plunge
Me geed into
to the
water, spprouted fins and a propel
w eller,
annd transformed into o a suubmari
rine!

27
GLOSSARY
aluminium a lightweight metal that resistss rust
border patrols when the police and otheer officials watch over
their country’s borders to stop people co
oming in illegally
chassis the metal frame on to which th
the wheels and body of the
car are fixed
deflate to let air out of the tyres
dexterous able to move easilyy annd nimblyy
D-Day landings when British, American and Canadian forces crossed
the English Channel in boats in June 1944 in order to land on the beaches
of Nazi-occupied France
four-wheel drive when the engine of a vehicle powers all four wheels
at once, rather than just two as on a normal car
hull the main body of a boat that goes in
the water
icon
nic something that, overr timee ,
has become an icon or syymboll
in
nflate to fifillll up or pu
nflate pump up
thhe tyres with air
motocross cross-ccountr try
mo otor-racing on spe
spec
ecially built
dirtt traacks

28
 p
propeller a circle of
bblades, like a fan, that is
sspun round by a motor
tto propel or push a boat
through water
ra
race-ready
d whenh a vehicle
hi l can be
b bou
boughth andd raced immediately,
without having to be adapted or strenngthened
reverse gear the gear on a vehiclee that makes it go backwards
rudder an underwater paddle tthat is used to steer a boat
shock absorbers air or oil-filllled parts that soak up bumps
in the road
suspension a system of sprrings
p and shock absorbers that work
between a vehicle and its wheels to absorb all the bumps in the groundd
tarmac a type of materiial used to surface roads
technology the use of science and the latest equipment
terrain what the gr
ground is like, eg. rocky, smooth, flat or hilllly
t k a revolving
tracks l i g metal or rubber band that drives a vehiccle suuch
as a snowmobile
traction the waway a vehicle’s wheels grip the ground so it ca
can dri
rive
the vehicle forw
ward
veterans pe people or vehicles that have seen lengthy aand
active serviice

29
INDEX
A Montero 20-21
all-terrain vehicles (ATV) 8-9, 12 motocross 9, 24, 25, 28
amphibious vehicles 26-27 motorbikes 8, 24-25

B P
Baja 1000 23 Polaris 600 Rush 10, 11
Baja Bug 23 Polaris 600 IQ Touring 11
border patrols 13, 28
Bowler Nemesis 22-23 Q
quad bikes 8-9, 12
D
Dakar Rally 21, 22, 23 R
d
deserts
t 12,
12 13,
13 16,
16 21,
21 23 races 8, 9, 21, 22-23,
22 23, 24, 25, 28, 29
diesel engines 6
S
Duck, the 26-27 Sand-X 12-13
F Shogun 20-21
farming 8,
8 19 snowmobiles 10-11,, 12,, 29
four-wheel drive 7, 14, 16-17, 28 Sports Utility Vehicles (SUV) 20-21
suspension 8, 10, 11, 22, 25, 29
H
Hummer 17 T
Humvee 15, 16-17 The Spy Who Loved Me 27

J U
Jeep 14-15 US Army 14, 15, 16, 26
Jeep Wrangler 15 utility vehicles 18-19

K V
KTM 50 SX 24-25 Volkswagen Beetle 23

L W
Land Rover Defender 18-19, 22 Willy’s Overland 14
Lotus Esprit 27 World War II 14-15,, 18, 26,, 27, 28

M Y
Mitsubishi Pajero 20-21 Yamaha YFZ450R
R9
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